Biblical Allusions In Lord Of The Flies

Lord of the Flies is a novel about a group of English boys who's plane crashes on a deserted island. They are left stranded without any adults. As time progresses, the boys become more and more evil because they struggle for power. They are faced with many decisions of what it will take to survive and be rescued. This book has many instances that parallel the Bible. William Golding creates religious imagery and makes several biblical references throughout this religious allegory. The Garden of Eden is alluded to in many ways throughout the novel. The island at first is depicted with "shimmering water"(10) and as a paradise, but as the allegory continues it is destroyed by the boys' savage behavior. Simon, who has the personality …show more content…
Simon is the only boy on the island who did not give in to temptation, evil, and sin. His unselfish actions are very Christ-like. He searches for the truth about the beast and is killed when he tries to tell the others the truth. He also has epilepsy, which was closely related to prophesying in ancient times. Several prophets have been documented as having epileptic symptoms. Epilepsy use to be associated with giving someone prophetic powers. This is especially prevalent when Simon passes out "inside the mouth"(144) of the pig. Before Simon is killed the boys begin their demonic chant, when Simon is found stumbling out of the woods the circle opens into a "horseshoe"(152). The horseshoe shape represents the opening in the pig's mouth that Simon passes out in. Then the boys savagely kill him. These characteristics of Simon allude to him being a Christ-like figure. After Simon is killed, he is lifted by "bright creatures"(154) and taken out to sea. The setting after his death parallels the divine ascension into heaven. The brightness that envelopes him represents angles, and there is a "silver shape beneath the steadfast constellations" (154) which creates an image of a halo. Just as Simon represented Jesus and all the good that exists, there was another character that was on the other end of the spectrum. Roger, who was part of Jack's tribe, represents the devil and all the evils that humanity is capable of. Roger is a sadistic boy who has spent most of his childhood masking his evil spirit so that society accepts him. The longer he is on the island the less control he has over his evil nature. This lack of control eventually leads him to kill Piggy in front of all of the boys. The title of the novel, Lord of the Flies, is another dramatic reference to the bible. Beelzebub, a hebrew name of a demonic person, literally