The Lord Of The Flies: Irony

In the novel, Lord of the Flies by William Golding, the boys are rescued by the naval officer. This is where the final note of irony is presented. The fire is ironic because of what the fire is used for in the beginning versus the end and how the fire is a double-edged symbol. The novel also depicts the island as a scaled-down interpretation of the greater world, where disaster, chaos, and barbarity are normal. The novel's conclusion supports the concept that the boys' transition from being normal and civilized children to outright savages shows that every human being has an evil side to them. The boys’ transition is a reflection of the destructive nature of humanity as a whole.

One way in which the author uses irony is when the boys use the

“Suddenly he blundered into the open, found himself again in that open space—and there was the fathom-wide grin of the skull, no longer ridiculing a deep blue patch of sky but jeering up into a blanket of smoke. Then Ralph was running beneath trees, with the grumble of the forest explained. They had smoked him out and set the island on fire.” (Golding 197). Ralph had been hiding from Jack’s tribe, but he had been discovered because of Sam and Eric. Jack’s tribe then lit a fire to smoke Ralph out into the open, so they could find him and kill him. Originally the fire was used for the purpose of rescue but now is being used to create chaos and to kill Ralph. In chapter 12 of the novel, the fire symbolically rages out of control. This shows how far the boys have strayed from being civilized and how primitive and savage the boys have become. In the book, the boys decide to build a fire to help them get rescued, but as time goes on, the fire is used for harmful things such as killing Ralph in the last chapter. At the beginning of the book, the boys use the fire to be seen by a passing ship. This aspect of the fire represents the boys’ desire to return to civilization and their belief that they can maintain order and decency.

During his time in the military during World War II, William Golding, concluded that human beings aren't naturally good but rather have this evil inside of them that they can act upon. We see this throughout the book with all of the boys, but we see it more so with Jack. In chapter 2 Jack states,” I agree with Ralph. We ’ve got to have rules and obey them. After all, weren't savages. We ’re English, and the English are best at everything. So we ’ve got to do the right thing” (Golding 42). As time goes on Jack starts to enjoy hunting and killing. This then leads to him becoming savage and violent towards the others. Jack’s job as a hunter starts to take him over. The evidence of this change in Jack can be found in chapter 4 when the hunters kill the first pig. Jack proudly says, “I cut the pig’s throat,” (Golding 69). Jack then continues to say, “There was lashings of blood,” as he laughs and shudders, “you should have seen it!” (Golding 69). This proves that by nature humans are barbaric. Jack and the rest of the hunters boast about how they killed the pig as if they enjoyed it. The novel takes place during World War II, and this is very significant because it helps the author convey the theme of civilization versus savagery. The boys are able to establish a sort of community in the beginning but as the book goes on the boys, mainly the hunters,