In the novel, Lord of the Flies by William Golding, a group of 90 boys are stranded in an uninhabitable island after their plane crashes.They must conquer the natural world together without the help of adults. The boys must face the reality that they may never get rescued unless they work together to survive the island. With the use of biblical allusions and symbols, Golding emphasizes the malevolence and corruption within the boys. Golding used the beastie to symbolize the snake and the iniquity created by Adam and Eve. “He wants to know what you’re going to do about the snake thing” (Golding 39). The snake in the bible is referred to the devil that leads the two into temptation. Adam and Eve are told by God to take whatever they want
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“You know perfectly well you’ll only meet me down there.” (Golding 182). Lord of the Flies translates to Beelzebub in Greek which translates back to the Devil or Satan. When the Lord of the Flies comes out to meet Simon who symbolizes Jesus, he tries to tempt him into ruining the tribe. In the bible, the devil tries to tempt Jesus in the desert for forty days. He asks Jesus to turn the stones in bread, fall off a cliff, and follow him instead of God. But Jesus denies all of these temptations and sends the devil away. Simon tries to send the devil away but fails which ultimately leads him to his death. “My poor child, do you think you know better than I do.” (Golding 182). When the Lord of the Flies refers Simon as his child, it can be seen that evil created parts of Simon. “... do you think you know better than I do” clearly indicates that the Lord of the Flies is within every boy on the island. They can’t escape the Lord of the Flies until they escape the island. It’s clear that Golding uses biblical allusions to emphasize the boy’s human nature of being selfish and evil. The snake represented the sin that is in not only the boys, but in all humans as well. The island became a symbol of the Garden of Eden which is paradise that quickly turns into hell. He also expanded the idea of sin and created the Lord of the Flies to represent the devil that’s inside every boy. No one is
“You know perfectly well you’ll only meet me down there.” (Golding 182). Lord of the Flies translates to Beelzebub in Greek which translates back to the Devil or Satan. When the Lord of the Flies comes out to meet Simon who symbolizes Jesus, he tries to tempt him into ruining the tribe. In the bible, the devil tries to tempt Jesus in the desert for forty days. He asks Jesus to turn the stones in bread, fall off a cliff, and follow him instead of God. But Jesus denies all of these temptations and sends the devil away. Simon tries to send the devil away but fails which ultimately leads him to his death. “My poor child, do you think you know better than I do.” (Golding 182). When the Lord of the Flies refers Simon as his child, it can be seen that evil created parts of Simon. “... do you think you know better than I do” clearly indicates that the Lord of the Flies is within every boy on the island. They can’t escape the Lord of the Flies until they escape the island. It’s clear that Golding uses biblical allusions to emphasize the boy’s human nature of being selfish and evil. The snake represented the sin that is in not only the boys, but in all humans as well. The island became a symbol of the Garden of Eden which is paradise that quickly turns into hell. He also expanded the idea of sin and created the Lord of the Flies to represent the devil that’s inside every boy. No one is