Perhaps I should be embarrassed to have reached the age of twenty without having read Lord of the Flies. Certainly, I knew the plot and had heard various philosophical interpretations, but until today I had never taken the time to sit down and read this infamous book.
For anyone unfamiliar with Lord of the Flies--I'd like to know which rock you crawled out from under--the plot of the novel is very basic. A group of British boys between the ages of about six and twelve are stranded on a deserted island after their plane crashes. Finding themselves without adults, they set out to govern themselves. Ralph, one of the first characters the reader meets, takes charge and persuades the other boys to vote and appoint him chief. "Piggy," who protests against the nickname given to him by the other boys, is along with Ralph, the voice of reason on the island. While Ralph and Piggy focus on rescue, the other boys quickly go "savage" (I use this word only because it is what Golding uses to describe the boys), abandon the idea of rescue and spend their days hunting. As everyone knows, as the book progresses, the violence grows.
I won't say I enjoyed this book. If anything, it left me with a sour flavor. It's a pessimistic representation of human nature. The book is dark from start to finish. I could debate its contents further, but for any reader interested in studying Lord of the Flies, there are many English classes and academic papers waiting to be explored; I myself will avoid these to the best of my ability. I can now say I've read the book. I think I'll leave it at that.
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