 A Lord of the Flies cover Lord of the Flies is an allegorical novel by the Nobel Prize-winning author William G. Golding. It was Golding's first novel, and was published in 1954. Although it was not a great success at the time - selling fewer than 3,000 copies in the United States during 1955, it then went out of print - went on to become a bestseller, and a set text in many schools and colleges. It was filmed in 1963 and 1990. The title is a reference to Beelzebub, a synonym for the Devil.
Generally regarded as a classic of the postwar English literature, it depicts the transformation into savagery of a group of schoolboys stranded on a deserted island without adult supervision, in the aftermath of a plane crash, while fleeing wartime Britain.
It has been said that the author's view on society is such that civilization is merely a thin layer, and that all of us are really savages underneath. If the checks and balances of civilization fall away, the real, savage nature of humans surfaces. One can see such examples in the real world, e.g. Cultural Revolution in Communist China or mob behaviour during the French Revolution and other revolts. This is illustrated in the book; upon arriving on the island, many of the boys quickly began to lose their civilised behaviour and form tribal groups. The hero Ralph remains at the end of the book as the only living boy to have retained his original behaviour. Piggy is knocked off a cliff by Roger towards the end of the book. His conch shell, a symbol of tribal leadership and control, shatters on contact with the ground as the boy's head shatters on the white rock. His body twitches as it slips into the water. Sam and Eric are captured by Jack Merridew, leader of the "savage" tribe, and are forced to reveal Ralph's location. Ralph escapes with his life only after a military ship spots a large fire set by the boys and embarks on a rescue mission.
Because Ralph is still alive, he becomes hunted by the rest of the group, a tribe led by Jack. Throughout the book, Golding has each character represent a different aspect of civilization. Ralph can be read to represent democracy - initially he acts by taking votes - whereas Jack depicts savagery and dictatorship. Another central character, nicknamed Piggy (we never learn his real name) represents science and knowledge, because of his clear methodical thinking. His glasses, or "specs", are used to create fire for the boys of the island. The fact that Roger kills Piggy and Jack hunts Ralph could be seen as Jack's and Roger's (and implicitly the savage human nature's) rejection of civilized society. The rotten pig's head is the Lord of the Flies, or Beelzebub, whom Simon, the incarnation of the benevolent and spiritual part of humanity, must confront. See Lord of the Flies (phrase) for the title's origins.
The book is frequently brought up as evidence that anarchism would fail. This argument is posited because of the sequence of events which occur after the leader of the characters ceases to hold any power. Anarchists respond to this view by arguing that the concept of anarchy is never a real part of the story and that the antagonist represents fascism (the opposite of anarchism) more than any other political ideology. Others claim that the book is evidence that immature people (incapable of making responsible decisions) could never successfully run a society, no matter how small. Although individual interpretations of the underlying message of this book vary, it still remains a classic, and will likely do so for the forseeable future.
For a similar novel, see The Beach.
An episode of The Simpsons titled Das Bus was a parody of Lord of the Flies, mirroring it in many ways.
External links
ISBN numbers
- ISBN 0606001964 (prebound, 1954)
- ISBN 0399501487 (paperback, 1959)
- ISBN 0807231762 (audio cassette with paperback, 1977, unabridged)
- ISBN 1556515251 (paperback, 1988)
- ISBN 0026351218 (hardcover, 1990)
- ISBN 0571160565 (paperback, 1996)
- ISBN 1573226122 (paperback, 1997)
- ISBN 1561373842 (hardcover, 1998)
- ISBN 0791041352 (paper text, 1998)
- ISBN 1561373834 (hardcover, 1999)
- ISBN 0791047776 (hardcover, 1999)
- ISBN 0764108212 (paperback, 1999)
- ISBN 0140283331 (paperback, 1999)
- ISBN 0399529012 (paperback, 2002)
- ISBN 0807209546 (audio cassette, 2002, unabridged)
- ISBN 0399529209 (hardcover, 2003, Anniversary Edition)
- ISBN 1586633554 (paperback, 2003)
- ISBN 0884116956 (hardcover)
- ISBN 0807213640 (paperback)
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