 September 19, 1911—June 19, 1993  British novelist, poet, and playwright  Won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1983  Knighted in 1988  Joined the Royal Navy in 1940  Fought in the navy in WII  Participated in D-Day invasion of Normandy  WWII influenced his experiences and his writing  Lord of the Flies: 1954, most famous

 Genre: fable, allegory, adventure story  Blend of symbolic elements and an adventure that symbolize larger elements of human nature  Characters and events represent larger aspects of society  Reveals how evil resides in each of us  Struggle between Jack and Ralph reveals opposing lifestyles and governing styles  Title: Lord of the Flies  Beelzebub: another name for the Devil  Comes from the Greek word for “Lord of the Flies”

 Takes place during World War II  A group of British boys are flown out of the country to protect them  The plane crashes leaves them stranded on the island  The boys are left to fend for themselves  Create their own society and system for survival

 Utopia: perfect society  Dystopia: often seem like a “utopian” society, but are really not  Authors use this genre to critique the world in which they live  Often create a sense of “doom” or failure within the society  Golding uses it to display the breakdown of society and morality  Lord of the Flies reveals the breakdown of civilization  The boys descend into savagery, cruelty, and violence  Primitive instincts overthrow rules, logic, and reason

 Ralph  The elected leader  Rational, clear-headed, the greatest good  Piggy  Social outcast who sides with Ralph  Means well, but is picked on throughout  Jack  Leader of the choir boys  Hunter, violent, rash, disregards rules  In competition with Ralph  Simon  Stands for the child-like innocence of many boys  Inquisitive, philosophical, kind-hearted  Roger  Violent, cruel, bully

 Society holds everyone together, and without rules and order the basic concept of right and wrong will be lost  Evil is within all of us. All it takes is the right situation for our own “savagery” to emerge.  Civilization/society “reigns in” those tendencies  Moral ambiguity and fragility of civilization  Fear and the desire for acceptance are powerful motivators  People will abuse power when it’s not earned or checked.  Do individuals control groups, or do groups control individuals?

 Are humans inherently good or evil?  What would the world be like without a basic social contract?  What are the essential tasks that you would perform if you were stranded on an island?  What does it mean to be a leader?  How do you keep hope alive in the face of despair?  What does it mean “Without contraries there would be no progression”?  What do you fear most and how does that impact your actions?

 Decorous - in keeping with good taste and propriety; polite and restrained.  Hiatus - a pause or gap in a sequence, series, or process.  Enmity - the state or feeling of being actively opposed or hostile to someone or something.  Eccentric - of a person or their behavior) unconventional and slightly strange.  Furtive - attempting to avoid notice or attention, typically because of guilt or a belief that discovery would lead to trouble; secretive.