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= //Lord of the Flies// = //Lord of the Flies// was written by William Golding in 1954 and was initially a flop. Many critics and readers did not understand the underlying themes of innocence and Golding’s take on civilization and man. The book eventually reached an appreciative audience and is now a best seller and is on just about every best novel list. Golding’s inspiration for the novel came from his time spent in the Navy, where he observed the actions and changes in the men around him.

William Golding believed that all men are evil and savage beings, and even children are not safe from the horrors and evils of the world. Many people were upset that Golding proposed the idea that children weren’t simply innocent beings. //Lord of the Flies// follows a group of school boys whose plane crashed on an island while they were evacuating England in WWII. The boys quickly decide that they will need a leader and this obviously brings dispute. Some boys wish to be rescued and focus their energy on maintaining fires, and shelter, while others wish to hunt and the younger children wish to play in the water and have fun. After many fights over what the group should be focusing on and many power struggles the group dissolves into two “tribes”. Golding uses these two tribes to represent the different countries and the boys juvenile arguing to be a symbol of the many and often unnecessary wars between man. Many of the boys break down and forget their strict schoolboy upbringing; murdering pigs and even endangering several of the other boys. Their inability to work together to be rescued causes their demise into complete and udder chaos and savagery.

William Golding's use of symbolism and imagery brings the island and school boys to life. Golding’s concept that all people, even children, can be evil and savage beings make this novel truly insightful and a classic novel for all ages.