LORD OF THE FLIES BY WILLIAM GOLDING

English 10H, Ms. Mathews

William Golding

About the Author

William Golding was born on September 19, 1911 in England.

Attended Oxford University, where he received a degree in English Literature

He joined the Royal Navy in 1940 and fought during WWII.

 Was appointed Commander of the British Empire in 1966 and was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 1988

Died of heart failure on June 19, 1993

Writing Career

September 1953: manuscript for Lord of the Flies was rejected by Faber & Faber

September 1954: after cuts and edits, Lord of the Flies was published

It was shortly followed by The Inheritors, Pincher Martin, and Free Fall

Publishing success allowed him to resign his teaching post at Bishop Wordsworth’s School in 1961 and move to the US to work as a writer-in-residence at Hollins College

Lord of the Flies

What should I come to understand by the end of this unit? There is a little bit of evil in all of us.

The true nature of humans has perplexed thinkers for thousands of years.

Novelists often use their fiction to make statements about their personal or political beliefs.

Essential Questions

What is our true human nature? Why do people disagree about our true

human nature? How does Golding use setting and

characters in Lord of the Flies to express his ideas about people?

How do people and their decisions impact society?

LOTF Facts

Most of the characters, actions and objects in the novel symbolize larger ideas

Golding’s novel deals with the conflict between the rational mind and natural instinct

Golding believed that people were instinctively evil and society was needed to protect humans from each other.

Premise of the novel

The novel takes place during a fictional nuclear war in the late 1940’s, early 1950’s.

A group of British schoolboys, aged 6-12, are flown out of their country to “protect” them from the horrors of war.

However, their plane crashes, killing all the adults on board.

The boys remain stranded on the tropical island to fend for themselves…

The Island

• There is plenty of water and fresh fruit• a boring diet, but sufficient enough for survival

• No threats from man or nature on this island

• A coral reef beyond the beach either keeps the boys in or protects them from the outside world.

Themes

The need for civilization Loss of innocence Blindness and sight Fear of the unknown The effects of power on humankind and

society

Characters

Jack Ralph Piggy Simon Roger Sam and Eric (SamnEric) The littluns

Symbols

The conch shell Piggy’s glasses (specs) The island itself The “scar” The Beast Lord of the Flies The signal fire