Lord Of The Flies Allegory

In addition to his actions, Simon’s encounter with evil further characterizes him as a Christ figure and an oracle archetype. The novel’s title, Lord of the Flies, originates from a mistranslation of Beelzebub, another name for the devil. The sacrificed sow head on a spear, called the Lord of the Flies, symbolizes the devil. Since Simon’s confrontation with the Lord of the Flies occurs in the midst of a delusion, it can be considered a prophecy similar to an oracle’s vision. Both Christ and Simon meet with the devil while in altered physical states. Simon’s confrontation with the Lord of the Flies is a result of severe dehydration and an epileptic fit indicated by “a pulse [that] began to beat on the brain” which parallels Christ’s meeting with the devil during the forty days he went into the wilderness without food or drink (Golding 138). In his vision, Simon realizes that “things are what they are” because

The encounter with the Lord of the Flies supports Simon’s thoughts that the beast that the boys are hunting for is not an actual animal. The Lord of the Flies tries to persuade Simon to let go of his rational thoughts and be taken over by his primal instincts in order to have fun like the other boys. However, when Simon’s silence declares that he refuses to let go of logic and rationality, the Lord of the Flies realizes that Simon knows what the beast really is—the innermost part of the boys. Simon seems to make this connection that the Lord of the Flies is representational to the inner beast within the boys almost instantly. “His gaze was held by that ancient, inescapable recognition”(Golding 139). Simon instantly The Lord of the Flies quickly makes the connection, too. “You knew, didn’t you? I’m part of you? Close, close, close! I’m the reason why it’s no go? Why things are what they are?” (Golding, 1 ). The Lord of the Flies is symbolic to all the evil that is in humans. As Simon realizes that he was right about the beast, he tries to go back to the other boys to warn them about his discovery, but the Lord of the Flies gets angry. “This is ridiculous. You know perfectly well you’ll only meet me down there—so don’t try to

The character of Simon in William Golding’s Lord of the Flies has often been viewed as the Christ figure of the novel. If you were to examine the actions of both Simon and Jesus, you would find a number of incidents that parallel each other.

The character of Simon, from the novel ‘Lord of the Flies’, is often viewed as an allegory of Jesus Christ, which is highly important, as Simon plays a significant role through the novel. Simon and Christ do not only share natural, unconditional kindness, there are many parallels to be drawn with Simon’s and Jesus’ lives. Many would argue that the following arguments discussed are more than just a coincidence, and that Golding intended and/or based Simon on Christ.

A lack of religion will lead to a lack of morality. Christlike figures often appear selfless, enlightened, and are taunted by sin. Simon from Lord of the Flies exhibits kindness to the young children by getting them fruit, while most of the older children disregard the children, and leave them to their own activities. He challenges the older boys ways of thinking, as he often prefers to meditate alone in the jungle. He even outright opposes the group mentality, as he says, “I don’t believe in the beast” (105). When Simon is confronted by the lord of the flies (a thinly-veiled reference to satan), it taunts him. The pig’s head symbolizes of the worst aspect of the group, and it tries to tempt and threaten Simon so that he becomes like the rest of the boys: unorganized, unfocused, and on their way to becoming savages. Eventually the other boys ritualistically murder Simon because they mistake him for the beast. Simon was the only one who knew that the beast was not real. He was enlightened and it isolated him from the rest of the boys. The parallels between Simon and Christ make Simon’s death more impactful, to emphasize the inevitability of downfall in groups who

Simon had a specific mission in the novel: the opportunity to talk to the beast and receive answers, very similar to revelations. His role was to help the boys notice what the Beast really was, and not

In a world that demands individuals to conduct themselves according to the values and morals imposed by the society, it is often difficult to find those that exhibit an innate sense of compassion. Simon is a character that proves to be ‘one with nature’ and shows an immediate liking to his new environment. Therefore, when the others resorted to savagery, he still had not lost his gentleness and compassion. His encounter with the Lord of the Flies exposes the truth about the beast and as a result, causes his consciousness to evolve. This reveals his true nature as a kindhearted and an honest person. As promised, the Lord of the Flies did have fun with him, ultimately causing his death in attempts of spreading the truth amongst the other boys. The ‘Lord of the Flies’ states: “There isn’t anyone to help you. Only me. And I’m the Beast. . . . Fancy thinking the Beast was something you could hunt and kill!”

group, did not allow Piggy to eat as he did not hunt with them. We

Simon falls to the ground dead and is described as beautiful and pure. The description of his death, the manner in which he died, and the cause for which he died are remarkably similar to the circumstances of Christ's life and ultimate demise. The major difference is

Simon is attempting to spread his revelation, but failed to and was instead brutally attacked by his own friends. However, Golding chooses to make Simon try to spread that realization instead of making Simon crying out to stop hitting him. Instead of yelling to stop, Simon tries to spread his message just like Jesus Christ wanted to before his crucifixion. Golding uses this action to draw that specific parallel. Finally, when Simon’s body is taken by the sea, the sea “dressed Simon’s coarse hair with brightness. The line of his cheek silvered and the turn of his shoulder became sculptured marble. The strange attendant creatures … busied themselves around his head. The body lifted a fraction of an inch from the sand and a bubble of air escaped from the mouth with a wet plop “ (154). Simon’s body seems to undergo a change as if he is becoming god-like or experiencing a rebirth after his death. The creatures, a representation of angels, are gathering Simon’s soul to take him to heaven. This is very similar to how Jesus Christ, the prophet who had a revelation that could not be spread when attacked by his own people, experienced a rebirth and eventually ascended into heaven. This story is reflected when Simon himself experiences a similar life to Jesus and eventually welcomed by the sea, a parallel to God and heaven. All of this seems to say that Simon is a Christ-figure and further supports the fact that we are all sinners waiting to be saved by God and Jesus

At the end of chapter nine in The Lord of the Flies, William Golding utilizes figurative language to establish Simon as a Jesus figure, who dies and becomes released from his suffering. After Simon's realization that what the boys believe is the beast is instead a dead man with a blue parachute, he returns to the other boys to tell them that the beast they imagine on the island is fictitious. During a stormy night, the boys create a barbaric circle where they repetitively dictate a chant in order to summon the beast so that they have the opportunity to kill it. Because they mistake Simon as a beast as he attempts to tell them of his discovery of the dead man, Simon is forcefully pulled into the center of the boys'

Through all the fear and savagery, one boy saw through it all, and began to speculate as to what the beast really was, this boy being Simon. As the idea of a beast arises, the tribe becomes chaotic. Simon however, a persona of neither savagery nor civilisation, questions the existence of a beast. “Maybe there is a beast...maybe it’s only us” as quoted by Simon, shows that he believes that there is a beast, but not the same beast everyone else has in mind. Instead, Simon, unaffected by the fear, believes that the beast is within each boy. Later on in the book, Simon’s speculations are proven true, as in a vision, he sees the Lord of the Flies who confirms that "You knew, didn 't you? I 'm part of you? Close, close, close! I 'm the reason why it 's no go? Why things are what they are?"(Page 143). Simon also discovers the supposed beast is just a human being. Certain of this, Simon runs towards the tribe in order to tell them the truth. Fearful however, the boys see him as the beast and kill him and their only way of destroying the beast. From this, it is evident that the boys could not destroy the “beast” as they had killed the only boy who knew the truth.

In William Golding's Lord of the Flies, Simon represents the innate morality of humans, acting as a Christ-like figure, while Roger embodies the all present cruelty and inherent sadism of individuals. Throughout the novel, Simon remains unchanged in terms of morality, as others slowly turn to savagery and hunting, as can be seen when Jack’s group become, “demoniac figures with faces of white and red and green.” Instead Simon finds a quiet spot “in a little cabin screened off from the open space by a few leaves.” By “holding his breath, he [cocks] a critical ear at the sounds of the island,” using his secret cabin to meditate. Coupled with his deep connection to nature, Simon is revealed to be a Christ figure. When left alone with the

In William Golding’s Lord of the Flies, which is set during World War II, English school boys, escaping war in England, crash on a deserted tropical island. From the protected environment of boarding school, the boys are suddenly thrust into a situation where they must fend for themselves. In order to survive, the boys copy their country’s rule for a civilized life by electing a leader, Ralph. He promises order, discipline, and rules for the boys so that they form a small civilized society. This civilized society does not last. Struggling with Jack who wants to be the leader and the boys’ fears of the unknown, Ralph is unable to maintain control, and the boys fulfill Golding’s perspective that human

The Lord Of The Flies, written by William Golding, is a political allegory where the island illustrates the world while Jack and Ralph both symbolize conflicting ideologies, totalitarianism and democracy because Ralph and Jack, in a power struggle, fight for control over the island, trying to spread their respective ideologies, just as it occurred during the inception of the book. Stranded on the island, the boys, haggard and bedraggled, chose Ralph as their chief. During the voting process, Ralph and his conch, the device use to talk in the tribe, are described: "There was a stillness about Ralph as he sat that marked him out: there was his size, and attractive appearance; and most importantly, yet most powerful, was the conch" (22). The quote,