book report lord of the flies

• Lord of the Flies

William Golding

• Literature Notes
• Book Summary
• Lord of the Flies at a Glance
• About Lord of the Flies
• Character List
• Summary and Analysis
• Character Analysis
• Character Map
• William Golding Biography
• Critical Essays
• Major Themes
• Concept, Identity, and Manifestations of the Beast
• Golding's Use of the Fable Structure
• Famous Quotes
• Film Versions
• Full Glossary
• Essay Questions
• Practice Projects
• Cite this Literature Note

Lord of the Flies explores the dark side of humanity, the savagery that underlies even the most civilized human beings. William Golding intended this novel as a tragic parody of children's adventure tales, illustrating humankind's intrinsic evil nature. He presents the reader with a chronology of events leading a group of young boys from hope to disaster as they attempt to survive their uncivilized, unsupervised, isolated environment until rescued.

In the midst of a nuclear war, a group of British boys find themselves stranded without adult supervision on a tropical island. The group is roughly divided into the "littluns," boys around the age of six, and the "biguns," who are between the ages of ten and twelve. Initially, the boys attempt to form a culture similar to the one they left behind. They elect a leader, Ralph , who, with the advice and support of Piggy (the intellectual of the group), strives to establish rules for housing and sanitation. Ralph also makes a signal fire the group's first priority, hoping that a passing ship will see the smoke signal and rescue them. A major challenge to Ralph's leadership is Jack , who also wants to lead. Jack commands a group of choirboys-turned-hunters who sacrifice the duty of tending the fire so that they can participate in the hunts. Jack draws the other boys slowly away from Ralph's influence because of their natural attraction to and inclination toward the adventurous hunting activities symbolizing violence and evil.

The conflict between Jack and Ralph — and the forces of savagery and civilization that they represent — is exacerbated by the boys' literal fear of a mythical beast roaming the island. One night, an aerial battle occurs above the island, and a casualty of the battle floats down with his opened parachute, ultimately coming to rest on the mountaintop. Breezes occasionally inflate the parachute, making the body appear to sit up and then sink forward again. This sight panics the boys as they mistake the dead body for the beast they fear. In a reaction to this panic, Jack forms a splinter group that is eventually joined by all but a few of the boys. The boys who join Jack are enticed by the protection Jack's ferocity seems to provide, as well as by the prospect of playing the role of savages: putting on camouflaging face paint, hunting, and performing ritualistic tribal dances. Eventually, Jack's group actually slaughters a sow and, as an offering to the beast, puts the sow's head on a stick.

Of all the boys, only the mystic Simon has the courage to discover the true identity of the beast sighted on the mountain. After witnessing the death of the sow and the gift made of her head to the beast, Simon begins to hallucinate, and the staked sow's head becomes the Lord of the Flies, imparting to Simon what he has already suspected: The beast is not an animal on the loose but is hidden in each boy's psyche. Weakened by his horrific vision, Simon loses consciousness.

Recovering later that evening, he struggles to the mountaintop and finds that the beast is only a dead pilot/soldier. Attempting to bring the news to the other boys, he stumbles into the tribal frenzy of their dance. Perceiving him as the beast, the boys beat him to death.

Soon only three of the older boys, including Piggy, are still in Ralph's camp. Jack's group steals Piggy's glasses to start its cooking fires, leaving Ralph unable to maintain his signal fire. When Ralph and his small group approach Jack's tribe to request the return of the glasses, one of Jack's hunters releases a huge boulder on Piggy, killing him. The tribe captures the other two biguns prisoners, leaving Ralph on his own.

The tribe undertakes a manhunt to track down and kill Ralph, and they start a fire to smoke him out of one of his hiding places, creating an island-wide forest fire. A passing ship sees the smoke from the fire, and a British naval officer arrives on the beach just in time to save Ralph from certain death at the hands of the schoolboys turned savages.

Previous Lord of the Flies at a Glance

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A Summary and Analysis of William Golding’s Lord of the Flies

By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University)

Lord of the Flies was first published in 1954, although it very nearly wasn’t published at all. Its author, William Golding, was a struggling grammar-school teacher when he wrote it, having been given the germ of the idea by his wife, Ann.

The novel’s title is a reference to Beelzebub, a name for the Devil, which means literally ‘lord of the flies’ (at least in most translations ). Given the fact that power, devilry, and, yes, flies are all central aspects of Lord of the Flies , the title is especially apt.

Golding (nicknamed ‘Scruff’ by his pupils) struggled to get the novel accepted by numerous publishers before Faber and Faber took it on. However, even there it was initially rejected (the initial reader at Faber dismissed it as ‘absurd and uninteresting fantasy’ and ‘rubbish and dull’) until a young editor, Charles Monteith, saw potential in the manuscript and got it accepted. It still sells tens of thousands of copies every year.

But how should we interpret this tale of post-apocalyptic barbarism? Before we offer an analysis of Golding’s novel, here’s a brief reminder of the plot.

Lord of the Flies : plot summary

The novel begins with a plane carrying a group of British schoolboys being shot down; the boys land on a desert island. Two of them, Ralph and Piggy, find a conch shell on the beach, and they use it to signal to the rest of the schoolboys, who then start to form their own ‘society’, with a leader elected among them.

Ralph is named the leader while Jack is his sort of second-in-command, in charge of finding food on the island.

After they start a fire to try to signal for help, they accidentally burn down a large part of the nearby forest, killing one boy. When a ship does sail past, it doesn’t stop to rescue the boys because Jack’s band of hunters have carelessly allowed the signal-fire to go out.

Jack and his gang have managed to hunt and kill a pig for them to eat. Things start to get out of hand, and some of the younger boys in particular are terrified that some sea-monster will come and kill them.

When a parachutist – part of a team of fighter-pilots flying overhead – lands on the island, several of the boys think his flapping parachute is the wings of the mysterious island ‘beast’, and they run away, terrified, and spreading fear to the other boys, who organise a hunting trip to try to catch the beast.

Jack and Ralph fall out, with Jack trying to oust the more senior boy from the position of leader – a move that the rest of the boys resist. Jack stomps off with his hunting band, and many of the other boys subsequently desert Ralph’s ‘side’ for Jack.

Jack, emboldened by his new supporters, ritually sacrifices a pig, which is decapitated, its head placed on a stick. Simon sees it, and thinks it’s talking to him: some devil-like figure known as ‘Lord of the Flies’. When Simon returns to the others, they set upon him and kill him, not realising who he is. Jack and his hunters run off with Piggy’s glasses. Jack and Ralph fight, and Piggy is killed with a rock.

Jack and the others hunt Ralph, who flees, only to be rescued by a British sailor who was on board a ship that spotted the fire raging on the island and came ashore. The other boys turn up, and when the officer confronts them over their appearance, they all break down in tears.

Lord of the Flies : analysis

Golding conceived Lord of the Flies as a sort of dark counterpart, or response, to the classic Victorian boys’ adventure novel, The Coral Island by R. M. Ballantyne, in which three boys are marooned on a Pacific island.

But whereas in Ballantyne’s 1857 novel the stranded children encounter evil as an exterior force on the island, Golding inverted this: he shows us, unsettlingly, that evil is always lurking within ourselves, and is only ever just beneath the surface in so-called ‘ordinary’ or ‘civilised’ people.

Golding’s working title for his novel, Strangers from Within , makes it clear that the devil – that ‘Lord of the Flies’ – is within us, all of us, rather than outside, elsewhere.

But although Golding’s novel is often viewed as a dystopian tale about ‘human nature’ and how, in times of desperation and disaster, certain people will seize power and others will be the victims of their oppressive control, Lord of the Flies actually has its roots in something more specific than this: the British class system.

The three principal characters of the novel – Ralph, Piggy, and Jack – represent the three main classes in England, much as the famous class sketch from The Frost Report captured in a sketch just over a decade after Golding’s novel appeared.

As John Sutherland argues in his discussion of Lord of the Flies in How to be Well Read: A guide to 500 great novels and a handful of literary curiosities , Ralph is a grammar-school boy, Piggy the product of a working-class ‘tech’ school (a short-lived post-war phenomenon), and Jack the privileged public school boy.

Ralph, therefore, is riddled with self-doubt about his middling position in English society: the Jacks of the world are above him and the Piggies below him. Jack has all of the confidence of someone born into privilege and with an almost innate sense of their right to lord it over everyone else.

The message of Lord of the Flies , then, is that if you remove these schoolchildren from Britain, the British class system will still reassert itself as they construct their own stratified ‘society’. The island on which the boys are stranded becomes like the island of Great Britain which they left.

Piggy, however, is working-class. As Sutherland argues, his use of phrases like ‘the runs’ instead of, say, ‘an upset tummy’ are subtle ways in which Golding, without hammering home Piggy’s origins, reveal his status to the reader. He was always destined to be the scapegoat because the English class system dictated it. Coupled with his physical or evolutionary disadvantage (his extreme myopia and reliance on glasses) and he was doomed from the start.

The British class system, then, informs the novel, making it a peculiarly British dissection of power structures. According to Sutherland, Golding – himself a teacher at the sort of grammar school which produced the decent and honourable Ralph – once said that he would happily blow up every public school in England, and Lord of the Flies shows how it is the Jack Merridews produced by the English public school system which are the most capable of wreaking destructive power over others.

But it’s also true that Lord of the Flies bears the influence of another important experience in Golding’s life: his experience in the Second World War fighting in the Royal Navy, which showed him first-hand how ordinary men could become capable of performing acts of great evil.

Of course, the horrors of Nazi Germany were also an important source for Golding’s depiction of evil, especially the way the other boys merrily join Jack’s command.

Along with its searing commentary on the inherent evils of the British class system, Lord of the Flies is a powerful narrative about how fear is all it takes to persuade many ‘normal’, ‘decent’ people to behave horrifically.

1 thought on “A Summary and Analysis of William Golding’s Lord of the Flies”

We “did” this at school. I don’t know why they thought a book about badly-behaved boys would interest a class of girls!

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Lord of the Flies

William golding, everything you need for every book you read..

A group of English schoolboys are marooned on a jungle island with no adults after their plane is shot down in the middle of a war. Two of the boys, Ralph and Piggy find a conch shell. Ralph blows into it like a horn, and all the boys on the island assemble. At the assembly, a boy named Jack mocks Piggy for being fat and runs against Ralph to become chief of the group. Ralph wins the election, and declares Jack the leader of the group's hunters. Soon after, Ralph, Jack, and another boy named Simon explore the island and discover wild pigs.

At a second assembly, the boys set up rules to govern themselves. The first rule is that whoever wants to speak at an assembly must hold the conch. At the meeting, one young boy claims he saw a " beastie " in the jungle, but Ralph dismisses it as just the product of a nightmare. Ralph then suggests that they build a signal fire at the top of a mountain so any passing ships will see its smoke and rescue them. The boys use Piggy's glasses to light the fire, but they're careless, and accidentally set part of the forest on fire. The boy who saw the beastie vanishes during the fire and is never seen again.

Time passes. Tensions rise. Ralph becomes frustrated when no one helps him build shelters. Lots of boys goof off, while Jack obsesses about hunting and takes every opportunity to mock Piggy, who is smart but weak. Simon, meanwhile, often wanders off into the forest to meditate. The rivalry between Ralph and Jack erupts when Jack forces the boys who were supposed to watch the signal fire come hunting with him. They kill their first pig, but a ship passes while the signal fire is out, which causes a tremendous argument between Ralph and Jack.

Ralph calls an assembly hoping to set things right. But the meeting soon becomes chaotic as several younger boys talk about the beast. Now even the bigger boys are fearful. That night, after a distant airplane battle, a dead parachutist lands on the mountaintop next to the signal fire. The boys on duty at the fire think it's the beast. Soon Ralph and Jack lead an expedition to search the island for the beast. While searching, they find a rock outcropping that would make a great fort, but no beast. Tempers between the two boys soon flare up, and they climb the mountain in the dark to prove their courage. They spot the shadowy parachutist and think he's the beast.

The next morning, Jack challenges Ralph's authority at an assembly. Ralph wins, but Jack leaves the group, and most of the older boys join him. Jack's tribe paint their faces, hunt, and kill a pig. They then leave its head as an offering to the beast. Simon comes upon the head, and sees that it's the Lord of the Flies —the beast within all men. While Jack invites everyone to come to a feast, Simon climbs the mountain and sees the parachutist. When Simon returns to tell everyone the truth about the "beast," however, the boys at the feast have become a frenzied mob, acting out a ritual killing of a pig. The mob thinks Simon is the beast and kills him.

Jack's tribe moves to the rock fort. They steal Piggy's glasses to make fire. Ralph and his last allies, Piggy and the twins named Samneric , go to get the glasses back. Jack's tribe captures the twins, and a boy named Roger rolls a boulder from the fort that smashes the conch and kills Piggy. The next day the tribe hunts Ralph, setting fire to the forest as they do. He evades them as best he can, and becomes a kind of animal that thinks only of survival and escape. Eventually the boys corner Ralph on the beach where they first set up their society when they crash landed on the island. But the burning jungle has attracted a British Naval ship, and an officer is standing on the shore. The boys stop, stunned, and stare at the man. He jokingly asks if the boys are playing at war, and whether there were any casualties. When Ralph says yes, the officer is shocked and disappointed that English boys would act in such a manner. Ralph starts to cry, and soon the other boys start crying too. The officer, uncomfortable, looks away toward his warship.

'Lord of the Flies' Summary

William Golding's novel reveals the savagery of human nature

• B.A., English, Rutgers University

William Golding’s 1954 novel "Lord of the Flies" tells the story of a group of young boys who find themselves alone on a deserted island. They develop rules and a system of organization, but without any adults to serve as a civilizing impulse, the children eventually become violent and brutal. In the context of the novel, the tale of the boys' descent into chaos suggests that human nature is fundamentally savage.

Establishing a Society

The novel opens with a young boy named Ralph and a chubby, glasses-wearing boy as they walk onto a lagoon wearing their school uniforms. We soon learn that they are part of a group of boys who were evacuated during the war and who survived the plane crash that followed what they suspect was an enemy attack. As Ralph and the other boy see that there are no adults around, they decide they must attract the attention of any other surviving children. Ralph locates a conch shell and begins to blow into it, summoning the other boys with the noise. The chubby boy reveals that the other children used to call him Piggy.

Ralph believes rescue is imminent, but Piggy argues that they must get organized because they may be stranded for some time. The other boys choose Ralph to be their leader, although the choice is not unanimous; the choir boys, led by Jack Merridew, do not vote for Ralph. Ralph gives them permission to form a hunting group. Ralph quickly establishes a rough form of government and order, exhorting the boys to enjoy their freedom, work together for their mutual survival, and maintain a smoke signal on the beach to attract any potential rescuers. The boys in turn agree that anyone holding the conch gets to speak without interruption.

Ralph, Jack, and a boy named Simon are the popular leaders and begin a tense partnership. They explore the island and confirm it is deserted, but locate fruit trees and a herd of wild pigs that Jack decides he and his friends will hunt. The boys use Piggy’s glasses to spark a fire, and Piggy quickly finds himself an outcast despite his friendship with Ralph. Simon begins overseeing the construction of shelters, concerned for the younger boys—referred to as "littluns."

A Lack of Order

The initial burst of organization doesn’t last long, however. Without adults, most of the boys refuse to do any sort of work and instead spend their time playing and sleeping. At night, rumors of a terrible monster in the trees spark a panic. Ralph insists monsters do not exist, but Jack says otherwise. He claims that his hunters will find and kill the monster, which boosts his popularity.

Jack gathers a group of boys for a hunting expedition, which takes them away from the job of maintaining the signal fire. The fire goes out. Shortly after, a boat moves past the island but does not spot the boys thanks to the lack of fire. When Jack and the other hunters return in triumph with a pig, Ralph confronts Jack, complaining that they missed their chance at rescue. Jack, angry at his moment being ruined but knowing he cannot fight Ralph, beats up Piggy, breaking his glasses.

As the boys cook and eat the pig ravenously—ignoring warnings about eating undercooked pork—Ralph tells Piggy he wants to stop being the leader, but Piggy convinces him to stay on. Piggy is terrified at what might happen if Jack took over completely.

The Monster

One evening, there is a dogfight between planes near the island, and a fighter pilot ejects. Killed in the air, his body floats down to the island and becomes entangled in the trees. A boy sees his corpse and parachute and is terrified, convinced that he has seen the monster. Jack, Ralph, and a boy named Roger head off to hunt the monster, and all three boys see the corpse and run in terror.

Now convinced that the monster is real, Ralph calls a meeting. Jack attempts a coup, but the boys refuse to vote Ralph down. Jack leaves in anger, saying he will start his own tribe, and Roger sneaks away to join him. More and more boys begin to sneak away to join Jack’s tribe, lured by the roast pigs that Jack and his hunters are able to provide. Jack and his followers begin to paint their faces and behave in an increasingly savage and primitive manner while Ralph, Piggy, and Simon try to maintain a semblance of order at the shelters.

Simon, who sometimes suffers mental attacks, goes off into the woods frequently to be alone. Hiding, he observes Jack and his tribe perform a ritual designed to satisfy the monster: They impale a pig’s head on a sharpened stick and leave it as a sacrifice. It quickly becomes swarmed with flies, and Simon hallucinates a dialog with it, referring to it as the Lord of the Flies. The Pig’s Head tells Simon he is foolish to imagine the monster is a flesh-and-blood thing; it is the boys themselves who are the monster. The Lord of the Flies then tells Simon that the other boys will kill him because he is the soul of man.

As Simon walks away, he comes across the dead pilot and realizes that he has found proof that the monster does not exist. He runs back to the other boys, who have begun to dance in a crazed ritual. When Simon begins crashing through the trees, the boys believe he is the monster, and all the boys—including Ralph and Piggy—attack him in terror, killing him.

Revolt and Rescue

Meanwhile, Jack has realized that while the conch is a symbol of power, the true power lies in Piggy’s glasses—the group's only means of starting a fire. Jack has the support of most of the boys, so he conducts a raid on Ralph and his remaining allies in order to steal Piggy's glasses. Ralph, in turn, goes to their home on the other side of the island, a rock formation known as Castle Rock. Accompanied by Piggy and just two other boys—twins named Sam and Eric—he takes the conch and demands that Jack return the glasses. Jack’s tribe ties up Sam and Eric, and Ralph and Jack engage in a fight. Piggy, alarmed, takes the conch and attempts to address the boys, pleading for order. Roger sneaks up above Piggy and drops a heavy rock on him, killing the boy and destroying the conch. Ralph flees, leaving Sam and Eric behind. Jack hurts the twins until they agree to join his tribe.

Jack orders the hunters to go after Ralph, who is told by Sam and Eric that they intend to kill him and impale his head on a stick. Ralph flees into the woods, but Jack sets fire to the trees to drive him out. As the flames begin to consume the whole island, Ralph desperately runs. Hitting the beach, he trips and falls, only to find himself at the feet of a British naval officer. A ship spotted the flames and came to investigate.

All of the children, including Ralph and Jack, suddenly begin to cry, collapsing in exhausted grief. The officer is stunned and expresses disappointment that good British boys would fall into such a state of misbehavior and savagery. Then he turns and studies his own warship contemplatively.

• 'Lord of the Flies' Themes, Symbols, and Literary Devices
• 'Lord of the Flies' Overview
• 'Lord of the Flies' Characters: Descriptions and Significance
• Lord of the Flies Book Profile
• Memorable Quotes From 'Lord of the Flies'
• 'Lord of the Flies' Quotes Explained
• Lord of the Flies: A Critical History
• 10 Classic Novels for Teens
• 'Lord of the Flies' Vocabulary
• Why Is 'Lord of the Flies' Challenged and Banned?
• 'Lord of the Flies' Questions for Study and Discussion
• Controversial and Banned Books
• The Most Commonly Read Books in High School
• 9 Must-Read Books If You Like 'Lord of the Flies'
• Mythical Creatures: The Monsters from Greek Mythology
• The Role of Caliban in 'The Tempest'

Themes and Analysis

Lord of the flies, by william golding.

Lord of the Flies by William Golding is a powerful novel. It's filled with interesting themes, thoughtful symbols, and a particular style of writing that has made it a classic of British literature.

About the Book

Written by Lee-James Bovey

P.G.C.E degree.

Several key themes are prevalent throughout the book. It is sometimes referred to as a “book of ideas” and these ideas are explored as the plot unfolds.

Lord of the Flies Themes

The impact of humankind on nature.

This is evident from the first chapter when the plane crashing leaves what Golding describes as a “scar” across the island. This idea is explored further in the early chapters the boys light a fire that escapes their control and yet further diminishes what might be considered an unspoiled island. Some interpret the island almost as a Garden of Eden with the children giving in to temptation by slaughtering the animals there. The final chapter furthers the destruction of nature by mankind as the whole island appears to have been ruined thanks to the effects of the boy’s presence on the island.

Civilization versus savagery

This can be seen throughout as the boys struggle with being removed from organized society. To begin with, they cope well. They construct a form of government represented by the conch that theoretically draws them together and gives them all a voice. As they break away from society this adherence to the rules they have constructed is evident. Golding’s ideas of what savagery is might be outdated and rooted in colonial stereotypes but they are evident for all to see as the boys use masks to dehumanize themselves and their increasing obsession with hunting leads to an increasingly animalistic nature.

Nature of humanity

Perhaps the biggest underlying theme is the idea of the true nature of mankind. Golding explores the idea that mankind is innately evil and that it is only the contrast between society and civilization that prevents that nature from being prevalent. Of course, this overlooks that civilization is a human construct and if all men’s biggest motivation were their inner evil, then that construct would never have existed. Golding’s views largely spring from his role in the navy where he was witness to the atrocities of war but are also informed by his work as a teacher.

Analysis of Key Moments in Lord of the Flies

There are many key moments in ‘ Lord of the Flies ‘ that highlight the boy’s descent into savagery.

• Blowing the conch – this introduces us to the conch which acts as a symbol of society and civilization throughout the novel. It is both the device that brings the children together and in theory the object which allows them all to have a say and therefore run a democratic society.
• The fire gets out of control – This shows the effects that the boys are already having on the island. It also demonstrates how lost the boys are without adults there to guide them as they lose one of the boys and nobody even knows his name.
• Jack fails to kill the pig/Roger throws stones – both of these events show how the boys are currently constrained by the expectations of society. We see as time passes these restraints are lifted and that firstly, Jack can kill a pig and finally, and perhaps more dramatically, Roger is not only okay with hitting somebody with a stone but taking their life with one.
• The hunters put on masks – By covering up their faces, they seem to become free from the constraints of society. It is if it liberates them from humanity and allows them to act on more primal, animalistic urges.
• Sam and Eric find “the beast” – When Sam and Eric feel they have discovered the beast it sets a ripple of panic throughout. This fear sways the boys towards Jack’s leadership as he continues to manipulate the situation to his advantage. If not for this then Simon might never be murdered.
• Creating of the Lord of the Flies – Successfully killing the pig is itself an iconic moment but then leaving a pigs head on a pole is both a gruesome image (one worthy of the book’s title) and also plays a pivotal role in Simon’s story arc.
• Simon’s death – Simon is the one character who never seems to succumb to primal urges and therefore his death if looked at symbolically could be seen as the death of hope for boys.
• Piggy’s death – Piggy’s character represents order and reason. With his death, any chance of resolving the issues between Jack and Ralph vanishes. The conch being smashed at the same time is also symbolic and represents the complete destruction of society.
• The rescue – This is not the happy ending that one might expect with all the boys crying due to their loss of innocence. There is an irony as well as the boys will not be rescued and taken to a Utopia but rather to a civilization plagued by a war that mirrors the war zone they have just left.

Style, Literary Devices, and Tone in Lord of the Flies

Throughout this novel, Golding’s style is straightforward and easy to read. There are no lengthy passages nor does he choose particularly poetic words to describe the events. His writing is powerful without these stylistic devices. The same can be said for his use of literary devices. When used, they are direct. For example, the use of symbolism (see below) and metaphor is very thoughtful but not hard to interpret.

William Golding also employs an aloof or distant tone throughout the book. This reflects the way that the boys treat one another.

Symbols in Lord of the Flies

The conch shell.

The conch shell is one of the major symbols of this novel. It’s used from the beginning of the novel to call the boys together for meetings on the beach. It’s a symbol of civilization and government. But, as the boys lose touch with their civilized sides, the conch shell is discarded.

The Signal Fire

The signal fire is a very important symbol in the novel. It’s first lit on the mountain and then later on the beach with the intent of attracting the attention of passion ships. The fire is maintained diligently at first but as the book progresses and the boys slip farther from civilization, their concentration on the fire wanes. They eventually lose their desire to be rescued. Therefore, as one is making their way through the book, gauging the boys’ concentration on the fire is a great way to understand how “civilized” they are.

The beast is an imaginary creature who frightens the boys. It stands in for their savage instincts and is eventually revealed to be a personification of their dark impulses. It’s only through the boy’s behaviour that the beast exists at all.

What are three themes in Lord of the Flies ?

Three themes in ‘ Lord of the Flies ‘ are civilization vs. savagery, the impact of humankind on nature, and the nature of humanity.

What is the main message of the Lord of the Flies ?

The main message is that if left without rules, society devolves and loses its grasp on what is the morally right thing to do. this is even the case with kids.

How does Ralph lose his innocence in Lord of the Flies ?

He loses his innocence when he witnesses the deaths of Simon and Piggy. These losses in addition to the broader darkness of the island change him.

About Lee-James Bovey

Lee-James, a.k.a. LJ, has been a Book Analysis team member since it was first created. During the day, he's an English Teacher. During the night, he provides in-depth analysis and summary of books.

Cite This Page

Bovey, Lee-James " Lord of the Flies Themes and Analysis 🏝️ " Book Analysis , https://bookanalysis.com/william-golding/lord-of-the-flies/themes-analysis/ . Accessed 1 April 2024.

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Exploring the Summary, Themes and Symbols in “Lord of the Flies”

William Golding’s “Lord of the Flies” is a classic novel published in 1954 that has become a significant work of literature, both for its exploration of the human condition and its powerful storytelling. This book has become a staple in high school English curriculums across the world, introducing generations of students to the concepts of power, morality, and savagery. In this article, we will explore the book’s themes, symbols, and literary devices, and analyze the author’s style. We will also examine its reception and legacy in the decades since its publication.

Lord of the Flies summary

Why is lord of the flies banned.

Through the plot, Golding explores themes of power, morality, and savagery in human nature, as well as the loss of innocence. The story also serves as an allegory for the breakdown of society and the dangers of totalitarianism. The plot is gripping and intense, with moments of suspense and horror that keep readers engaged throughout the book.

One of the most prominent themes is the struggle for power. The boys on the island must establish a system of governance and leadership, which leads to a power struggle between Ralph and Jack. This struggle for power reveals the boys’ underlying desire for control and dominance, which ultimately leads to their descent into savagery.

Another key theme is civilization vs. savagery. The boys’ attempts to maintain a civilized society on the island are constantly threatened by their natural instincts towards savagery. As they struggle to survive and overcome their fears, the boys gradually lose their sense of morality and resort to violent and primal behavior.

Fear and paranoia are also major themes in the book. The boys’ fear of the unknown and their belief in a beast on the island drive them to acts of violence and cruelty. Their paranoia causes them to turn on one another, leading to the breakdown of their society.

Finally, “Lord of the Flies” explores the theme of the loss of innocence. The boys’ experiences on the island cause them to lose their innocence and become aware of the darker aspects of human nature. The story serves as a warning against the corrupting influence of power and the dangers of unchecked aggression.

Overall, the themes in “Lord of the Flies” are universal and thought-provoking, making it a powerful and enduring work of literature.

One of the most significant symbols in the book is the conch shell. The conch is a symbol of order and democracy, as it is used to call the boys together and establish rules. However, as the boys become more savage, the conch loses its power and ultimately shatters, representing the breakdown of order and the loss of civilization.

The beast is another important symbol in the book. While the boys initially believe the beast to be a physical creature on the island, it eventually becomes clear that the beast is a manifestation of their own primal instincts and fears. The beast symbolizes the darkness within each of the boys, and their struggle to overcome it.

The “Lord of the Flies” is yet another powerful symbol in the book. The pig’s head on a stick represents the boys’ descent into savagery and the triumph of evil over good. The “Lord of the Flies” also represents the boys’ internal struggles and their growing awareness of the darkness within themselves.

Overall, the symbolism in “Lord of the Flies” enhances the themes of the book and provides a deeper understanding of the characters and their experiences on the island.

“Lord of the Flies” has been the subject of controversy and has been banned or challenged in several schools and libraries. There are several reasons why the book has been banned or challenged:

• Violence and gore: The book contains instances of violence, murder, and gore, which some people find inappropriate for younger readers.
• Profanity: The book includes some instances of profanity, which some people find offensive.
• Sexual content: While there is no explicit sexual content in the book, some people find the references to sexuality and sexual tension between the characters inappropriate for younger readers.
• Racial and gender stereotypes: Some readers have criticized the book for perpetuating racial and gender stereotypes, such as the portrayal of the black character as inferior and the lack of female characters.
• Religious and moral values: The book’s themes and depictions of violence and savagery have been seen as conflicting with some religious and moral values.

Despite these criticisms, “Lord of the Flies” remains a significant work of literature and has been widely studied and appreciated for its exploration of human nature and its powerful storytelling.

Why is the book called "Lord of the Flies"?

The title "Lord of the Flies" is a translation of the Hebrew name Beelzebub, which is often used as a synonym for Satan. The title represents the idea that evil and darkness are present within all humans, and can manifest itself in unexpected ways.

What book is "Lord of the Flies" based on?

"Lord of the Flies" is not based on a specific book, but it was inspired by several works of literature, including R.M. Ballantyne's "The Coral Island," which features a group of boys stranded on a deserted island.

Why is "Lord of the Flies" a good book?

"Lord of the Flies" is a good book because it explores timeless themes such as the struggle for power, morality, and the loss of innocence. It is also a gripping and intense story that keeps readers engaged from beginning to end.

Why is "Lord of the Flies" a bad book?

Some people may consider "Lord of the Flies" a bad book due to its depictions of violence and gore, profanity, and sexual content. It has also been criticized for perpetuating racial and gender stereotypes. However, these criticisms are subjective and do not diminish the book's literary significance.

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Book Review

Lord of the Flies by William Golding

Publisher: Faber and Faber | Genre: Allegory, Social Commentary

Title : Lord of the Flies

Author: William Golding

Publisher: Faber and Faber

Genre: Allegory, Social Commentary

First Publication: 1954

Language: English

Setting Place: Deserted Tropical Island

Protagonist: Ralph

Major Characters: Ralph, Piggy, Jack, Simon, Samneric, Roger

Narration: Third person Omniscient

Theme: Evil, Outlets for violence, Human nature, Loss of innocence, Savagery Vs Civilization

Book Summary : Lord of the Flies by William Golding

In the midst of a nuclear war, a plane carrying a group of British school boys crashed on a deserted island. Without adult supervision they must work together and govern themselves to survive. At first the boys are civilized and elect Ralph, a boy of twelve years old, as a leader. Things start out okay and boys use Conch shell as a talking stick.

The first day goes rather smoothly and they discuss about hot to get rescued and what they have to do until then any ship come to bring them home. Ralph is determined about creating a smoke signal, so Samneric, a pair of twin boys, is assigned the duty to start and watch a signal fire. Another group, the choirboys lead by Jack, elect themselves to become the hunters and provide meat for the group. Simon, an enlightened boy and Piggy, a scientific thinker, quickly become the counsel for Ralph. Besides these boys, there are several younger boys about the age of six.

“Maybe there is a beast… maybe it’s only us.”

Jack and his group become increasingly interested in killing sows. They begin to paint their faces and track the animals for hunting. All the boys begin to be afraid of an imaginary beast in the jungle. Their fears are further fueled when a dead man with a parachute landed on the top of the mountain. The boys begin to see Jack as a protector and look to him for leadership.

Then the conflict increased between Ralph and Jack. Most of the boys on island joined Jack’s tribe, except Ralph, Piggy, Sam and Eric and a couple of the littluns. Jack and group have become complete savages partaking in daily hunting and tribal dancing.

Character List: Lord of the Flies by William Golding

Ralph- The main protagonist of the story, a twelve year old boy who was elected as leader of the boys. Ralph tries to maintain discipline, order, structure. He represents the civilizing instinct of human beings.

Jack – The antagonist of the novel, and one of the older boys and leader of the choir. Jack becomes increasingly dark and disturbed during his stay on island. He represents the evil that exists within all men in uncivilized situations.

Piggy – Piggy is Ralph right hand man. Though criticized for his weight, asthma and lack of physical agility, He is the scientific mind and the rational thinker of Ralph’s team.

Roger – An oddly secretive and sadistic older boy who thrives on preying on those who are younger and weaker. Roger quickly becomes Jack’s first follower and carries out Jack’s evil wishes.

Sam and Eric – Also known as “samneric”, they are twin boys who seem to be one person. They are follower of Ralph and enjoy their duty of keeping the fire signal going.

Maurice-  He is Jack’s key supporters, accompanies him on the raids on Ralph’s camp.

Simon – The “enlightened” boy with a true natural sense of morality who spends a lot of time alone with nature. Simon helps and comforts the younger boys in their dreadful moments.

The Lord of the Flies – It’s the name given to the sow’s head that Jack’s gang transfixes on spear as an offering to the “beast.” The Lord of the Flies comes to symbolize the primeval instincts of power and barbaric nature that take control of Jack’s tribe.

Littluns-  The littlest boys, around ages six and up.

Book Review: Lord of the Flies by William Golding

In 1954, William Golding wrote Lord of the Flies, when the world was in the middle of the silent yet terrifying Cold War soon after the World War II . It is not only a tale of boys surviving after their plane crashed on a deserted island; it is an allegorical novel about the conflicts between savagery and civilization.

The significant symbolism which is rather easy to comprehend, made it one of the most popular and admired books in history. Lord of the Flies by William Golding presents a memorable and haunting account of believable characters portrayed so subtly and accurately.

“The thing is – fear can’t hurt you any more than a dream.”

Lord of the Flies by William Golding is based on a series of events following a plane crash that leaves a group of young school-going children stranded on a deserted Island during the Cold War. Lord of the Flies by William Golding is the story of those boy’s shocking survival. The dreams of all the boys have finally come true: after all, who wouldn’t want a whole island all to themselves to play on without any nagging from adults? Soon after a day or two, the boys realize they needed a leader. The main protagonist, Ralph, is elected as a leader of the group because to his popularity and leadership skills, with Piggy as his sidekick.

All the boys befriend one another, because there is nowhere to go. As the days pass, Jack gets hungrier for authority. What seemed to be a joyous escape from the chaotic adult world at first, soon advances into something far more disturbing and sinister.

I remain convinced to this day that Lord of the Flies is one of those controversial classic books that depends upon how you read it. On the surface it could be read as a simple moralistic tale – a portrayal of what happens when you take people away from society.

“The greatest ideas are the simplest.”

It may look as if Lord of the Flies is just a children’s adventure story. However, there is also a truth concealed deep inside the novel where Golding makes reader conscious of certain issues. The issues it concerns are: society, human nature, good vs. evil, ecological balance and cooperation. This is an allegorical novel where Golding employs the scene of a deserted island and a group of English school boys to serve as a framework, through which he explores the theme of his book.

William Golding uses this deceptively simple setup to question just how civilized we really are and how quickly we can descend into a mob of crazies. The question for the reader is whether these are but immature children or an allegory for the adult world and how quickly mob rule can take over and how few dare to go against the herd.

This story is a powerful depiction of human nature and its role in the rise and fall of democracy. Central to this story is the theme of fear: how it can be used as a means to control people and how it chisels away at our humanity.

“Which is better–to have laws and agree, or to hunt and kill?”

The three main characters Ralph, Jack and Piggy are archetypes of a natural leader, a bully and a nerd. They are not terribly complex people but they are still quite vivid characters who are defined more by their action than their brief moments of introspection. The early chapters have a spirit of adventure or perhaps a child’s idea of utopia, a world without adult supervision. As the characters degenerate into savagery the tone of the book become very dark and disturbing.

William Golding’s prose style is deliberately prosaic; there are no lyrical passages to speak of. This has the effect of amplifying the visceral impact of the narrative. There are however, some creepy surreal scenes involving a pig’s head on a stick. The ending of the novel is clearly telegraphed by the trajectory of the preceding chapters but it is still very effective for all that.

Symbols and motifs:

You will love the action-packed provocative tale of survival in Lord of the Flies by William Golding but also learn three very important characteristics of human nature. First: Human’s desire for social and political order through governments, legislatures and parliaments, depicted by the conch and platform. Second: Human’s natural tendency towards violence, savagery and every nation’s need for military and defense, depicted by the choir-boys-turned-hunters-turned-murderers. And third, our beliefs in the divine interventions and supernatural powers, depicted by the sacrifices and ceremonial dances to appease the “beast”.

Those who didn’t have the opportunity to read it before must not put it on hold any longer.

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I JUST finished this book and my review will post in July. So glad to see you liked it, too! This is required high school reading for most folks in the states, but glad I read it later (really later) in life as I don’t think the story and its meaning would have meant as much without the real-world experience I have now. Truly appreciate and enjoy your in-depth reviews. Well done!

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Lord of the flies, common sense media reviewers.

Gripping story of marooned schoolboys and mob mentality.

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this book.

The book's basic premise is that some people, depr

The novel raises questions about personal choice a

Ralph is the main character who's elected leader i

The British schoolboys depicted in the novel are W

One boy is bullied. Two characters are murdered: O

A taunt includes calling a character's asthma "ass

​​Parents need to know that Lord of the Flies has been described as dark, brutal, pessimistic, and tragic. Written from the point of view of British author William Golding, the novel tells the story of a group of White British school boys who survive after their plane crash lands on a remote island in the…

Educational Value

The book's basic premise is that some people, deprived of the rules and restrictions of society, will revert to barbaric behavior. This central conflict between nature versus nurture when it comes to morality is found on every page. Readers will also learn something about survival on an unpopulated island.

Positive Messages

The novel raises questions about personal choice and individual humanity in appalling situations. People are capable of selflessness, even when their own lives are at stake. There are times when it's critical to put the needs of the group ahead of individual needs or wants.

Positive Role Models

Ralph is the main character who's elected leader in the name of staying "civilized." He thinks strategically and shows compassion and perseverance, but his motives are questionable, and he does not succeed in his leadership of the group. Piggy, who is brainy and logical, represents the rational side of human beings; unfortunately, he's also deeply unpopular. Only Simon, who looks after the younger boys, seems naturally kind and good, as if born that way. Jack seeks power ruthlessly, but is charismatic, so he's able to command leadership, even when it results in more chaos. Other characters represent baser, more violent human impulses or the innocence of children. The characters, and how they relate to one another, underscore the value of ethics in collaborative situations.

Diverse Representations

The British schoolboys depicted in the novel are White. Their descent into "savagery," a term used repeatedly throughout the book, relies on racist stereotypes of Indigenous peoples from Africa, Asia, and the Americas being more violent and less civilized. The character Jack explicitly differentiates between "savages" and the English, suggesting that only the English know how to "have rules and obey them" and "are best at everything." A boy described as fat is nicknamed Piggy. He also has asthma. For those reasons, he's viewed as weak by the others. Women are not present and are only mentioned when the boys miss their mothers. The comparison to tying their hair back like "a girl" is used in a derogatory manner by the boys.

Did we miss something on diversity? Suggest an update.

Violence & Scariness

One boy is bullied. Two characters are murdered: One is beat to death and another falls to his death after being hit by a boulder pushed by one of the other boys. The acts are described in detail. Frequent mention of blood. Brief torture sequence. Boys hunt a pig and poke a sharp stick up its rear end while it's still alive. The setting and atmosphere are fraught with the potential for violence.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Violence & Scariness in your kid's entertainment guide.

A taunt includes calling a character's asthma "ass-mar."

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Language in your kid's entertainment guide.

Parents Need to Know

​​Parents need to know that Lord of the Flies has been described as dark, brutal, pessimistic, and tragic. Written from the point of view of British author William Golding, the novel tells the story of a group of White British school boys who survive after their plane crash lands on a remote island in the Pacific Ocean. The boys bully and eventually kill two members of their group, one in a brutal, frenzied beating, in the other murder, a character causes a boy to fall off a cliff. Both scenes are described in bloody detail. The book often compares being "civilized" with Britishness, while the boys' violent behavior is depicted as more primitive and draws on negative stereotypes of Indigenous peoples -- a false idea that was historically used to justify the colonization and oppression of people in places such as Africa, Asia, and the Americas. The story deals with a fundamental issue of humanity: Are people naturally prone to evil? This and other issues in the novel are well-suited for parent-child discussion.

Where to Read

Community reviews.

• Parents say (12)
• Kids say (111)

Based on 12 parent reviews

Great book for deep discussion

The classic of savagery, what's the story.

In LORD OF THE FLIES, a group of British schoolboys is marooned on a tropical island and left to fend for themselves, unsupervised by any adults. At first, the boys enjoy their freedom, playing and exploring the island. But soon the group splits into two factions: those who try to preserve the discipline and order they've learned from society, and those who choose to give in to every instinct and impulse, no matter how chaotic or cruel.

Is It Any Good?

This novel has been a perennial favorite since its first publication in 1954, and when he was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature, William Golding was lauded for his deep concern for humanity. Today, Lord of the Flies remains a staple of school reading lists, although some of its dated views about the nature of savagery are worth reexamining and discussing. Golding's prose is unadorned and straightforward, and the result is page-turning entertainment -- as well as a highly thought-provoking work of literature.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

Families can talk about how Lord of the Flies is considered a classic and is often required reading in school. Why do you think that is? Are there aspects of the novel that seem dated now? How does the depiction of the boys' bad behavior rely on stereotypes?

The boys on the island hope to survive their ordeal. How do they persevere through their difficult circumstances? What helps them survive?

Do you think people are born "good" or "evil" -- is our behavior always the result of choice? How is it that good people are capable of bad behavior, and vice versa? How do you think you might behave under the circumstances of the novel?

Is it always best to sacrifice your own wants and needs for the common good of a community? What are some examples of when characters show compassion ? What effect does compassion have on the characters and the events of this story?

What do you think some of the prominent elements of the story -- the conch, Piggy's glasses, the sow's head, the island's "beast" -- might symbolize?

Book Details

• Author : William Golding
• Genre : Literary Fiction
• Topics : Adventures , Friendship
• Character Strengths : Compassion , Perseverance
• Book type : Fiction
• Publisher : Perigree
• Publication date : January 1, 1954
• Number of pages : 304
• Last updated : August 16, 2023

Did we miss something on diversity?

Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.

Suggest an Update

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The Lord of the Flies by William Golding - review

"Which is better – to have rules and agree, or to hunt and kill?"

Lord of the Flies isn't your average book, I have to say. Being a reader who loves to dig into books of adventure and mystery genres, upon picking up this book I thought it would be a normal adventure book; the blurb certainly seemed to suggest this. A predictable setting for a story: a deserted island suddenly inhabited by a group of reckless school boys. It's the perfect recipe for an adventure book like any other. Except...it's not like any other.

Allow me to briefly explain the tantalising plot. Set in an unspecified war period, a plane crashes, leaving a group of schoolboys stranded on a desert. Shocking, but not that unbearable. After all, the young boys' dreams have come true: who wouldn't want a whole island to play on all day without any nagging from the Adults? The unlikely protagonists are the fair haired Ralph and his side-kick, appropriately named Piggy. Without any adults, the boys realise that a leader must be elected in order to make sure that everyone has fun and doesn't act unkindly (except to Piggy of course, teasing Piggy is perfectly okay). Ralph ends up being elected due to his leadership skills and popularity with the rest of the boys. Ralph befriends a choirboy called Jack, who turns out to be the antagonist in this story. Both boys grow to loathe each other as the days pass, with Jack getting hungrier for power. Soon, what was initially thought of as a blissful escape from the Adult World quickly develops into something more sinister and unsettling.

Now when I talk about protagonists and antagonists, it's really hard to truly define who they are, for you see, Lord of the Flies isn't just a book about boys becoming independent. It holds a deeper, more subtle meaning to it, making the reader question what it really means to be immoral and the true meaning of evil. All the time, the reader is questioning Ralph, Piggy, Jack and the other schoolboys' decisions and actions, until it comes to a point when the reader is unable to take in what has happened. Innocence is lost and life for the boys will never be the same again.

Although the book spans a few months, fortunately it does not feel rushed. Every chapter leaves you hungry for more. I think the thing that makes Lord of the Flies so successful is the way William Golding manages to drop subtle hints in the story, straight from the beginning, and they become more apparent as the book progresses, and actions turn from worse, to what could only be described as barbaric and bloody. I also appreciate how the development of Ralph is made evident to the reader. Ralph is portrayed as having blonde hair and blue eyes, the perfect recipe for innocence. He is arrogant and care free and the prospect of having a whole island to himself is certainly appealing. However, as time passes by, and things go out of hand, Ralph matures and realises life is not all about how many friends you have and how popular you are, nor is it - sigh - about having fun. On the outside Lord of the Flies may appear to be simply a story about boys trying to live on a deserted island, but reading between the lines will allow the reader to understand and appreciate the dark hints that make this story truly exciting and magnificent in every respect.

I would recommend this book to teenagers, both boys and girls, who want to try something...different, to say the least. Teenagers who like adventure and mystery should certainly try this classic. In other words, if you're the one for romance and happy endings, look elsewhere. But if you like your books to have gripping and believable characters with a plot second to none, then Lord of the Flies is for you. I can promise you that you'll finish the book, left with a new and fresh outlook on the world around you and perhaps a thought as to what exactly Lord of the Flies is about. Indeed its inner meaning is very dark, making the reader wonder how thin the line between good and evil really is.

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Lord of the Flies Facts & Worksheets

Lord of the flies is a work of literature written by nobel prize british novelist william golding in 1954. the plot revolves around a group of british boys who become stuck on an isolated island and attempt to govern themselves terribly., search for worksheets, download the lord of the flies facts & worksheets.

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Table of Contents

Lord of the Flies is a work of literature written by Nobel Prize British novelist William Golding in 1954. The plot revolves around a group of British boys who become stuck on an isolated island and attempt to govern themselves terribly. The themes explored are the tensions between civilizations and savagery, loss of innocence, and war and the future of mankind.

See the fact file below for more information about the Literature Study: Lord of the Flies, or you can download our 24-page Lord of the Flies worksheet pack to utilize within the classroom or home environment.

Key Facts & Information

About the author.

• Sir William Gerald Golding was a British author, playwright, and poet who lived from September 1911 to June 1993. He is most known for his debut work, Lord of the Flies (1954), but he also authored twelve volumes of fiction during his career.
• Golding was knighted in 1988 for his contributions to literature. He was a Royal Society of Literature fellow. Golding was named third on The Times’ The 50 Greatest British writers since 1945 list in 2008.
• During World War II (WWII) , Golding joined the Royal Navy . He was on a warship that helped track down and sink the German battleship Bismarck. Golding took part in the D-Day invasion of Normandy, commanding a landing boat that fired rocket salvos onto the beaches. He also saw combat at Walcheren in October and November 1944, sinking 10 of the 27 assault ships that went into the attack.
• Lord of the Flies occurs during a war and follows a group of boys stuck on an island when their jet is shot down. Golding saw action in numerous engagements while serving in the Royal Navy during WWII and learned how conflict could bring out the worst in people.
• Lord of the Flies was influenced by Golding’s experiences as a teacher working with rowdy boys and as a warrior in WWII. He observed much fighting during the war, and this work mirrors Golding’s view of society. He believed evil was not an external force but something born within humans. That is made plain by Golding’s message in Lord of the Flies.

PUBLICATION OF THE LORD OF THE FLIES

• Several publishers rejected the manuscript before being accepted by London-based Faber & Faber; an initial rejection by Miss Perkins, a professional reader at Faber, labeled the book a:

“Absurd and uninteresting fantasy about the explosion of an atomic bomb on the colonies and a group of children who land in the jungle near New Guinea. Rubbish & dull.”

• However, Charles Monteith, a British literary editor, chose to take on the manuscript and collaborated with Golding to perform numerous substantial modifications, including erasing the whole first section of the novel, which previously portrayed an evacuation from nuclear war. Monteith drastically deleted Simon’s character, deleting his interaction with a mystery lone entity who is never recognized but is supposed to be God.
• The book became a best-seller after Monteith’s changes and slow sales of the three thousand copies of the first edition, selling more than ten million copies as of 2015. It was adapted for film twice in English, by Peter Brook in 1963 and Harry Hook in 1990, and once in Filipino by Lupita A. Concio in 1975.

PLOT OF THE STORY

• A plane carrying a bunch of British schoolboys is shot down over a remote tropical island amid a violent conflict. Ralph and Piggy, two of the boys, uncover a conch shell on the beach, and Piggy discovers it may be used as a horn to summon the other boys. 
• Once gathered, the boys began picking a leader and organizing a rescue plan. They elect Ralph as their leader, and Ralph appoints another child, Jack, to oversee the boys who will hunt food for the entire group.
• Ralph, Jack, and another youngster, Simon, embark on an exploration of the island. When they return, Ralph declares that a signal fire must be lit to draw the attention of passing ships. The boys successfully light some dead wood by focusing sunlight via Piggy’s eyeglass lenses. 
• However, the boys are more concerned with playing than keeping an eye on the fire, and the flames swiftly consume the forest. A big stretch of dead wood flames out of control, and one of the group’s youngest members vanishes, likely burned to death.
• Ralph convenes an assembly in the hopes of resolving the situation. However, the meeting quickly gets rowdy as numerous younger guys discuss the beast. Even the big boys are scared now. That night, a dead parachutist crashes on the mountaintop near the signal fire after a distant plane combat. 
• The firefighters believe it is the beast. Soon after, Ralph and Jack launch an expedition to the island in pursuit of the beast. They come to a rock outcropping that would form an excellent fort, but no beast exists. Tempers rise between the two youngsters, and they climb the mountain in the dark to display their bravery. They notice the shadowy parachutist and mistake him for the beast.
• At an assembly the next morning, Jack challenges Ralph’s authority. Ralph triumphs, but Jack abandons the group, and most older boys follow him. Jack’s tribe paints their faces, goes pig hunting, and kills a pig. They then leave the beast’s head as an offering. When Simon comes across the head, he realizes it is the Lord of the Flies—the beast within all men. Simon climbs the hilltop and watches the parachutist as Jack invites everyone to a feast. When Simon comes to tell everyone the truth about the “beast,” the guys at the feast have turned into a frenzied mob performing a ritual pig slaughter. The mob believes Simon is the beast and murders him.
• The tribe of Jack relocates to the rock fort. They steal Piggy’s glasses in order to start a fire. Ralph and his last remaining pals, Piggy and the Samneric twins, set out to retrieve the glasses. Jack’s tribe captures the twins, and a youngster named Roger pushes a boulder from the fort, smashing the conch and killing Piggy. The tribe hunts Ralph the next day, lighting a fire in the woodland. He avoids them as much as he can, becoming an animal concerned with survival and escape. The brothers eventually corner Ralph on the beach, where they first established their society after crash landing on the island. 
• However, the flaming jungle has drawn the attention of a British Naval ship, and an officer is standing on the shore. The youngsters halt, astonished, and stare at the stranger. He jokes about the boys being at war and whether there have been any losses. The officer is astonished and disappointed when Ralph answers yes. Ralph begins to cry, and soon the other guys join him. Uncomfortable, the officer turns away from his battleship.

RALPH : The athletic and charming protagonist has been elected as the boys’ leader. He is frequently portrayed as a symbol of order, civilization, and constructive leadership. At the beginning of the narrative, Ralph sets out to build huts and think of strategies to increase their chances of being rescued.

JACK : The adversary is a strong-willed and egomaniacal figure who represents the instincts of savagery, aggression, and power. He is furious at the novel’s start after losing Ralph’s leadership contest. 

SIMON : In the rivalry between Ralph and Jack, and when the guys on the island descend into violence, he is often the voice of reason.

PIGGY : Ralph’s bright and talkative companion assists Ralph in becoming a leader and provides many of Ralph’s inventive ideas. He is the embodiment of humanity’s reasoning side. Piggy’s asthma and weak eyesight make him a target of derision and violence.

CIVILIZATION VS. SAVAGERY

• The main dispute in Lord of the Flies is the conflict between two competing impulses that all humans have: the instinct to live by rules, act peacefully, obey moral commands, and value the good of the group versus the instinct to gratify immediate desires, act violently to gain superiority over others and enforce one’s will. This battle can be depicted in various ways: civilization versus barbarism, order versus chaos, reason versus instinct, law versus anarchy, and the more general category of good versus evil. Golding associates civilization’s inclination with good and savagery’s instinct with evil throughout the work.

LOSS OF INNOCENCE

• As the boys on the island evolve from well-behaved, orderly children waiting for rescue to ruthless, bloodthirsty hunters with no desire to return to civilization, they lose their sense of innocence.

STRUGGLE TO BUILD CIVILIZATION

• The fundamental fight in Lord of the Flies is the quest to construct civilization. Ralph and Piggy agree that the most important concerns are structure, regulations, and keeping a signal fire. In contrast, Jack believes that hunting, violence, and pleasure should take precedence over safety, protection, and long-term planning. While the guys, including Jack, initially agree to follow Ralph’s rules and make democratic decisions, constructing an ordered society’s lengthy and deliberate process proves too tough for many of the boys.

WAR AND THE FUTURE OF MANKIND

• Following a worldwide conflict, Lord of the Flies depicts society’s attempt to reconstruct after a large-scale man-made disaster. In their endeavor to recreate society, the boys are unable to reach an agreement on a new rule and eventually descend into violence.

ADAPTATION IN OTHER MEDIA

• Lord of the Flies is a 1963 British drama film adapted from William Golding’s 1954 novel of the same name, which tells the story of 30 schoolboys abandoned on an island where the bulk of the population has devolved into barbarism. Peter Brook wrote and directed it, while Lewis M. Allen produced it.
• Like Golding’s book, the film’s pessimistic premise is that fear, hatred, and violence are inherent in the human condition, even when innocent youngsters are kept in seemingly blissful solitude. 
• Lupita A. Concio directed the 1975 Filipino survival drama film Alkitrang Dugo. Nicanor B. Cleto Jr. wrote the story and screenplay based on Sir William Golding’s 1954 novel Lord of the Flies.
• The film depicts boys and females stranded on the island, but the novel only depicts boys.
• In the book, the children choose a leader quickly after being stranded on the island; in the film, the election only occurs once they have been on the island for several weeks.
• Harry Hook directed the film Lord of the Flies. The picture got mixed reviews upon and after its release, with the overall consensus being that it was more negative than its 1963 version. Most reviews praise the film’s acting and scenery but point out the film’s deviations from the text as a major weakness.
• The book was first adapted for the stage and presented in 1984, over a decade before the well-known West End play at Clifton College Preparatory School. Elliott Watkins, a teacher at the school, adapted it with the personal permission of William Golding, who attended the opening night. The performance was performed in the school hall for three nights. Except for the navy officer in the last scene, who was performed by the commanding officer of the Clifton College CCF navy Section, other roles were played by boys from the school.

Lord of the Flies Worksheets

This fantastic bundle includes everything you need to know about the Literature Study: Lord of the Flies across 24 in-depth pages. These ready-to-use worksheets are perfect for teaching kids about the Lord of the Flies. The themes explored are the tensions between civilizations and savagery, loss of innocence, and war and the future of mankind.

Complete List of Included Worksheets

Below is a list of all the worksheets included in this document.

• Literature: Lord of the Flies Facts
• Golding’s Life
• Book Review
• Character Analysis
• Famous Quotes
• Survival List

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the central theme of “lord of the flies”.

“Lord of the Flies” explores the inherent darkness within human nature and the thin veneer of civilization that separates individuals from descending into chaos and savagery. Through the experiences of a group of boys stranded on an uninhabited island, the novel delves into themes of morality, power, and the loss of innocence.

How does William Golding use symbolism in “Lord of the Flies”?

Golding employs various symbols throughout the novel to represent different aspects of society and human nature. The conch shell symbolizes order and democracy, the signal fire represents the boys’ connection to civilization, and the beast embodies the primal instincts and fears within each individual. Additionally, characters like Ralph and Jack symbolize opposing forces of civilization and savagery, respectively.

What role does power play in “Lord of the Flies”?

Power dynamics are central to the narrative of “Lord of the Flies.” The struggle for power between Ralph, who represents order and democracy, and Jack, who embodies authoritarianism and savagery, drives much of the conflict on the island. The conch shell serves as a symbol of legitimate authority, while Jack’s control over the hunters illustrates the allure of raw power and its ability to corrupt.

How does “Lord of the Flies” explore the loss of innocence?

The gradual loss of innocence is a recurring theme in “Lord of the Flies.” Initially, the boys attempt to maintain a sense of order and civilization, but as they succumb to fear and the primal instincts of survival, they become increasingly savage and disconnected from the moral principles of society. The murder of Simon and Piggy, along with the destruction of the island, symbolize the irreversible loss of innocence and descent into darkness.

What is the significance of the title “Lord of the Flies”?

The title “Lord of the Flies” refers to the translation of the Hebrew word “Beelzebub,” a demon associated with the prince of demons, Satan. In the novel, the severed pig’s head on a stick, which the boys worship as a representation of the beast, is referred to as the “Lord of the Flies.” This symbolizes the inherent evil within humanity and the darkness that resides in each individual, even in the absence of external influences.

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Lord of the Flies by William Golding – Reading Comprehension

Subject: English

Age range: 14-16

Resource type: Worksheet/Activity

Last updated

25 March 2024

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Overview: This comprehensive worksheet is designed to enhance a range of critical thinking and analytical skills. It offers a wide variety of engaging exercises to improve your word meaning, inference, summarizing, analysis and evaluation, content evaluation, structure comprehension, retrieval skills, prediction, explanation, exploration, as well as comparison and synthesis abilities. It also includes an answer sheet for convenient marking. Key Features: • Word Meaning: Enhance your vocabulary by exploring and understanding the meanings of various words. • Inferences: Master the art of drawing logical conclusions from given information. • Summaries: Develop the skill to condense complex texts into concise and meaningful summaries. • Analysis and Evaluation: Improve your ability to analyze and critically evaluate information. • Content, Structure, and Quality: Assess the content, structure, and quality of different texts. • Retrieval: Enhance your ability to locate and extract specific information from texts. • Predicting: Predict the outcome or future developments based on available information. • Explaining and Exploring: Expand your knowledge and understanding by explaining and exploring different topics. • Comparison and Synthesis: Compare and combine information from multiple sources to gain deeper insights. Ideal Usage: • Cover Lesson: Perfect for covering lessons when the primary educator is absent. • Homework Task: Assign as homework to reinforce learning outside the classroom. • Revision: An excellent resource for revising and consolidating key skills and knowledge. Don’t miss out on this valuable resource that will undoubtedly accelerate your academic progress and help you become a more proficient and critical thinker.

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