The Cinematic Interpretations of The Lord of the Flies by William Golding

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

Similar to most literary classics, William Golding’s novel Lord of the Flies contains allusions to the Christian Bible and character archetypes that convey universal ideas. Golding’s story focuses on a group of British schoolboys who are stranded on an island and ultimately succumb to their innate savage tendencies. Literary analysts often compare components of Lord of the Flies to various aspects in the Christian Bible. For instance, the setting in Lord of the Flies is often linked to the Garden of Eden, and some characters are thought to have religious-inspired names. Critics believe Simon’s name originates from Jesus Christ’s disciple, Peter, whose name was originally Simon. Biblical allusions exist throughout the novel associated with

Throughout the history of humanity, humans have different behaviors that change depending on what situations they are in. Psychologist Philip Zimbardo spent many years exploring human nature and has developed many theories about human behavior. One of Zimbardo’s ideas is about situational factors that states “one’s behavior is assumed to be dependent upon their current circumstances, situation or the environment that they are in.” He concluded the concept of situational factors after his Stanford Prison Experiment, in which he gave authority to regular people and observed any changes. The experiment proved that people’s behavior will change when they are in different situations. Zimbardo also believes that evilness is the exercise of power to harm people in anyway possible, so a five year old who teases others to Adolf Hitler would be classified as perpetrators of evil.

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.

This reminds Jack and Ralph that there is a chance that the beast is real and there may be reason for all the fear.  It also reveals that Simon's character is very much in touch with reality. He is not trying to push the fact that a beast could be on the island away from him.  He is trying to deal with his fear and show the others that they can and should deal with theirs.

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.

Literary devices are techniques often used by authors to portray in-depth analyses of major characters, storylines, and central themes, which take place in a story. These analyses help readers understand a message the author is trying to convey. In the novel Lord of the Flies, William Golding uses different literary devices in order to demonstrate the boys’ struggle against the lack of society and law on the island, as well as the consequences that have transpired due to this loss. This conflict is evident through the different instances of irony, foreshadowing, and symbolism that occurs throughout the novel.

After arriving back from his first hunting trip, Jack unknowingly admits his fear of an inner dark side to Ralph as he tells him that “If you’re hunting sometimes...you can feel as if you’re not hunting, but-- being hunted…”(53). Jack is afraid of being hunted, which is ironically what he wants to do. Although he may not realize it, Jack is afraid of his inner darkness; he’s afraid that his obsession with hunting will turn him savage. Even so, as he continues to pursue his mania, he causes conflict amongst their society. The majority of the boys side with him over Ralph in their battle for power, showing that in times of fear, people will behave irrationally because they have lost clarity and go to desperate and violent measures to cope with their fears. As the hunters, Ralph, and Simon search the island for the beast, Simon envisions the beast as “the picture of a human at once heroic and sick” (103). Simon is the least beast-like out of all the boys, yet he is the only one to completely understand the mysterious beast. The fact that the boys know that they could kill a monster, if needed, comforts them because they’re making the beast into something they want it to be. The boys don’t want to accept that the beast is something within them because they don’t know how to deal with it. An inevitable, nefarious nature is much harder to avoid or defeat than a palpable monster. If a society is frightened of

Many philosophers believe that a correct government can make a strong society. However, these philosophers do not agree on what form of government is the most “correct”. English philosopher John Locke believed that Man is inherently moral and that the purpose for government is to grant the fundamental rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness to its people. Another philosopher, Thomas Hobbes, however, held the belief that mankind is naturally evil and that society needs an absolute central authority to contain this evilness and grant its people with the common protection. Hobbes believes that in a state of nature, when there are no rules and everyone is granted equal power, the inherent evil impulses of Man are exposed. One

The novel, “Lord of the Flies” by William Golding was published in 1954. It’s the story of a group of boys stranded on an island with no adults. Since then, it has had two film adaptions. The first adaption was produced in 1963, directed by the Englishman Peter Brook. This version was filmed in black and white and follows the events of the book very closely. The second adaption came twenty-seven years later in 1990, which was directed by the American Harry Hook. The second adaption did not quite follow the novel in terms of symbolism, the beast and the overall theme while the first adaption was more faithful to the novel.

In William Golding’s, Lord of the Flies, a few dozen boys are stranded on an island after a plane crash. The six to twelve year old kids turn to savages under the lead of the older males, and ultimately cause their own deaths. However, the smaller boys, such as Piggy and Sam and Eric, are the hope and reason of the group. Golding’s purpose of writing the book was to show that the defects in society originate at the defects in human nature. Golding allows the little ones to have no identities or personalities. This is symbolically showing that in society, the ignorant and innocent children are the only hope to a humane society. Innocence is purity, and the innocent children, in which are not corrupted by the bad people and things in the

Harry Hook did an amazing job of producing the movie “Lord of the Flies” though not a lot of people enjoyed it as much as William Golding’s book. The novel was published in 1954 when the movie was first released the year of 1990. But, the movie had so many amazing details you didn’t want to miss, it was fascinating to watch as well. On the other hand, the book had many action and meaning to it. For me, both the movie and book were captivating, however, some parts were completely different. Before I start talking about the differences of the award-winning novel and the movie, it is evident that in the book the kids were all English schoolboys, but in the film, the boys appeared to be

Who would have thought one girl could change a life? Being surrounded by boys majority of her childhood, Lindsey thought if she could at least make a change in her brother, she could change a generation of boys. With her father in the Navy and her mother not present, it was up to her to teach him how to be a man. Like she always says, “You’re never too old to learn feminism.” Let’s hope baby brother agrees.

My opinion about the Lord of the Flies is positive, I think it is an interest film , and it has got a clear intencion that is surprise the spectator and in my case I am extremely surprised . It has got very shocking scenes that shows how humans were without rules and laws , for example Piggy’s dead or break glass scene show us the little emphatic that the children have to Piggy.

I have read very few books and remembered how the author wrote their book. But there is one that I can easily remember, and that is John Steinbeck. I remember William Golding from reading Lord of the Flies which is one of my favorite books that I have read. He is a progressive writer and only gives important details. He would rather have the reader interpret details for their own rather than telling them everything. Each of the characters are symbolic of different human personalities. He also uses symbolism in inanimate objects. I like how it is a story with a meaning. With these elements in his writing style they make for a memorable book.