It was the summer of 1939. The sweltering heat created an almost omnipresent haze in the air. Something would happen today. Rumors had been swirling about an attack on London. Young children were ushered and rushed to alleged safety and mothers wept in fear. Europe was at war. Twenty years later Golding published a novel that would capture the essence of society itself. In Lord of the Flies he uses symbolism to portray the collapse of peace and humanity during World War II.
In Lord of the Flies by William Golding, a group of young British boys are stranded on an island when their plane unexpectedly crashes. In an attempt to recreate the structured life they left behind they establish a form of democratic society with Ralph as their leader, along with Piggy to guide …show more content…
On the surface it would appear that a solution appeared and civility was restored with the arrival of the adults. In-depth analysis of his diction, however, makes Golding’s purpose crystal clear. “A naval officer stood on the sand, looking down at Ralph in wary astonishment. On the beach behind him was a cutter, her bows hauled up and held by two ratings” (200). Golding concludes this insightful description by penning “In the stern-sheets another rating held a sub-machine gun” (200). This last piece of imagery delivers possibly the most powerful message in Lord of the Flies. This naval officer, their rescuer and beacon, came on a warship. He is another product of the vast source of human cruelty and corruption. In a time period plagued with war, Golding took inspiration from the horrors of Nazi Europe and represented these atrocities in a simple yet complex way. Golding himself once said that “The theme is an attempt to trace the defects of society back to the defects of human nature” (Epstein 204). It’s ironic because the people doing the rescuing aren’t far from savages themselves. Who will rescue the
In Lord of the Flies by William Golding, a group of young British boys are stranded on an island when their plane unexpectedly crashes. In an attempt to recreate the structured life they left behind they establish a form of democratic society with Ralph as their leader, along with Piggy to guide …show more content…
On the surface it would appear that a solution appeared and civility was restored with the arrival of the adults. In-depth analysis of his diction, however, makes Golding’s purpose crystal clear. “A naval officer stood on the sand, looking down at Ralph in wary astonishment. On the beach behind him was a cutter, her bows hauled up and held by two ratings” (200). Golding concludes this insightful description by penning “In the stern-sheets another rating held a sub-machine gun” (200). This last piece of imagery delivers possibly the most powerful message in Lord of the Flies. This naval officer, their rescuer and beacon, came on a warship. He is another product of the vast source of human cruelty and corruption. In a time period plagued with war, Golding took inspiration from the horrors of Nazi Europe and represented these atrocities in a simple yet complex way. Golding himself once said that “The theme is an attempt to trace the defects of society back to the defects of human nature” (Epstein 204). It’s ironic because the people doing the rescuing aren’t far from savages themselves. Who will rescue the