Lord of The Flies Critical Analysis Essay

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Published by Aster Phoenix, July 1, 2010

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The ¦

is a series of reflections written by E. L. Epstein on the well-known novel,
, which is written by W illiam
Golding. In these notes, he talks about many themes and symbols presented in the novel. W ith these themes and symbols, the author is able to portray
modern day society with the novel. I personally agree with Epstein¶s analysis of the novel, but I also believe that there ismuch more to it.
In ¦

, E. L. Epstein discusses the themes and sym bols presented in the novel
He states, ³The theme is
an attempt to trace the defects of society back to the defects of human nature.´ He is saying that the problems that arise inthe society are actually due to the
problems in the humans themselves. He is also saying that society should be dependent on the nature of the individual rather than on a system of
government. This is shown through the destruction caused by the children. Due to the natural desire for leadership, the groupof children who have
established a government and were cooperating eventually split up and started going against each other. Due to his instinctive andacquired hatred for Ralph
and Piggy, Jack, with the help of his hunters, not only kill Piggy, but they even ignite the entire forest in an attempt to kill Ralph. This demonstrates only a
fraction of the devastating effects of human nature.

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Another theme presented in Epstein¶s notes is the emergency of basic wildness. He explains how the struggle in modern societyis presented through
the struggle between Ralph and Jack on a larger scale. This wildness is also the cause of the conflict between Jack, who has more of this wildness than any
other character, and Ralph¶s brain trust, Piggy, who is the novel¶s representation of science and intelligence.
In his notes, Epstein also talks about the symbols thatwere presented in the novel. One symbol he talks about is the ³Lord of the Flies´. The ³Lord of
the Flies´ is the bloody, severed sow¶s head that Jack and his hunters impale on a stake as an offering to the beast. Epsteindiscusses how the ³Lord of the
Flies´ is a symbol for a devil dedicated to causing destruction, demoralization, and panic. The ³Lord of the Flies´ is also a symbol of the power of evil as well
as a sort of figure who awakens the beast within each human being.
I personally agree with Epstein¶s analysis and interpretation of the novel,
. The novel clearly presents the themes and symbols
discussed by Epstein. I agree and believe that this book is symbolic in nature except the rescue of the children occur, because in real life, there will be no
upper force to stop fighting and rescue humans when they need it. In the
, when there is no higher authority over the children, the evil from
within the children is exposed, showing the true nature of mankind. The surroundings and environment also contribute to the nature of man. If a man lives in
a poor and negative environment, as in the kid¶s situation, he will adapt to this poor environment. People in reality will al
ways be in competition and fight for
their own survival. W e would all like to believe that, in times of depression, humans would all cooperate and work together forthe greater good, but in reality,
when food and resources are extremely limited, they will compete for this and cause destruction n
i order to survive.
There are also many themes and symbols that were not discussed by Epstein in the ¦
One such theme is the loss of
innocence, which is presented in many novels. In the beginning of the novel, the boys clearly possessed a sense of innocence as they worked together and
had fun. As the story progressed, the children began killing animals and eventually even each other. At this point, they haveclearly loss their innocence. This
goes along with another theme, which is the fight for leadership. In the novel, as well as in reality, people fight for the right to be the leader. Thefight for
leadership eventually leads to bloodshed and destruction as well as death, as shown through the struggle between Jack with his hunters and Ralph with the
rest of the children. A type of conflict shone in the story is man against nature. This is displayed through the boy¶s ability to kill. In the beginning of the novel,
during the boy¶s period of innocence, they were scared of killing animals in order to survive. As they lost their innocence, they became increasingly prone to
kill. By the end of the novel, when the children have lost their innocence, the childrenj to kill, and not only did they want to kill animals, butthey even
wanted to kill each other.
Epstein also missed many symbols that were presented in

One symbol was the conch shell. The conch shell was discovered in the
beginning of the novel and it served as a symbol of civilization, order, peace, and unity. It was also a symbol of a democracy, as it was used to govern
meetings by giving the right to speak. Piggy¶s glasses are also an important symbol; it is the symbol of science and intellig
ence. It is clear that the glasses
are a symbol of science when the boys use his glasses to start the fire. Another important symbol in the novel is the characters. Piggy symbolizes the
intelligence and sciences. On the contrary, Jack symbolizes the exact opposite; he symbolizes the savagery and desire for power. Ralph¶s character lies in
between these two, portraying the government in modern society. He wants to support the desires of the public, but he realizes that certain rules must be
applied in order to prevent chaos. Ultimately, the turning point of the story was the destruction of two of these symbols: Piggy and the conch shell. The
destruction of these symbols marked the end of the democracy and order that was established by the children at the beginningof the story and the point
where the children officially became savages.
E. L. Epstein¶s analysis of the novel,

, presented many great ideas. He discussed many themes such as the natural wildness in
humans, as well as the cause of the defects in human society.Epstein also discusses the central symbol of the entire novel, which is the ³Lord of the Flies´.
Although Epstein mentioned many themes and symbols, there are also many more such as the loss of innocence, the battle for leadership, the conch shell,
Piggy¶s glasses, and the characters.

was a fantastic novel with many deep themes and symbols that all helped contribute to W illiam
Golding¶s use of the novel to portray modern day society.

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The ¦

is a series of reflections written by E. L. Epstein on
the well-known novel,
, which is written by William Golding. In these notes,
he talks about many themes and symbols presented in the novel. With these themes and
symbols, the author is able to portray mod ern day society with the novel. I personally agree
with Epstein¶s analysis of the novel, but I also believe that there is much more to it.
In ¦

, E. L. Epstein discusses the themes and symbols
presented in the novel
He states, ³The theme is an attempt to trace the
defects of society back to the defects of human nature.´ He is saying that the problems that
arise in the society are actually due to the problems in the humans themselves. He is also
saying that society should be dependent on the nature of the individual rather than on a
system of government. This is shown through the destruction caused by the children. Due to
the natural desire for leadership, the group of children who have established a government
and were cooperating eventually split up and started going against each other. Due to his
instinctive and acquired hatred for Ralph and Piggy, Jack, with the help of his hunters, not
only kill Piggy, but they even ignite the entire forest in an attempt to kill Ralph. This
demonstrates only a fraction of the devastating effects of human nature.
Another theme presented in Epstein¶s notes is the emergency of basic wildness. He

explains how the struggle in modern society is presented thro ugh the struggle between
Ralph and Jack on a larger scale. This wildness is also the cause of the conflict between
Jack, who has more of this wildness than any other character, and Ralph¶s brain trust, Piggy,
who is the novel¶s representation of science an d intelligence.
In his notes, Epstein also talks about the symbols that were presented in the novel.
One symbol he talks about is the ³Lord of the Flies´. The ³Lord of the Flies´ is the bloody,
severed sow¶s head that Jack and his hunters impal e on a stake as an offering to the beast.
Epstein discusses how the ³Lord of the Flies´ is a symbol for a devil dedicated to causing
destruction, demoralization, and panic. The ³Lord of the Flies´ is also a symbol of the power
of evil as well as a sort of figure who awakens the beast within each human being.
I personally agree with Epstein¶s analysis and interpretation of the novel,

. The novel clearly presents the themes and symbols discussed by Epstein. I agree and
believe that this book is symbolic in nature except the rescue of the children occur, because
in real life, there will be no upper force to stop fighting and rescue humans when they need
it. In the
, when there is no higher authority over the childre n, the evil from
within the children is exposed, showing the true nature of mankind. The surroundings and
environment also contribute to the nature of man. If a man lives in a poor and negative
environment, as in the kid¶s situation, he will adapt to this poor environment. People in reality
will always be in competition and fight for their own survival. We would all like to believe that,
in times of depression, humans would all cooperate and work together for the greater good,
but in reality, when food and resources are extremely limited, they will compete for this and
cause destruction in order to survive.

ein
in the ¦
One such theme is the loss of innocence, which is
presented in many novels. In the beginning of the novel, the boys clearly possessed a sense
of innocence as they worked together and had fun. As the story progressed, the children
began killing animals and eventually even each other. At this point, they have clearly loss
their innocence. This goes along with another theme, which is the fight for leadership. In the
novel, as well as in reality, people fight for the right to be the leader. The fight for leadership
eventually leads to blood shed and destruction as well as death, as shown through the
struggle between Jack with his hunters and Ralph with the rest of the children. A type of
conflict shone in the story is man against nature. This is displayed through the boy¶s ability to
kill. In the beginning of the novel, during the boy¶s period of innocence, they were scared of
killing animals in order to survive. As they lost their innocence, they became increasingly
prone to kill. By the end of the novel, when the children have lost their inn ocence, the
children j to kill, and not only did they want to kill animals, but they even wanted to kill
each other.
Epstein also missed many symbols that were presented in

One
symbol was the conch shell. The conch shell was discovered in the beginning of the novel
and it served as a symbol of civilization, order, peace, and unity. It was also a symbol of a
democracy, as it was used to govern meetings by giving the right to speak. Piggy¶s glasses
are also an important sym bol; it is the symbol of science and intelligence. It is clear that the
glasses are a symbol of science when the boys use his glasses to start the fire. Another
important symbol in the novel is the characters. Piggy symbolizes the intelligence and
sciences. On the contrary, Jack symbolizes the exact opposite; he symbolizes the savagery
and desire for power. Ralph¶s character lies in between these two, portraying the
government in modern society. He wants to support the desires of the public, but he realizes
that certain rules must be applied in order to prevent chaos. Ultimately, the turning point of
the story was the destruction of two of these symbols: Piggy and the conch shell. The
destruction of these symbols marked the end of the democracy and order tha t was
established by the children at the beginning of the story and the point where the children
officially became savages.
E. L. Epstein¶s analysis of the novel,

, presented many great ideas.
He discussed many themes such as t he natural wildness in humans, as well as the cause of
the defects in human society. Epstein also discusses the central symbol of the entire novel,
which is the ³Lord of the Flies´. Although Epstein mentioned many themes and symbols,
there are also many mo re such as the loss of innocence, the battle for leadership, the conch
shell, Piggy¶s glasses, and the characters.
was a fantastic novel with many
deep themes and symbols that all helped contribute to William Golding¶s use of the novel to
portray modern day society.
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In conclusion, if the boys had not met with the plane crashed, these boys would certainly
never discover the darkness of human's heart. Through the actions of Jack, Ralph's decent into
savagery, and the innocence death of Simon in the novel, it proves that without laws and rules,
humans cannot control the inherent evil that is inside them. The novel proves that men are
inherently evil through the fate of Simon's death. His death symbolizes how a society without rules
will eventually destroy any good that may remain, as the inherent evil in most humans will
overpower the few people who are inherently good.

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Published by Aster Phoenix, July 1, 2010

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