LORD OF THE FLIES William Golding 1911-1993

WILLIAM GOLDING Born on September 19, 1911, in Cornwall, England In 1935 he started teaching English and philosophy in Salisbury He joined the royal navy in 1940 In 1954 he published his first novel Lord of the Flies – it was rejected 21 times before it was publish and consistently remains on the most frequently banned/challenged list

In the decade before LOTF was published, Britain had been involved in two wars: Korean War

As a child, Golding had witnessed WWI, which was referred to as “the war to end all wars” HOWEVER, 22 years later Britain was again involved in ANOTHER WAR to end all wars, which caused more devastation than was imaginable

TERMS TO REMEMBER Microcosm = a community, place, or situation regarded as encapsulating in miniature the characteristic qualities or features of something much larger. humankind regarded as the epitome of the universe.

THE ID, EGO, SUPEREGO Perhaps Freud's single most enduring and important idea was that the human psyche (personality) has more than one aspect. Freud (1923) saw the psyche structured into three parts (i.e., tripartite), the id, ego and superego, all developing at different stages in our lives. These are systems, not parts of the brain, or in any way physical.

ID The id is the only component of personality that is present from birth. This aspect of personality is entirely unconscious and includes all of the instinctive and primitive behaviors. The id is driven by the pleasure principle, which strives for immediate gratification of all desires, wants, and needs. If these needs are not satisfied immediately, the result is a state anxiety or tension. For example, an increase in hunger or thirst should produce an immediate attempt to eat or drink. The id is very important early in life, because it ensures that an infant's needs are met. If the infant is hungry or uncomfortable, he or she will cry until the demands of the id are met.

What if we gave into the id whenever it wanted something?

Ego - The ego is the component of personality that is responsible for dealing with reality. The ego operates based on the reality principle, which strives to satisfy the id's desires in realistic and socially appropriate ways. The reality principle weighs the costs and benefits of an action before deciding to act upon or abandon impulses. In many cases, the id's impulses can be satisfied through a process of delayed gratification--the ego will eventually allow the behavior, but only in the appropriate time and place. This is your common sense – your compromise between the id and the superego

SUPEREGO The superego is the aspect of personality that holds all of our internalized moral standards and ideals that we acquire from both parents and society--our sense of right and wrong. The superego provides guidelines for making judgments. According to Freud, the superego begins to emerge at around age five.

Terms to know: Utopia – an imaginary world in Sir Thomas More’s Utopia (1516) where people enjoy the utmost perfection in law, politics etc. This is a perfect, peaceful society. Dystopia – the opposite of an idyllic world—a “hell on earth”. Idyllic – charmingly simple and peaceful Innate – inherent in the essential character of someone Primal – the first or original

ALLEGORY Allegory is a figure of speech in which abstract ideas and principles are described in terms of characters, figures and events. It can be employed in prose and poetry to tell a story with a purpose of teaching an idea and a principle or explaining an idea or a principle. The objective of its use is to preach some kind of a moral lesson.

Difference between Allegory & Symbolism Although an allegory uses symbols, it is different from symbolism. An allegory is a complete narrative which involves characters, and events that stand for an abstract idea or an event. A symbol, on the other hand, is an object that stands for another object giving it a particular meaning. Unlike allegory, symbolism does not tell a story.

Philosophical Background: Rousseau Contrary to his earlier work, Rousseau (Jean-Jacques Rousseau, born in Geneva in 1712) claimed that the state of nature is brutish condition without law or morality, and that there are good men only as a result of society's presence.

Nature vs Nurture The nature versus nurture debates concern the relative importance of an individual's innate qualities ("nature“), versus personal experiences ("nurture") in determining or causing individual differences in physical and behavioral traits.

Society, with its rigid rules, holds everyone together. Agree or Disagree? Society, with its rigid rules, holds everyone together.

Morals come from our surroundings – no civilization around us, no values

People abuse power when it’s not earned

What are some of your flaws?

What do our flaws reveal about us?

People will single others out to degrade in order to improve their own security

You can only cover up inner savagery so long before it breaks out, given the right situation Do you have a snapping point?

It’s better to examine the consequences of a decision before you make it than to discover them afterwards

The fear of the unknown can be a powerful force, which can turn you to either insight or hysteria