Lord of the Flies by William Golding is one of the most complex books in English literature. It describes the adventures of a group of young boys who are stranded on an island. Golding, during his life, had many experiences, a great number of which, like his war service, were rather frightening. These experiences may well have influenced his views on humanity and therefore affected the way he presented the events and characters in Lord of the Flies. He shows us that when people are removed from their natural environment, they become, essentially, more malevolent than good. By stranding a group of British boys on an island without any supervision or the paraphernalia of civilization, we see that they do many things that at first seemed unacceptable. This includes hunting, torture and murder.
After being stranded on an island, they find that almost everything is different from what they are used to.
Lord of the Flies
English: Cottages, The Green, Marlborough William ...
Film poster for Lord of the Flies - Copyright 1990...For a start, none of them knows each other well except Sam and Eric. Early on, they decide to vote for a chief and have a conch shell to symbolize leadership, and as Golding says, "This toy of voting was as pleasing as the conch." (p.18) The boys have come from different schools and places in England. They are used to rules but not to each other. Now, they are on a tropical island that seems to be deserted. They know they have been to Addis Ababa and Gibraltar on their way out from England, and therefore they know that they are a long way from home. However, they are dressed for English climate and quickly discard their inappropriate clothing. They quickly realise that there are no adults with them, and the shedding of their clothes in a way represents the first layer of civilization being stripped...