BOOK REPORT NO.1
1) MLA CITATION:
Author: Golding, William
Book Title: Lord of the Flies
City of Publication: Faber and Faber Ltd.
Date: First Published in 1954
Pages: 225
2) RESPONDING TO THE PLOT:
If I were Ralph who is a main character in this story, I am not sure that I would have kept a rational way of thinking and behaving as a leader in such as chaotic situation. Even if I disagreed with Jack, I might have given in to pressure and become a member of his hunters. However, the existence of Piggy and Simon would have encouraged Ralph to maintain a sense of justice and persist in his belief. If I were the author, I would not change anything in the story, but I would describe more details about how the choir members such as Jack and Roger became savages.
Quotation 1: “What can he do more than he has? I’ll tell him what’s what. You let me carry the conch, Ralph. I’ll show him the one thing he hasn’t got.” (page.189)
This is a quotation from one of Piggy’s statements. Piggy is the most sensible boy in the group but his existence is mostly ignored only because he looks clumsy. One day, his glasses were stolen by Jack and his hunters to make fires for game. Then, Piggy decided to fight against Jack who was much stronger than him. For Piggy, a conch was a symbol of rule and order. Piggy would like to show the importance of order which Jack didn’t have any more. I found this scene the most impressive because Piggy who was wimp seemed brave to stand up for justice.
Quotation 2: “Fancy thinking the Beast was something you could hunt and kill. You knew, didn’t you? Close, close, close! I’m part of you! I’m the reason why it’s no go? Why things are what they are?” (page. 158)
This was quoted from the word that the head of the dead pig called “Lord of the Flies” said to Simon. I could learn that the beast existed not as a real enemy but as a symbol of international human evil. In addition, I could also learn that Simon was the only boy that could realize the dark side of human nature.
3) ANALYZING 7 LITERARY TERMS
Setting: It is the time when World War Ⅲtook place. A group of schoolboys trying to evacuate from England meets with a plane crash on an uninhabited island.
Point of View: Omniscient
Conflict: Ralph (a democratic leader) vs. Jack (a dictator.) There are always conflicts between these two different types of leaders because Ralph has respect for discipline while Jack is obsessed with the lust for domination and barbarism.
Climax: After Simon and Piggy were killed by the savage, Ralph barely escaped from them and was finally rescued.
Symbol: A conch means a rule, order and discipline because it was used to signal an assembly
and the boys had the right to speak when they got it. In addition, the beast was a symbol of internal human evil as mentioned above.
Irony: British boys who were accustomed to living by rules turned into savages who could kill people.
Theme: People are inclined to go wrong in nature under the closed ircumstances. Therefore, we need rules. However, human morality is so fragile that it can be destroyed easily, so we need to have self-awareness as Simon did.
4) REFLECTING ON THE STORY
What I found shocking was that such young boys became savages and killed people. However, I thought they might have been too innocent to make right decisions. If some adults were included in the party, I thought what would have happened. I doubt if things would have changed. I also found some appealing characters in this book. Especially, Piggy was described vividly, so I could imagine who he really was. Simon was described as a god-like boy who fought with human evil. The environment in the story is very different from that in my own country because it is an uninhabited island without any civilization, so they couldn’t help living a primitive life. In my country, we are surrounded by convenient technologies. The most apparent difference between the book and the film is that the boys are not English but American in the film. Moreover, the situation was little different between the book and the film because the author did not mention the derail about World War Ⅲ, but the war was referred to as a battle between America and Russia in the film. However, I could find no gap between the book and film about how Piggy was described.
William Golding, the author of this book, participated in Normandy Landings during World War Ⅱ. This experience has inspired him to write this book appealing interior human evil which would cause cruel wars and a breach of peace. I agree with the author’s view of people and life because the Holocaust was a reality in our history. Through this story, I can learn that we have to take control of ourselves so as not to lose moral and reason in any situations. I have never experienced such chaotic situations such as wars, but I would like to keep the lesson in my mind. Ralph was finally rescued but Simon wasn’t as I expected. I had an uneasy feeling that Simon would die when I found the word he said to Ralph, “All the same. You’ll get back all right, I think so, anyway.” I thought that what he said not “We’ll” but “You’ll” would imply that Simon would die.
1) MLA CITATION:
Author: Golding, William
Book Title: Lord of the Flies
City of Publication: Faber and Faber Ltd.
Date: First Published in 1954
Pages: 225
2) RESPONDING TO THE PLOT:
If I were Ralph who is a main character in this story, I am not sure that I would have kept a rational way of thinking and behaving as a leader in such as chaotic situation. Even if I disagreed with Jack, I might have given in to pressure and become a member of his hunters. However, the existence of Piggy and Simon would have encouraged Ralph to maintain a sense of justice and persist in his belief. If I were the author, I would not change anything in the story, but I would describe more details about how the choir members such as Jack and Roger became savages.
Quotation 1: “What can he do more than he has? I’ll tell him what’s what. You let me carry the conch, Ralph. I’ll show him the one thing he hasn’t got.” (page.189)
This is a quotation from one of Piggy’s statements. Piggy is the most sensible boy in the group but his existence is mostly ignored only because he looks clumsy. One day, his glasses were stolen by Jack and his hunters to make fires for game. Then, Piggy decided to fight against Jack who was much stronger than him. For Piggy, a conch was a symbol of rule and order. Piggy would like to show the importance of order which Jack didn’t have any more. I found this scene the most impressive because Piggy who was wimp seemed brave to stand up for justice.
Quotation 2: “Fancy thinking the Beast was something you could hunt and kill. You knew, didn’t you? Close, close, close! I’m part of you! I’m the reason why it’s no go? Why things are what they are?” (page. 158)
This was quoted from the word that the head of the dead pig called “Lord of the Flies” said to Simon. I could learn that the beast existed not as a real enemy but as a symbol of international human evil. In addition, I could also learn that Simon was the only boy that could realize the dark side of human nature.
3) ANALYZING 7 LITERARY TERMS
Setting: It is the time when World War Ⅲtook place. A group of schoolboys trying to evacuate from England meets with a plane crash on an uninhabited island.
Point of View: Omniscient
Conflict: Ralph (a democratic leader) vs. Jack (a dictator.) There are always conflicts between these two different types of leaders because Ralph has respect for discipline while Jack is obsessed with the lust for domination and barbarism.
Climax: After Simon and Piggy were killed by the savage, Ralph barely escaped from them and was finally rescued.
Symbol: A conch means a rule, order and discipline because it was used to signal an assembly
and the boys had the right to speak when they got it. In addition, the beast was a symbol of internal human evil as mentioned above.
Irony: British boys who were accustomed to living by rules turned into savages who could kill people.
Theme: People are inclined to go wrong in nature under the closed ircumstances. Therefore, we need rules. However, human morality is so fragile that it can be destroyed easily, so we need to have self-awareness as Simon did.
4) REFLECTING ON THE STORY
What I found shocking was that such young boys became savages and killed people. However, I thought they might have been too innocent to make right decisions. If some adults were included in the party, I thought what would have happened. I doubt if things would have changed. I also found some appealing characters in this book. Especially, Piggy was described vividly, so I could imagine who he really was. Simon was described as a god-like boy who fought with human evil. The environment in the story is very different from that in my own country because it is an uninhabited island without any civilization, so they couldn’t help living a primitive life. In my country, we are surrounded by convenient technologies. The most apparent difference between the book and the film is that the boys are not English but American in the film. Moreover, the situation was little different between the book and the film because the author did not mention the derail about World War Ⅲ, but the war was referred to as a battle between America and Russia in the film. However, I could find no gap between the book and film about how Piggy was described.
William Golding, the author of this book, participated in Normandy Landings during World War Ⅱ. This experience has inspired him to write this book appealing interior human evil which would cause cruel wars and a breach of peace. I agree with the author’s view of people and life because the Holocaust was a reality in our history. Through this story, I can learn that we have to take control of ourselves so as not to lose moral and reason in any situations. I have never experienced such chaotic situations such as wars, but I would like to keep the lesson in my mind. Ralph was finally rescued but Simon wasn’t as I expected. I had an uneasy feeling that Simon would die when I found the word he said to Ralph, “All the same. You’ll get back all right, I think so, anyway.” I thought that what he said not “We’ll” but “You’ll” would imply that Simon would die.
