Originally published in 1954, ‘Lord of the Flies’ is one of the classics of contemporary British literature. By employing a moderately straightforward writing style, avoiding extremely poetic language, extensive descriptions, and theoretical interludes, William Golding conveys the novel’s central themes in an allegorical manner. In ‘Lord of Flies‘, Golding explores the wide variety of ways in which humans react to pressure, transformation and stress by infusing the novel’s characters and objects with figurative significance.
The key concern of ‘Lord of the Flies’ is the conflict between two opposing instincts that exist within all human beings: the instinct to abide by rules, follow moral norms, and value the good of the group against the instinct to satisfy one’s desires, act selfishly to obtain control over others, and enforce one’s will. Throughout the ‘Lord of the Flies’, the instinct of civilization is associated with Good and the instinct of savagery is associated with Evil.
Narrating the story of a group of English young boys between 6 and 12 years old who are alone on an island and develop their own culture, ‘Lord of Flies’ explores the eternal fight between Good and Evil. Through a simple, rather straightforward story, Golding describes how the civilized, decent, disciplined behavior of the young boys gradually transforms into a wild, atrocious, barbaric behavior as they mimic the culture of adults and as such they become savage.
As the boys on the island transform from well-mannered, tidy children longing for rescue into brutal, bloodthirsty hunters no more interested in returning to civilization, they inevitably lose their innocence. However, Golding does not describe their loss of innocence as the result of a learned behavior; rather, he suggests that it is the natural result from their increasing exposure to the inherent evil and savagery that has always existed within them. Golding suggests that civilization can alleviate but never eradicate the innate evil that dwells in mankind. Under the proper circumstances, the innate evil can come out and transform the person into a brand new individual. This is how savagery lies within each boy, representing the evil that lives inside humanity.
The main allegory of the novel is that man without civilization can become savage. The Lord of the Flies and the Beast are imaginary characters representing the Evil that lies in every human being. As the story is told through the eyes of Ralph and Piggy, the novel portrays how different people behave under certain circumstances. Ralph and Piggy are innocent to the extent of lacking a savage instinct, although they are temporarily tempted by the savages; Jack and Roger feel surprised seeing the other group trying to preserve their civilization; and in the middle stands Simon, who is the only purely good character because his moral code is natural and not the result of societal force. Simon is the first one to realize that the Beast is not a physical character, but it’s the boys’ inner instincts that drives their minds and actions. On the other hand, Jack uses the fear of the Beast to scare everybody on the island and make people follow his will suggesting how superstitions and religion can be used to manipulate people in the aim of gaining power and control.
Another interesting point is how Golding uses each character to convey a message. Piggy symbolizes the intellectual that every civilization needs. His death signifies that savagery can take control over civilization and science, if given a chance. Simon represents morality, but his death only shows that inherent morality cannot survive because savagery is almost always stronger than civilization. The fact that savagery stops as soon as the navel man comes on the picture symbolizes that civilization can prevail but with multiple efforts as the man has to leave and return.
Many critics have argued that ‘Lord of the Flies’ is reciting episodes from the Bible. Although this may seem as an overgeneralization, the novel does reflect certain Christian images and themes. Golding does not refer explicitly to Christian symbolism. Yet, there are biblical parallels that function as a sort of fine motif in the novel, adding thematic importance to the main ideas of the story.
The island itself calls to mind the Garden of Eden in its status as an originally immaculate place that is corrupted by the introduction of evil. Similarly, one may regard the Lord of the Flies as a symbol of the devil, for it works to endorse evil among humankind. Besides, there are strong parallels between Simon and Jesus. Among the boys, Simon is the one who reaches a higher moral truth and he gets killed by the other boys as a consequence of having being exposed to this truth. Simon’s conversation with the Lord of the Flies also allegorizes the confrontation between Jesus and the devil during Jesus’ forty days in the wilderness.
In conclusion, ‘Lord of the Flies’ is a classic book that even without the allegory would be fun to read. The Beast is the irrational fear of the boys portrayed in several physical forms throughout the novel. Moreover, the novel’s biblical parallels enhance its moral ideas, and although they are not complete, there are grounds to suggest ‘Lord of the Flies’ as a Christian allegory. Overall, Golding paints a broader canvas of the primary human struggle between the instinct to be obedient, morale and lawful and the instinct to overpower others and be selfish, disrespectful, immoral, and violent.
