William Golding 's Lord Of The Flies

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.

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 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.

Simon, one of the major characters in the story, is set as an allusion to Jesus. Christ always had an affinity to children, as Simon does in chapter three of Lord of the Flies (Golding 56). He picks fruit for the younger children on the island that they call

In the story, Lord of the Flies, there are many biblical allusions; Simon represents Jesus, the pig’s head represents Satan or rather their satanic sides, Jack represents Judas, and the island represents the Garden of Eden. Through out this novel these allusions play large parts in the story and ideals place in the story.

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.

In the novel, Lord of the Flies, by William Golding, there is an allusion that predominates in the work. Simon portrays this allusion to the Bible in the novel and sustains this

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

In the novel Lord of The Flies, William Golding portrayed Simon as a Christ-figure. Simon and Jesus led parallel lives. Simon’s appearance seemed to resemble that of Jesus Christ’s. Simon picked fruit from the tree to feed the littluns. He also practiced deep meditation away from the other children. Simon received messages from the Lord of The Flies while meditating. Simon also tried to illuminate the children about the myth of “the beast” and dies a horrific death at the hands of the people he loved. He received an almost angelic burial. His death marks the completion of the destruction of the island’s civilization. All of these events allude to Jesus’s life events, according to the scriptures in the Bible.

Golding also draws a parallel between Simon and Jesus Christ. When Simon converses with the Lord of the Flies, an equivalent to Satan, the Lord of the Flies told Simon, “We are going to have fun on this island! So don’t try it on, my poor misguided boy, or else- Or else, we shall do you? See? Jack and Roger and Maurice and Robert and Bill and Piggy and Ralph. Do you” (143). In this conversation, the Lord of the Flies seems to tempt Simon to not interfere in the release and spread of savagery by threatening him with the fact that he will be killed by his own comrades if he does not embrace savagery. Also, Simon is able to even predict his own death if he were to die from attempting to prevent the spread and descent of the boys into savagery.

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

William Golding’s first novel, Lord of the Flies, presents his pessimistic views on society and our primitive instincts. He demonstrates this through the setting of an inhabited island where a group of British schoolboys have been stranded. The entire story becomes a symbol for the theme Golding is developing, about the darkness within humanity. Within Lord of the Flies, William Golding highlights the flaws of society back to the flaws within human instincts, through the characters of Jack, Roger and Simon.

As Simon sees the pig “on his stick and grin[s]”, this suggests that he is starting to hallucinate and view it in an evil perspective. As this happens, this displays how the Lord of the Flies is the devil, or Beelzebub, as it tries to persuade him not to tell the other boys that the beast is just a human. This shows its evil intentions.

Although Golding doesn’t make any direct biblical parallels, he certainly uses them as penetrating motifs throughout the novel. Lord of the Flies opens in the Garden of Eden. On an island filled with ripe fruits, fresh, flowing water, has a luscious climate, and the boys are free to live as they want. They’re free from sexual longing and deprivation. Like Adam and Eve, the boys are innocent. Golding describes Simon as the “Jesus” figure in the story. Simon happens to be on of Jesus’ twelve disciples. Jesus later renamed Simon to Peter, which means “rock.” Simon and Jesus share the same experience of mourning and mental suffering the night before their death. Simon, with his experience talking with the pig head and Jesus in his time in the Garden of Gethsemane. Unlike Jesus, Simon’s death did not bring salvation to the island. It brought the boys deeper into savagery and guilt. After the boys were building the signal fire, it started to burn everything. That is the beginning of hell. The small boy with