Preview

Lord of the Flies Essay Topics

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1766 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Lord of the Flies Essay Topics
Lord of the Flies Essay Topics

Topic 1. Socio-political allegory * Thesis: William Golding uses socio-political allegory in the Lord of the Flies to establish a microcosm reflecting the idea that governments are not fundamentally bad, but if they are maintained poorly, it can lead to the downfall of its people. As it did within the story when the island’s initial democratic government the children establish revolutionizes to dictatorship which inadvertently leads to the deterioration of civilisation and descent to savagery * Body 1: Causes for why democracy government is initially ill advised (Leader is voted in not due to his ability to perform the job) * Body 2: Effects of government turning into dictatorship and the deterioration of civilisation (Kids live in fear, become irrational, turn into savages)
Topic 2. Religious allegory * Thesis: William Golding uses religious allegory in the Lord of the Flies to further communicate the concept of good triumphs over evil, as the triumph of good is depicted by Simon who represents Jesus and salvation and his eventual acts which overcome the evil represented by human nature and ultimately leads to the salvation and rescue of the other boys. * Example: Jack vs Ralph, Dictatorship vs Democracy, Jesus vs the Devil * Body 1: Simon/Jesus and Lord of the Flies/Devil (Good triumphs because both have risen and refused temptation) * Body 2: Salvation (Even though it may have seemed dark, the people were saved in the end. Ralph and the savages were saved before evil could win
Topic 3. Moral/personal allegory * Thesis: William Golding uses personal allegory to portray the internal struggle of the mind represented by Piggy, soul represented by Simon and body represented by Jack to obtain control over the human represented by Ralph. This directly relates the conflict in the story, as human nature emerges as the body represented by Jack overcome the spirit and mind represented by

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Symbolism is the gateway to truth in this essay. In Lord of the Flies, William Golding uses “The Beast” to represent savagery and uses Simon to represent spirituality, instinct and a Jesus figure in order to show human nature is savage and that the role of government, a monarchy, is giving out more of the way towards Thomas Hobbes theory of people and government.…

    • 481 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Most people experience losing control at one time or another. This often leads them to feel powerless and unsure. In the first nine paragraphs of chapter 7 of Williams Golding’s Lord of the Flies, the protagonist, Ralph relates these feelings to the readers. Jack gaining power and the boys becoming uncivilized creates feelings of helplessness and fear in Ralph.…

    • 334 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    William Golding uses symbolism in Lord of the Flies to prove that everything bad began with goodness. Lord of the Flies is about a group of boys from England who are stranded on an island with no adults. For example, the boys were having a feast sharing and getting along. The narrator states, “The boys with the spit gave Ralph and Piggy each succulent chunk. They took the gift, dribbling. So they stood and ate beneath a sky of thunderous brass that rang with the storm coming(149).” The boys then killed simon, mistaking him for the beast. The boys chant, “Kill the beast! Cut his throat! Spill his blood! Do him in!(152)” This example shows that the boys go from innocent boys to savages animals, who kill without remorse. When Piggy goes to Castle Rock to get his glasses back from Jack’s tribe he gets killed and the conch gets smashed by a boulder rock. The narrator states, “The rock struck Piggy a glancing blow from chin to knee; the conch exploded into a thousand white fragments and ceased to exit(181).” This example proves that the symbolism of the conch’s meaning has vanished. It meant togetherness, power and leadership, but when the conch breaks the meaning of the conch is gone. The boys act like animals and forget the true meaning of the conch, and they begin acting like animals. The environment is influencing the once innocent boys to act in an immoral way. William Golding is not the only author that proves that everything evil started form virtuousness.…

    • 711 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Lord of the Flies by William Golding is a novel, where a group of young British boys are lost on an island after their plane crash lands. Throughout the novel William Golding utilization of literary devices are in place to reveal a theme of the novel, civilization and innocent are destroyed due to the savagery of the boys', desire for power, and fear of the unknown. William Golding utilizes three important literary devices throughout the novel, symbolism, of when the conch is destroyed civilization on the island is gone, foreshadowing the deaths of the boys on the island and irony as the civilize British boys turn savages.…

    • 1088 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    The English author William Golding was a former Navy Officer, who as the conflict of good and evil throughout his service. He used that experience to create the classic novel Lord of the Flies. The novel focuses on human nature’s way of civilization and society through children. The characteristics of three important characters show the sides of human nature. Jack represents the evil, Piggy the innocent, and Ralph the good. Golding takes a closer in depth look at whether evil is in everyone or not. These 3 children in the Golding’s novel symbolize the picture of humanity on a larger scale then the microcosm of the small tropical island in Carol Sea.…

    • 774 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Golding was in World War Two, he saw how destructive humans can be, and how a normal person can go from a civilized human beings into savages. In Lord of the Flies, William Golding uses the theme of human nature to show how easily society can collapse. Throughout the story Golding conveys a theme of how and where self-destructive human nature can lead us to be. Many different parts of human nature can all lead to the collapse of society. Some of the aspects of human nature Golding plugged into the book are; destruction, demoralization, and panic. These emotions all attribute to the collapse of society. Golding includes character, conflict, and as well as symbolism to portray that men are inherently evil.…

    • 723 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the novel Lord of the Flies William Golding writes about how a group of a group of civilized of British boys as they slowly descend into savagery. It starts when the boys who crash land on an island where any adults on the plane died leaving them to survive on their own. As they try to keep order they elect a boy named Ralph as their chief and Jack, who lost the election as chief, leader of the hunters. Simon, one of the other boys, is socially awkward but has more of a moral conscience then some of the other boys on the island. The novel Lord of the Flies is an extended metaphor which can be read as a psychological, social, and religious allegory.…

    • 875 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    {Title} {block:Description}{/block:Description} ::-webkit-scrollbar {width: 3px; height:auto; background:{color:background}} ::-webkit-scrollbar-corner {padding:2px;background:{color:background}} ::-webkit-scrollbar-button:vertical {height:5px; display: block; background:{color:scrollbar}} ::-webkit-scrollbar-button:horizontal {width: 3px; height: 5px; display: block; background:{color:scrollbar}} ::-webkit-scrollbar-thumb:vertical {background:{color:scrollbar};} ::-webkit-scrollbar-thumb:horizontal {background: {color:background};} ::-webkit-scrollbar-thumb {background: {color:scrollbar};} body { background:{color:background}; font-family:arial; font-size:9px; letter-spacing:0px; color:{color:text}; line-height:120%;} a:link, a:active, a:visited{color: {color:link};} a:hover{color:{color:link}; text-decoration:underline;} a { color:{color:link}; text-decoration:none; -moz-transition-duration:0.4s; -webkit-transition-duration:0.4s; -o-transition-duration:0.4s; } a:hover { color:{color:link}; text-decoration:underline; -moz-transition-duration:0.4s; -webkit-transition-duration:0.4s; -o-transition-duration:0.4s; } #container { background-color:{color:background}; width:700px; margin: 0 auto -12px auto; text-align: center; } .links { margin-top:5px; word-spacing:1px; text-align:center; } .links a{ padding:5px; letter-spacing:0px; color:{color:link}; text-decoration:none; -moz-transition-duration:0.4s; -webkit-transition-duration:0.4s; -o-transition-duration:0.4s; } .links a:hover{ color:{color:link}; text-decoration:underline; -moz-transition-duration:0.4s; -webkit-transition-duration:0.4s; -o-transition-duration:0.4s; }…

    • 814 Words
    • 11 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    1. When Ralph was chosen to be the leader because of the conch obviously Jack was jealous but he did get to be the leader of the hunters. This would later lead to tension in the group. However, everything was going well they were happy.…

    • 721 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    A highly effective community is made up of people serving in different roles as a cohesive unit. If everyone has the same role, the community would not be as effective and productive as it is suppose to be. No one is perfect, meaning that everyone has their own strengths and weakness. For example, I am stronger in math, my strength and at times struggle in writing, my weakness. I believe that if we each use our strengths to improve on our weaknesses then, we ultimately make a community stronger as a shole. In the novel Lord of the Flies, William Golding uses symbolism, conflict and evolution to portray Ralph as an immature young boy who develops into a civilized young man against all odds .…

    • 889 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Piggy's Allegory

    • 469 Words
    • 2 Pages

    In Lord of the Flies, William Golding depicts rationality and a civilized state through allegory in order to reveal that society's rules can suppress one's intellect through taunting. An allegory tends to portray double meanings to give a better understanding of a bigger picture, traditionally targeting societal concerns such as politics or social issues. Society thrives on power through authoritative reign, when presented the opportunity to control the one seen as the leader administers. People tend to feel threatened easily by traits that are not applicable to them, if the majority cannot simply access this particular characteristic, then it is not sufficient to them as a whole --- it does not suffice. In retrospect, it makes the majority feel as if they are less than and insecure, which is an ironic concept because at the same time, the “leader” (or the one with the most dominant qualities) initiates their power through fear and self-doubt by thriving on their subordinates’…

    • 469 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Lord of the Flies Essay

    • 1028 Words
    • 5 Pages

    What does it take for a group of civilized boys to be turned into inhumane, bloodthirsty savages? In William Golding’s novel Lord of the Flies, Jack is able to exploit the innermost evil in others through the means of psychological manipulation. With these tactics, he gains the support of his newfound tribe, and chaos breaks out on the island as a result. Jack manipulates the boys and turns them into a supportive tribe of savages by defying the conch, giving them the thrill of hunting, and using their fear of the beast against them.…

    • 1028 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Lord of the Flies Essay

    • 1157 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Life and people are full of diversity and courage; however, the unknown can make young vulnerable minds similar and fearful in their reactions. In William Golding’s Lord of the Flies, a group of once, young civilized English boys’ become fearful of an imagined beast. They fear a beast because of what they have let their imagination produce. Humans fear what is unknown. Piggy, Ralph and Jack are all uncertain as whether a beast really existed, and all showed signs of fear. Simon, on the other hand, knew the beast was all in their heads therefore he had nothing to be afraid of. As Piggy, Ralph and Jack are all sceptical, Simon remains true to his beliefs. These four examples explain the views of each character in the novel.…

    • 1157 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    History

    • 423 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Thesis: In William Golding’s Lord of the Flies, he teaches us that humans are all evil and destructive inside. This is because of how easily the society on the island collapsed, the fight between good and evil and lastly, the immense amount of symbolism thats in the book, further conveying his theme of how all people have evil inside of them…

    • 423 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    A major theme in my life is improvement. I challenge myself to take risks and set high expectations for myself. For instance, I strive to run faster and for longer distances every couple of times I approach the treadmill belt. I am obstinate about my minimum distance, 2.2 miles, and my minimum speed, 6.8. A major component of improving myself is learning. Every new word is a miniscule enhancement of my massive English vocabulary pool, but it is still a step in the right direction. I enjoy becoming more knowledgeable in both domestic and international affairs. I wish I could have more time to pour into reading current event and health articles. I am particularly attached to drumming the latest scientific discovery or innovate biotechnology product…

    • 329 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays