This is an old revision of this page, as edited by 194.109.232.xxx (talk) at 17:04, 21 January 2002 (some more discussion (should perhaps be merged or rewritten) and removal of the rather subjective term 'descent'). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.
Revision as of 17:04, 21 January 2002 by 194.109.232.xxx (talk) (some more discussion (should perhaps be merged or rewritten) and removal of the rather subjective term 'descent')(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)The Lord of the Flies is an allegorical novel by the Nobel Prize winning author William G. Golding, first published in 1954 and made into a film in 1963. It depicts the transformation into savagery of a group of schoolboys stranded on a desert island without adult supervision in the aftermath of a plane crash.
Many view the book as an example of how thin civilization is, as the boys quickly lose all civilised behaviour and form tribal groups. Ralph, the hero, remains at the end of the book the only boy to have retained this behaviour. For this, he becomes hunted by the rest of the group, a tribe led by a boy called Jack. Throughout the book each character tends to represent a different aspect of civilisation, Ralph can be thought of as representing democracy - initially he acts by taking votes - whereas Jack depicts savagery. Another central character nicknamed Piggy (we never learn his real name) probably represents science and knowledge, because of his clear method of thinking. The fact that Jack kills Piggy and hunts Ralph could be seen as Jack's rejection of these aspects of society.
It has been said of the author's view on society is such that civilization is merely a thin layer, and that we're really all savages underneath. If the checks and balances of civilization fall away, the 'real', savage nature of humans surfaces.