How Does Golding Use Imagery In Lord Of The Flies

A recurring theme among leaders in many societies today is that “absolute power corrupts absolutely” (John Acton, a 1700’s English Catholic historian, politician, and writer). In William Golding’s Lord of the Flies, this idea of leadership, power, and corruption is put in the spotlight. Jack, one of the boys on the island, forces his way into the leadership position without actually earning it. It is clear that Jack has become corrupt as he turns into a person who is intimidating, egotistical, and selfish. Ralph, on the other hand, is a quality leader under most conditions as he appeals to the boys’ sophisticated side and has a

confide in the conch and when the conch is held up, it is a sign of

wrote this after publishing Lord of the Flies. It is our world, in the form of a story. The two leaders in the story are Ralph and Jack. Ralph starts off a comfortable leader of the boys, but by the end of the book, Ralph and his companion Piggy are alone facing Jack and the rest of the boys. As the novel progresses and the society on the island starts to change, so does Ralph. He begins thinking he has all the answers, but comes to realize that without Piggy he would have never gotten this far. By the end of the book, Ralph and Jack are complete opposites. Jack is about savagery and fun while Ralph is holding on to society, rules, and civilization. Appearing to be a weak leader due to defection of his followers, Ralph is actually dedicated and insightful, only loosing his followers because he could not compete with one category that attracts nearly everyone in the world: fun.

Jack transforms from a proper, orderly schoolboy to a violent savage. The transformation does not happen immediately when Jack lands on the island, but eventually, as he discovers he loves to inhumanely hunt. One crucial moment of Jack's descent into savagery occurs when he paints his face for the first time, “He looked in astonishment, no longer at himself but at an awesome stranger.” (Golding 63). He is anonymous. He doesn’t recognize it as himself; being in a group makes some people lose touch with their personal moral beliefs, and his face is covered so that a stranger would not be able to tell if a bunch of the young boys were together they could most likely not be able to identify them because of their facepaints. That made Jack feel

Golding used personification to make Piggy’s death an important part of the novel. An example of this device is “the sea breathed again, in a long slow sigh” this quote makes the reader imagine how the sea is moving and gives an inanimate object emotions. The way the sea is describes reminds me of when a mother watches her child be naughty and she breaths a long sigh like she is tired of the child’s behaviour. The personification of the sea makes the sea sound like it is an adult who has watched the boy’s behaviour since they got stranded on the island.

It may have taken millions of years for humans to evolve enough to create the sprawling civilizations known today, but it only takes a few months for a group of civil, educated boys to regress back into savagery. In his novel Lord of the Flies, author William Golding depicts a group of young British boys getting stranded on a deserted island sans adults. The boys must look out for themselves, forming a basic governing system and trying to survive. But the challenge soon proves too much to handle, and order deteriorates. William Golding conveys the universal theme of civilization vs. savagery in his novel Lord of the Flies using the literary elements of plot, setting, and characterization.

Lord of the Flies, a suggestive name for the Devil, a devil whose name proposes that he is devoted to decay, destruction, demoralization and panic, exactly what William Golding had in mind when using symbolism in this novel. The Lord of the Flies (1954), is a novel in which interpretating the symbols are a main key to not only understanding, but also enjoying the novel. After tying many of the symbols together, you can figure out more about what the author is trying to depict, the overall scene.

William Golding, a world-wide known author, transfigured his dream from an English teacher in a small town in England to an author whose books altered the mindset of its readers. Kids and adults have contemplated these words from Lord of the Flies, “Ralph wept for the end of innocence, the darkness of man's heart, and the fall through the air of the true, wise friend called Piggy” (Golding 202). These deep-rooted words from Lord of the Flies, a renowned book written by William Golding, changed him from a locally known author in England to a Nobel Literature Prize Laureate. He won the Nobel prize in 1983 for not only writing many successful selling books, such as Lord of the Flies and Rites of Passage, but in the words of the Nobel committee, he won “…for his novels which, with the perspicuity of realistic narrative art and the diversity and universality of myth, illuminate the human condition in the world of today". William Golding’s writing became popular because he incorporated concepts about change in human nature and civilization when war and savagery plagued daily life and society.

Lord of the flies was written after World War II, and during the Cold War. William Golding wrote the novel from his experience during World War II. During his service in the Royal Navy, he experienced the brutality of the war, and there he learned that all humans are capable of extreme evil. His experience of the war greatly influenced his view of humanity. Also, after the war, he continued with his teaching job. He taught in an expensive boys school. While being a teacher, he noticed that students can be very cruel with each other. This reassured his idea that humans are capable of anything. He expresses his view of humanity through the novel Lord of the Flies where schoolboys are stranded in an island without any adult to guide them, and

The use of face paint is a way to disguise themselves. An example of this, is when Jack explains how they “paint [their] faces so [the prey can't] see” (p.55). This shows how they are blending in with the dangers of their environment. The paint permits the boys to set their inner savage free. This behaviour was not previously acceptable in their previous civilized British homes. Their violence facilitated a sense of fear within the boys` relationships. An example of this fear being expressed is when Eric says, “they’ll be painted! You know how it is”. This shows how the dangerous thoughts, that flow through the minds of the boys, are expressed through the use of their face paint.

Are people naturally prone to evil? With the help from society’s rules and expectations you’d be surprised at the outcome that this is not true. The novel, ‘Lord of the Flies’, by William Golding, expresses some meaningful symbolism that might mean more than expected. It demonstrates human nature in a cruel, savage way. This central idea is understood through his use of symbolism, characterization, and theme.

In the novel, “Lord of the Flies”, Golding introduces us to a plane crash on an island with a group of boys where there is no adult supervision. They start holding meetings and discussions about leadership on the island. Throughout their time on the island they deal with challenges and struggles with an unsophisticated leader who violates the rules. In the novel, “Lord of the Flies”, Golding utilizes Jack, the conch, and the scar to create a political allegory commenting on the issues that the political leaders caused, in the 1950’s, decisions were not benefiting the people’s development as a whole. In the beginning, two characters are introduced to the audience where they find a valuable pink shell.

"His head opened and stuff came out and turned red. Piggy's arms and legs twitched a bit like a pig after it has been killed" (217). This is what can happen to someone when all signs of civilization, order and power disappear and have no more meaning to members of a group or society. In the writing of William Golding's Lord of the Flies (1954), the symbol of power and civilization is the conch. Once that is lost, all bets are off. When the novel begins, two boys are talking about what has happened and why they are on this island. While walking on the beach, the main character Ralph then proceeds to find a shell which the two boys call the conch. Blowing on this shell Ralph calls a

This eventually leads to their rescue which is ironic. Jack wears face paint to feel anonymous when he kills animals and eventually tries to kill Ralph. “Jack and two hunters were masked in black I feel that he is trying to hide his old self through the face paint. Which is also another way he becomes more savage. He first applies the face paint in the middle of the book but it's necessary to mention at the end because then he doesn't feel bad about killing animals and such. In chapter 1 we can see the influence Jack has in the boys. They take after him by wearing the face paint so that they can't be recognized. "Savages appeared painted out of recognition, edging round the ledge toward the neck." Pg 175 This is one of the last steps in Jack completely taking over the tribe because as more littluns follow him the more that will leave Ralph. The boys have killed Simon which shows how much they have become savage. This happened because Jack told the boys to do their dance and that then escalated and they didn't knowing what they were doing. "Do our dance! Come on! Dance! A circling movement developed and a chant." pg. 151 In the book now Jack has the boys in an almost frenzy when the talk about hunting because they are so full of blood lust. In chapter 11 Ralph loses his last civil thing, Piggy. "The rock struck piggy a glancing blow from chin to a knee...Piggy, saying nothing, with no time for

Lord of the Flies “Maybe there is a beast… maybe it's only us” (page 80). William Golding is an English novelist, playwright, and poet. William was in World War Two, he saw how destructive humans can be, and how a normal person can go from a civilized human being into a savage. In Lord of the Flies, he uses the theme of human nature to show how easily society can collapse, and how self-destructive human nature is.