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Lord of the Flies Essay Example

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Lord of the Flies Essay Example
Lord of the Flies Essay: “What are the major themes in “Lord of the Flies”? How does Golding highlight these themes?”

“Lord of the Flies”, by William Golding presents various themes that emphasise the central concern in the book, which is the conflict between the human impulse towards savagery and the rules of civilisation which are designed to contain and minimise it. One of the big questions raised in Lord of the Flies is whether the boys in their primitive actions are reverting to a somehow inferior state of life, or whether driven to their natural and rightful form. William Golding presented numerous themes and basic ideas that give the reader issues that relate to mankind to think about. The most basic and obvious themes are the rules and order put into civilisation, savagery represented in the group of boys’ survival and society that holds everyone together. These themes are raised towards the audience through imagery, irony and symbolism.

At the heart of the novel is the question of whether the problems of society and all its rules can be traced back to the faults of human nature. Golding seemingly agrees to the fact that rules and order are the only boundaries keeping people from their true, violent natures. “The rock struck Piggy…like a pig’s after it has been killed.” The conch explodes, marking the end of law and order on the island. As law ceases to exist, imagery is used to also depict the death of Piggy and show the reader that Piggy’s death is emphasised upon the departure of law and order. Ruling is important in providing a “white line” across the primitive nature of the group. Without society's rigid rules, anarchy and savagery can come to light.

Primitivity in Lord of the Flies is meant by hunting, the desire for food, the desire for power, bloodlust, violence and a general inability to distinguish between man and beast. Innocence of the boys starts to alter and transform into savagery after certain symbolic events end in abrupt

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