Lord of the Flies is a novel about a group of British boys whose plane crashes on a deserted island during a war. With no adults to supervise them, they attempt to govern themselves but quickly descend into chaos, exploring themes of civilization vs. savagery, power and leadership, fear, and the loss of innocence. Key points
- Plot arc: The boys organize into factions led by Ralph (order, democracy) and Jack (control, savagery). A disastrous struggle for authority, fear of a mythical beast, and the breakdown of social norms drive the story.
- Major events: The formation of a signal fire and rescue idea, the painting of faces and hunting, Simon’s encounter and death, Piggy’s murder and the destruction of the conch, the boys’ forest fire, and the final arrival of a naval officer who witnesses their feral state.
- Central theme: The thin veneer of civilization can quickly erode under fear, power struggles, and group hysteria, revealing the darker aspects of human nature.
- Symbols: The conch represents law and order; the "beast" embodies the primal fear and the inherent violence within the boys; the Lord of the Flies (the pig’s head) symbolizes the manifestation of evil within everyone.
- Tone and genre: A grim, allegorical novel that uses a simple survival scenario to critique human society and morality.
If you’d like, I can tailor this to a specific aspect—such as a character analysis (Ralph, Jack, Piggy, Simon), a discussion of the novel’s themes, or an explanation of its ending and what it suggests about civilization.
