William Golding’s Masterpiece1911- 1993

LORD OF THE FLIES

Author and Context

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

•1940 Golding joined the Royal Navy

•Participated in D-Day

•Experience in WWII had a profound effect on his view of humanity and the evils of which it was capable.

• His first and greatest success came with Lord of the Flies (1954)

About the Novel

The setting is in mid 1940’s when Europe engulfed in war.

A plane carrying British school boys is mistaken for a military craft and shot down.

Only the boys survive the crash, and try to form a society and govern themselves.

Exploration of societal norms

About the Novel Continued…

Free from rules of society, the boys descend into savagery.

The island is a microcosm of society

Microcosm means “mini-society.”

The Island

Themes

Civilization vs. Savagery

Loss of Innocence

Original Sin

Fear that separates one from God

Nature of Good and Evil

Goodness is rare and fleeting

Absolute Power

Allusions

•Reference to a well known “thing” from history, literature, work of art

Classical literature

Mythology

Christian Symbolism

Symbols in the Novel

The Conch

Piggy’s Glasses/Specs

Lord of the Flies

Fire Signal

Religious SymbolsReligious Symbols•

The Island . . .•T

he snake in the Garden of Eden •T

he parachutist and Piggy. . . •J

ack and Ralph . . .•S

imon . . .

AllegoryAllegory•A

work of fiction carrying two levels of meaning:

a surface plot/narrative (literal)symbolic/metaphorical meaning in which everything in story symbolizes something greater

A Freudian AllegoryA Freudian AllegoryRalph, Jack, and Piggy

IdThe part of the personality reflecting unorganized, instinctual impulses. If unbridled, it seeks immediate gratification of primitive needs.

EgoThe part of the personality corresponding most nearly to the perceived self, the controlling self that holds back the impulsiveness of the id in the effort to delay gratification until it can be found in socially approved ways.

Super EgoThe part of the personality corresponding most nearly to conscience, controlling through moral scruples rather than by way of social expediency. The superego is said to be an uncompromising and punishing conscience.

UnconsciousMemories, impulses and desires that are not available to consciousness.

Social Influence1. Compliance • The person at whom the influence is directed (the target) publicly conforms to the wishes of the influencing source but does not change his or her private beliefs or attitudes. (The child eats the spinach but continues to dislike it.)

2. Internalization • The target changes his or her beliefs, attitudes, or behaviors because of a genuine belief in the validity of the position advocated by the influencing source. (A middle-aged man gives up smoking after reading – and believing – the surgeon general's warnings that smoking causes cancer.)

3. Identification • The target changes his or her beliefs, attitudes, or behaviors in order to resemble an influencing source that is respected or admired. (A high school girl takes up smoking in order to be like a group of older girls she admires.) •Deindividuation – sense of self diminished when in a crowd (mob mentality)

Concerning the Title•B

eel’zebub- Hebrew translation for Lord of the flies•T

he title is said to be a reference to the Hebrew name Beelzebub (בעל זבוב, Ba'al-zvuv, "god of the fly", "host of the fly" or literally "Lord of Flies"), a name sometimes used as a synonym for Satan.[3]

•Ba‘al Zebûb might mean 'Lord of Zebûb', referring to an unknown place called Zebûb, or 'Lord of things that fly' (zebûb being a Hebrew collective noun for 'fly', thus the common lay translation 'Lord of the Flies').

Modern Day Allusions

Allusion- (n.) an indirect reference to something

There are many, many modern day allusions to Lord of the Flies in popular culture.

For example….

The Simpsons

The Simpson’s episode titled Das Bus is a parody of Lord of the Flies.

SurvivorM

ark Burnett’s CBS island show is said to have been inspired by LOTF.

Sponge Bob Squarepants

The episode Club Spongebob is a spoof of LOTF.

Popular MusicB

ands such as Taking Back Sunday, Nine Inch Nails, AFI, Iron Maiden, Rolling Stones, and Pink Floyd have written songs about or have alluded to LOTF in their music.