Lord of the Flies by William Golding
Author Biography:
Born in Cornwall, England, William Golding started writing at the age of seven. Though he studied natural sciences at Oxford to please his parents, he also studied English and published his first book, a collection of poems, before finishing college. He served in the Royal Navy during World War II, participating in the Normandy invasion. Golding's other novels include Lord of the Flies, The Inheritors, The Free Fall, Pincher Martin, The Double Tongue, and Rites of Passage, which won the Booker Prize. Information retrieved from Amazon.com.
Published by: Perigee Trade
ISBN: 0399537422
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Reading Level: Grades 9 - 12
Reader’s Annotation:
A small group of boys clamber onto a deserted island and await rescue following a tragic plane crash.The situation falls apart quickly, however, as the children believe a monster is lurking somewhere on the island. Driven by fear and loneliness, the children soon commit acts most would think only adults could be capable of.
Plot Summary:
A small group of English children pull themselves onto a deserted island after the plane they were riding in crashes, killing all the adults on board. Among the notable children are Ralph, who acts as their leader, Piggy, who is highly disrespected by the group for his weight and is frequently the victim of jokes and harassment, and Jack, who learns how to hunt and leads a party to provide meat for the group.
Though the group gets along easily enough at first, Ralph has a difficult time acting as leader. Though he can get them excited enough at first about building structures and foraging for food, they quickly lose interest and begin loafing about. Jack is also constantly nipping at his heels, believing he should be the leader and claiming Ralph is incompetent. Though his protests are largely ignored at first, Jack manages to kill a wild boar and provide for the group. This quickly begins to swing the group’s favor towards Jack, making it even more difficult for Ralph to maintain order.
Meanwhile, Piggy attempts to find his place in the group, but is made the whipping boy of nearly everyone. Though he does have some wisdom, he lacks any kind of presence and is either ignored or told to shut up. His only saving grace is his pair of glasses, which can be used to make fire for the group.
Following Jack’s kill, he creates a hunting party and frequently explores the surrounding forest for food. One day the children swear they saw an enormous monster prowling the forest, prompting Jack’s group to begin hunting it. Ralph and Piggy disagree, saying that they either shouldn’t provoke it or that it doesn’t exist. The arguing places even more strain on the group until it leads to it splitting up, one side with Jack while the other with Ralph.
It becomes apparent that Ralph’s group is the larger one, mainly because of his public relations campaign of throwing a party with lots of meat. Ralph’s group dwindles down to next to nothing, leading both he and Piggy to become outcasts. Worse still, days go by without any sign of rescue and with Jack becoming increasingly unstable, the other group steadily becomes brutal and savage leading to acts neither side will be able to forget or atone for.
Critical Evaluation:
While many of us may be used to the violence and depravity of adults as reported by the news media on a daily basis, it can be shocking to see children commit the same acts. William Golding has written a book that argues children, left to their own devices, can eventually break down to that same violence and hatred adults can be prone to. The argument is, basically, that this is what the human race is at its core. As a result, the book can spark discussion among readers if they believe this to be true or not. Many readers may have different answers regarding Golding’s arguments, and it is certainly worth discussing.
As far as the novel is concerned, the book begins slowly as the children emerge from the wreckage snuffling and worried about rescue, but the action ramps up midway through the book and doesn’t let up. If readers – and teens – can get past that initial point, they may find this book to be an engaging, thought-provoking read.
Curriculum Ties:
Challenge Issues:
Defensive Maneuvers:
Book Talk Ideas:
You and a friend are on a stranded island with a bunch of other kids looking to the both of for leadership. Your friend is obviously beginning to lose it, but does manage to be a good hunter? What would you do to maintain peace?
Why This Book?
Lord of the Flies demonstrates how anybody without proper direction can become violent and cruel. The book provides an important talking point about human nature, and makes readers think about what they would do if they were faced with the same situation as the children are. Would they try to oust Ralph immediately? Could they be a strong enough leader to force the others into working together? The questions alone are enough to make Lord of the Flies worth adding to the collection.
Born in Cornwall, England, William Golding started writing at the age of seven. Though he studied natural sciences at Oxford to please his parents, he also studied English and published his first book, a collection of poems, before finishing college. He served in the Royal Navy during World War II, participating in the Normandy invasion. Golding's other novels include Lord of the Flies, The Inheritors, The Free Fall, Pincher Martin, The Double Tongue, and Rites of Passage, which won the Booker Prize. Information retrieved from Amazon.com.
Published by: Perigee Trade
ISBN: 0399537422
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Reading Level: Grades 9 - 12
Reader’s Annotation:
A small group of boys clamber onto a deserted island and await rescue following a tragic plane crash.The situation falls apart quickly, however, as the children believe a monster is lurking somewhere on the island. Driven by fear and loneliness, the children soon commit acts most would think only adults could be capable of.
Plot Summary:
A small group of English children pull themselves onto a deserted island after the plane they were riding in crashes, killing all the adults on board. Among the notable children are Ralph, who acts as their leader, Piggy, who is highly disrespected by the group for his weight and is frequently the victim of jokes and harassment, and Jack, who learns how to hunt and leads a party to provide meat for the group.
Though the group gets along easily enough at first, Ralph has a difficult time acting as leader. Though he can get them excited enough at first about building structures and foraging for food, they quickly lose interest and begin loafing about. Jack is also constantly nipping at his heels, believing he should be the leader and claiming Ralph is incompetent. Though his protests are largely ignored at first, Jack manages to kill a wild boar and provide for the group. This quickly begins to swing the group’s favor towards Jack, making it even more difficult for Ralph to maintain order.
Meanwhile, Piggy attempts to find his place in the group, but is made the whipping boy of nearly everyone. Though he does have some wisdom, he lacks any kind of presence and is either ignored or told to shut up. His only saving grace is his pair of glasses, which can be used to make fire for the group.
Following Jack’s kill, he creates a hunting party and frequently explores the surrounding forest for food. One day the children swear they saw an enormous monster prowling the forest, prompting Jack’s group to begin hunting it. Ralph and Piggy disagree, saying that they either shouldn’t provoke it or that it doesn’t exist. The arguing places even more strain on the group until it leads to it splitting up, one side with Jack while the other with Ralph.
It becomes apparent that Ralph’s group is the larger one, mainly because of his public relations campaign of throwing a party with lots of meat. Ralph’s group dwindles down to next to nothing, leading both he and Piggy to become outcasts. Worse still, days go by without any sign of rescue and with Jack becoming increasingly unstable, the other group steadily becomes brutal and savage leading to acts neither side will be able to forget or atone for.
Critical Evaluation:
While many of us may be used to the violence and depravity of adults as reported by the news media on a daily basis, it can be shocking to see children commit the same acts. William Golding has written a book that argues children, left to their own devices, can eventually break down to that same violence and hatred adults can be prone to. The argument is, basically, that this is what the human race is at its core. As a result, the book can spark discussion among readers if they believe this to be true or not. Many readers may have different answers regarding Golding’s arguments, and it is certainly worth discussing.
As far as the novel is concerned, the book begins slowly as the children emerge from the wreckage snuffling and worried about rescue, but the action ramps up midway through the book and doesn’t let up. If readers – and teens – can get past that initial point, they may find this book to be an engaging, thought-provoking read.
Curriculum Ties:
- Social order
- Class and class warfare
Challenge Issues:
- Violence against children
Defensive Maneuvers:
- Have the library's collection policy on hand and memorized. Even though you may have it committed to memory, being able to show specific provisions as proof with strengthen your position.
- Be familiar with the book. Having great knowledge of it will prove you understand the content and the way the challenged matters interact with each other.
- Cite any awards the book may have. Though the patron may disagree with the book, showing that it is well known and seen as having great literary merit will strengthen your defense.
- Have a few reviews ready from respected sources such as Amazon or VOYA. At the very least, you can prove you understand the material and reviews will corroborate that.
- Have a strong idea WHY that item is in the library. Explain its merits, who the intended audience is, and so on.
- State your library's commitment to providing intellectual freedom as written in the Library Bill of Rights.
- Stay calm. Getting defensive or hot under the collar will only weaken your position.
- And finally, be open to discussion and LISTEN. Even if you do not agree with the patron, their concerns are still legitimate and you should show that you are engaged with them. Listening to their concerns may be enough to take the edge off.
Book Talk Ideas:
You and a friend are on a stranded island with a bunch of other kids looking to the both of for leadership. Your friend is obviously beginning to lose it, but does manage to be a good hunter? What would you do to maintain peace?
Why This Book?
Lord of the Flies demonstrates how anybody without proper direction can become violent and cruel. The book provides an important talking point about human nature, and makes readers think about what they would do if they were faced with the same situation as the children are. Would they try to oust Ralph immediately? Could they be a strong enough leader to force the others into working together? The questions alone are enough to make Lord of the Flies worth adding to the collection.