Lord of the Flies Analysis Lord of the Flies, written 1954 by British Author William Golding, is a tale of a group of young boys who find themselves stranded after their plane crash lands on a deserted island. The boys, who at first, attempt to set up a society, complete with a form of government, soon fall apart when their primitive urges kick in. The novel was both a commentary on man’s violent nature and of how pointless war is. Also, each character in the novel was representative of a larger concept, thus this allegory had many layers. Throughout the novel, the tone of the story becomes increasingly dark. Golding’s writing seeks to emphasize this transition. At the beginning of the story, everything is new and beautiful. The boys find a shell and Golding describes it as being, “the shell was deep cream, touched here and there with fading pink”. When given the role of calling everyone to order, the shell comes to represent the concept of civilization. It …show more content…
He shows this by making them afraid of childish things like monsters. Also, their vulnerability shows at the end of the story. “And in the middle of them, with filthy body, matted hair, and unwiped nose, Ralph wept for the end of innocence, the darkness of man's heart, and the fall through the air of the true, wise friend called Piggy.” After everything they went through, someone finally comes to rescue the boys and they respond by crying. They let down the guards they built for survival and revert to being kids. Overall, The Lord of the Flies was a very graphic novel that sought to depict the dark side of human nature. Every aspect of the novel contributed to the overall theme. From the Golding’s decision to use teenage boys as the main characters because of their disposition to behave recklessly to his use of the pig’s head to represent the devil, the story is a very effective cautionary