Introduction

Born

in Cornwall, England

The son of a schoolmaster

Became

a teacher in 1939, just as World War

II began
The

following year (1940) Golding joined the Royal Navy and eventually participated in the D-Day landing in France on June 6, 1944

 While

in college, Golding published a book of poems of the Flies was Goldings first published novel (1954) the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1983

Lord

Won

 Goldings

war experiences influenced his dark views about human nature war was a turning point for Golding

The

I began to see what people were capable of doing, he said. Where did the Second World War come from? Was it made by something inhuman and alien or was it made by chaps with eyes and legs and hearts?

 Goldings

later novels would include:

The Inheritors (1955) Free Fall (1959) The Paper Men (1984)

 Lord

of the Flies is based on a popular 1857 English novel, The Coral Island, by Robert Michael Ballantyne Ballantynes novel, the characters lived in harmony and happiness

In

Golding created his novel to offer what he felt was a realistic alternative to Ballantynes book

 Golding

stated that Lord of the Flies was an attempt to trace the defects of society back to the defects of human nature

He felt that the inherent evil of individuals required the constraints of society in order for social order to be maintained

Goldings

view is contrary to that of philosopher Jean Jacques Rousseau

He believed that individuals in the state of nature are essentially good

Literary Elements

 The

time and place of the action in a story

As you read the novel, notice the importance of the setting as it relates to the events that occur Consider whether the same events could occur in a different setting

 The

struggle between opposing forces in a story

External conflict occurs between characters As you read, look for the external conflict that exists between Ralph and Jack Consider the source of the conflict

 Discovering

how they are alike and different

The purpose of comparing and contrasting characters is to clarify and understand their relationship and to identify possible sources of conflict In the novel, look for ways that Ralph and Jack are alike and different

 The

reason or reasons behind a characters behavior

As you read, seek to understand why Ralph, Jack and the other boys behave as they do

person, place, or thing that stands for something other than itself

In the novel, Golding uses several symbols, such as the conch and Jacks mask, to represent other ideas Consider the greater idea that each symbol stands for

 An

abstract meaning through concrete forms; figurative treatment of one subject under the guise of another

The whole novel is an allegory Who is going to save the adults from the war they are currently fighting?

 The

formation of mental images or figures

While reading, consider: do the boys bring the violence to the island with them or did the island make violent?

feeling of curiosity or uncertainty about the outcome of events that keeps you interested in the plot of a story

Suspense includes dangerous action, in which a characters safety is at risk

 The

result of a contrast between appearance or expectation and reality

In situational irony, what is expected to happen is not always what actually occurs