1. Lord of the Flies
Introduction Notes

2. About the Novel
Set in mid 1940’s when Europe was in the middle of WWII.
A plane carrying British school boys is mistaken for a military craft and shot down.
Only the boys (no adults) survive the crash, and try to form a society and govern themselves.

3. Summary Notes
British schoolboys are stranded on an uninhabited island during a nuclear war.
Ralph meets Piggy, a fat boy with glasses, and together they find a conch shell which Ralph uses as a trumpet.

4. Summary Notes
In response to the sound, other boys appear, some very small, none older than 12, and finally a group dressed in choir robes and led by Jack Merridew.

5. Summary Notes
Realizing that there are no adults, the boys attempt to organize their own society.
Ralph is elected chief and Jack is given control of the choir who become his “hunters.”

6. Summary Notes
As the novel progresses, fear becomes a part of island life for the boys.
One of the fears is that there is an unexplained “beast” on the island.

7. Themes The capacity for human nature to be both good and evil.
All individuals have the natural capacity for brutality.
A society can often be judged by the way it treats its most vulnerable citizens.
People can lose their innocence when put in circumstances with the possibility of corruption.

8. Symbols in the Novel The Conch- Civilization and order
The Beast- The fear that separates man from God
Piggy’s Glasses- Reason, science, and insight
Lord of the Flies- Evil
Fire Signal- Hope, salvation

9. Need for Social Order The boys are separated from civilization
They attempt to create their own form of order and government
Without someone to enforce the rules, the boys fail to observe their own rules
The boys eventually abandon the rules of civilization
Without social order, the boys commit acts of savagery and murder

10. Power To Ralph, power is democratic
The conch becomes a symbol of power
To Jack, power is authoritarian
Jack treats the members of his choir cruelly
The littluns begin to exercise power of small creatures
Roger enjoys unrestrained power

11. Vision Mirages impair the boy’ vision
Although Piggy’s vision is poor, he can see most clearly what they need to do to survive
Piggy is blind to the reality that evil exists in the boys themselves
Simon has the clearest vision of the true nature of evil on the island
Only Simon sees the “Lord of the Flies”
Only Simon goes to the mountaintop to see the beast clearly in the daylight.

12. Fear of the Unknown
The boys are afraid because they do not know where they are, why their plane crashed, or what will happen if they are not rescued.
The littluns fear the beastie or snake-like thing that comes in the dark
The bigguns fears beasts that are still unknown
“The Beast” is a – Snake-like thing – that represents the the dead parachutist – The Lord of the Flies – Simon - The boys themselves

13. Loss of Identity
The boys begin to lose their individual identities: littluns, bigguns, samneric
The choir becomes hunters
The mask allows the boys to become someone else
Jack’s followers become a savage tribe
Ralph has difficulty remember he is the leader and why rescue is important
Percival forgets his own name

14. Loss of Innocence Ralph’s faith in democracy is shattered
Following the rules offers no protection
Piggy’s belief in fairness is proven false
Violence takes the lives of three boys
The boys come to accept the notion that the world is not completely good

15. The Symbol of the Shell
The shell symbolizes power and order on the island
The boy holding the shell has the floor to speak at assemblies
When the shell is shattered, any semblance of order is gone

16. The Characters Ralph – “counsel” Good-natured, fair, uses common sense
Jack – “one who takes over by force”
Uses fear and threats to control the boys
Simon – “listener”
Most spiritual character, not afraid to go alone into the jungle, understands the reality of the “beast”

17. The Characters
4. Piggy – Is the most intelligent character on the island. He is an outcast, an outsider, and his death is foreshadowed by the killing of pigs on the island.
5. Roger – nicknamed “Spear” is the cruelest character. He uses brute force at whim, and dislodges the boulder that kills Piggy. Spear represents the worst in people when there is no society to keep people in check.

18. Simon as a “Christ figure”
Simon goes alone into the jungle and confronts evil.
Simon comes down from the mountain bringing news that will save the boys from their fear.
However, instead of listening to Simon, the other boys kill him.

19. Themes Human beings need to belong to a group, such as a society.
The story shows that laws and rules, policemen and schools are necessary to keep the darker side of human nature in line.
When these institutions and concepts slip away or are ignored, human beings revert to a more primitive part of their nature.

20. Evil (the beast) is within man himself.
Themes
Evil (the beast) is within man himself.
Golding implies that the loss of innocence has little to do with age but is related to a person's understanding of human nature. It can happen at any age or not at all. Painful though it may be, this loss of innocence by coming to terms with reality is necessary if humanity is to survive.

21. Themes
Fear of the unknown on the island revolves around the boys' terror of the beast. The recognition that no real beast exists, that there is only the power of fear, is one of the deepest meanings of the story.

22. Characters as Symbols Ralph - common sense, and responsibility
Jack - immediate gratification and irresponsible authority
Piggy - ineffective intellectualism
Dead parachutist - the “sign,” evil developing on the island

23. Characters as Symbols
Simon - mystic, Religious side of man. Understands good and evil but no communication.
Samneric - incapable of acting independently. They represent loss of identity through fear of the beast.

24. Objects as Symbols
Conch shell - law and order. The shell looses authority as anarchy grows. The conch fades in color and power. It’s power is broken with the “fall of piggy.”

25. Objects as Symbols
Lord of the Flies -Refers to the head of the pig which Jack has left as an offering to the “beast.” Literal translation of the “Beelzebub,” prince of demons. Symbolizes man’s capacity for evil

26. Objects as Symbols
Huts - represent the desire to preserve civilization; when Jack gains power they move into caves like the animals they have become.

27. Objects as Symbols
Fire - its use divides civilization from savagery. Ralph uses it for hope; Jack for cooking. It is Jack’s group that allows the fire (hope) to go out

28. Objects as symbols
Piggy’s glasses - They signify man’s ability to perceive, to think. That thought can be misused for destructive purpose is shown when Piggy’s glasses are used to smoke Ralph out.

29. Objects as symbols Night and Darkness -
A typical symbol of evil, “the powers of darkness.” The boys would have recognized the chutist in the daylight, as would they have Simon. The beast is more real at night

30. Objects as Symbols
Face paint - The paint helps the boys hide from their own consciences, turning them into anonymous savages who are freed from the restraints of “civilized” behavior.

31. Objects as Symbols
Stick sharpened on both ends - Represents how much evil has taken the boys over. First it was used to offer the beast the pig sacrifice; next to offer it Ralph.