William Golding (1911-[1993]), English, received the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1983. After serving in World War II in the Royal Navy, he taught school in Salisbury. Golding expressed his ideas on the nature of man. Before the war he believed in the perfectability of man. World War II opened his eyes to the nature of man. Man was not only capable of evil but was born with evil. Civilization is merely a veneer, skin-deep; stripped away and humans revert to animals or to primitivism.

As you read, think about and make notes on the following questions:

1. Describe the character of Ralph, Piggy, Simon, Jack, and Roger.

    

2. What human quality does each of the major characters symbolize?

    

3. What does the conch symbolize?

    

4. What does the fire symbolize?

    

5. What is the "Lord of the Flies"? What does it symbolize?

    

6. What does the parachutist symbolize?

    

7. What do the island and the ocean symbolize?

    

8. What does the naval officer symbolize?

    

9. Describe the first organization created by the schoolboys and the second organization.

Short Essay Question: Due on Discussion Day

 

According to Golding, describe the three socio-political organizations experienced by the school boys: original, first island, second island societies.

 

 

Term Paper Questions

 

Select one of the following questions. Follow the prescribed format. The title of the paper should be the question you are answering.

 

1. Describe the society and culture that the schoolboys created. Consider its myths (gods and demons), its social norms (rituals and taboos), and its political structure.

    

2. How rational or irrational is the schoolboys' new society?

    

3. In what ways is the schoolboys' world a microcosm of the adult world?

    

4. Thomas Hobbes, John Locke, and Jean Jacques Rousseau wrote about the human condition and man in the state of nature and in society. Each had premises about the nature of man in the state of nature and in society. Compare their views with those of William Golding.