The Romantics believed that human nature was inherently good but had become corrupted by

civilization. The boys in this novel were raised on books like Robinson Crusoe, The Blue Lagoon, and
Swiss Family Robinson, in which shipwrecked people make decent lives on their islands. How does
this book refute that Romantic notion? Throughout the novel, the nature of the Beast changes for the
boys. Trace the boys’ perception of the Beast from Chapter One through Chapter Twelve.

Gradually, the boys become less and less civilized and more and more savage. Trace the progression
of their devolution. What does it mean to say that Lord of the Flies is an allegorical novel?
To what extent is Simon a Christ-figure? Explain Golding’s view of humanity as illustrated in Lord of
the Flies. What circumstances or situations from his background may have influenced his views?
Compare and contrast Jack and Ralph; include physical appearance, character qualities, leadership
ability, and style.

State Golding’s view of the essential nature of humanity and comment on civilization’s function in
regard to humankind. Classify each of the major characters into an archetype: • Ralph as the orderly
forces of civilization; • Jack as the primal, instinctual mind or militaristic mind; • Simon as a
representative of goodness and kindness; • Piggy as scapegoat.
Support major themes with evidence from the text: • civilization vs. savagery; • loss of innocence; •
innate evil in all humans.

1. I believe that this novel, Lord of the Flies’ refutation of that Romantic notion. Before the boys
crash landed on this island, they were lovely, young british school boys. The longer the boys
stay on the island, the more the boys’ attitudes changes. They soon become ragged clothed,
savages. As their appearances start to debase, their attitudes do the same. This challenges
the novel’s refutation of the Romantic notion, “human nature was inherently good, but had
become corrupted by civilization.”
In chapter 1 of the novel, Jack refuses to kill the pig because he still has the civilized manner from
before the crash. This is a quote from chapter 5, “...discovered dirt and decay, understood how much
he disliked perpetually flicking the tangled hair out of his eyes…” That quote clearly shows that as
time passes, their appearances worsen. The boys soon become barely clothed or how Jack says it,
"naked to the waist".

2. The beast introduces fear into this island paradise. The young boys have nightmares about
this beast that appears to them like a snake, which is symbolic of the serpent in the Garden of
Eden that tempted Eve to eat from the Tree of Knowledge. At first, the beast seems like it is
something outside of the boys, something that they could do something about.
However, in time, the beast symbolizes the dark side of human nature, something that no physical
wall or weapon can defeat..

3. .Lord of the Flies is an allegorical novel in that it contains characters and objects that directly
represent the novel’s themes and ideas. Golding’s central point in the novel is that a conflict
between the impulse toward civilization and the impulse toward savagery rages within each
human individual

4. Simon is a Christ Figure for many reasons: Compassion for others - Just as Christ showed
compassion for others in his healing of the sick and feeding of the hungry, Simon shows
 compassion in the way he stands up for Piggy when Jack criticizes him (ch. 2), helps Ralph
with building the huts after others have abandoned the work (ch. 3), and helps the littluns get
food that is out of their reach. Quiet time alone - Just as Christ often leaves his disciples for
short periods of time so he can be
alone to pray, Simon leaves the others so he can go to his "quiet place" for time alone.
Persecuted unto death - Just as Christ was killed on the cross after the angry mob shouted
for the Romans to "crucify him!", Simon is killed on the beach by the other boys. Unlike Christ,
however, there is no resurrection for Simon.

5. William Golding's literature piece Lord of the Flies provides an incisive insight into human
behavior. The novel tells the fictional story of a group of English boys during an outbreak of a
world war that get stuck on an uninhabited island with just themselves and no adults that
would be an authoritative figure among them.
Over the course of time, these boys demonstrate elements of human nature beyond civilized
human beings as they are put in a society and environment where there are no rules or civility
set in place. Golding contends that human nature, when free from the constraints of society,
draws people away from common sense to savagery. His fundamental arguments are that
human beings are savage by nature, and are moved by urges toward brutality and dominance
over others. The use of characterization, symbolism, and character development are various
literary devices that Golding uses in Lord of the Flies to illustrate that all humans are
inherently evil.
Golding’s experience in World War II had a profound effect on his view of humanity and the
evils of which it was capable.

6. Comparison: In doing contrast and comparison between Ralph and Jack, we can say both are
of the same age and have almost the same personality. They have leadership qualities.
Physically both are athletic, fit, strong and in good shape. Jack is attractive and charismatic,
but irritable and manipulative. Contrast: From the very beginning, Ralph makes plans for his
future, whereas Jack symbolizes dictator mind setup as he rules by using violence and fear.
Jack’s plans are superficial, but Ralphorganizes fun and hunts. Jack is a symbolic fascist
regime and Hitler, whereas Ralph symbolizes democracies opposite to fascists.

7. Civilization vs. Savagery The central concern of Lord of the Flies is the conflict between two
competing impulses that exist within all human beings: the instinct to live by rules, act
peacefully, follow moral commands, and value the good of the group against the instinct to
gratify one’s immediate desires, act violently to obtain supremacy over others, and enforce
one’s will. This conflict might be expressed in a number of ways: civilization vs. savagery,
order vs. chaos, reason vs. impulse, law vs. anarchy, or the broader heading of good vs. evil.
Throughout the novel, Golding associates the instinct of civilization with good and the instinct
of savagery with evil.
As the novel progresses, Golding shows how different people feel the influences of the
instincts of civilization and savagery to different degrees. Piggy, for instance, has no savage
feelings, while Roger seems barely capable of comprehending the rules of civilization.
Generally, however, Golding implies that the instinct of savagery is far more primal and
fundamental to the human psyche than the instinct of civilization. Golding sees moral
behavior, in many cases, as something that civilization forces upon the individual rather than
 a natural expression of human individuality. When left to their own devices, Golding implies,
people naturally revert to cruelty, savagery, and barbarism. This idea of innate human evil is
central to Lord of the Flies, and finds expression in several important symbols, most notably
the beast and the sow’s head on the stake. Among all the characters, only Simon seems to
possess anything like a natural, innate goodness.

8. Loss of innocence- As the boys on the island progress from well-behaved, orderly children
longing for rescue to cruel, bloodthirsty hunters who have no desire to return to civilization,
they naturally lose the sense of innocence that they possessed at the beginning of the novel.
The painted savages in Chapter 12 who have hunted, tortured, and killed animals and human
beings are a far cry from the guileless children swimming in the lagoon in Chapter 3. But
Golding does not portray this loss of innocence as something that is done to the children;
rather, it results naturally from their increasing openness to the innate evil and savagery that
has always existed within them. Golding implies that civilization can mitigate but never wipe
out the innate evil that exists within all human beings. The forest glade in which Simon sits in
Chapter 3 symbolizes this loss of innocence. At first, it is a place of natural beauty and peace,
but when Simon returns later in the novel, he discovers the bloody sow’s shead impaled upon
a stake in the middle of the clearing. The bloody offering to the beast has disrupted the
paradise that existed before—a powerful symbol of innate human evil disrupting childhood
innocence.

9. Innate evil in all humans.

The fact that the main characters in Lord of the Flies are young boys suggests the potential
for evil is inherent even in small children. Jack, for example, is initially keen for rules and
civility, but becomes obsessed with hunting, frightened and empowered by the promise of
violence. Jack’s desire to control and subjugate proves more powerful than his desire for
empathy, intellect, and civilization, and Jack becomes a brutal and leader. Even Ralph and
Piggy, who both strive to maintain their sense of humanity, ultimately join in on the mass
murder of Simon, momentarily surrendering to the thrill of violence and mass hysteria. While
Piggy tries to ignore their participation, Ralph is devastated when he realizes that he is no
better than Jack or Roger, and that he has a darkness inside as well.

Ralph- Hero architype

belittle – makes someone feel smaller

on the strength of
by virtue of

Sigmund Freud's theory of the id and the ego