2. Take out your journal and take a slip off the front desk. Read the directions and begin.

3. Lord of the Flies By William Golding

4. William Golding (1911-1993) Born: September 19, 1911 in Cornwall, England Studied Science and English at Oxford Witnessed WWI- “the war to end all wars” Fought in Royal Navy during WWII Participated in invasion of Normandy on D-Day At war’s end, returned to teaching and writing Earned the Nobel Prize in Literature

5. The World Golding Knew The fall of France to Nazi Germany in 1940 Britain feared an invasion and evacuated children to other countries 1940- A German U-Boat torpedoed a British ship carrying children, killing the boys, thus suspending the oversees evacuation program

6. Major Events of WWII 1939- Britain joined France in war against Nazi Germany 1940- Fall of France 1940- Fascist Italy joins the Axis with Germany 1941- Japan attacks Pearl Harbor causing USA to declare war on Japan and enter the war 1944- D-Day Normandy Landings 1945- Bombing of Dresden 1945- European victory celebrated 1945- Atomic Bomb dropped in Hiroshima immediately killing 60-80,000 people (final death toll 135,000 people)

7. On writing Lord of the Flies… “It was simply what seemed sensible for me to write after the war when everyone was thanking God they weren’t Nazis. I’d seen enough to realize that every single one of us could be Nazis.” --William Golding

8. Inspirations/Influences Golding once allowed his class of boys total freedom in a debate, but had to intervene as mayhem soon broke out Experiences in war Critical response to Coral Island by R.M. Ballanytyne (ideal vs. real) Philosophical questions about human nature

9. Re jected 21 times before it was published It was his first novel- published in 1954 Not successful until the early 1960’s On the American Library Association’s list of the 100 Most Frequently Challenged Books of 1990-2000. FACTS

10. 1.The Simpsons-Das Bus 2.Hook 3.Rock band Gatsby’s American Dream has a song inspired completely by Lord of the Flies entitled “Fable” 4.The Offspring mention Lord of the Flies in their song, "You're Gonna Go Far Kid“ 5.In Melbourne, Australia, there is a business called Lord of the Fries

11. Title Translation of “Beelzebub” or Satan Setting A tiny coral island in the South Pacific during a war when the atomic bomb may have (and most likely has) been used. This world becomes their ‘microcosm’, which is definitely one of your symbols! Plot A group of young boys is stranded on an island and they must negotiate the social issues of cooperation and self-government. The outside world is consumed with war

12. Golding’s Message “The theme is an attempt to trace the defects of society back to the defects of human nature.” --William Golding

13.  Does every human being have a dark side? Are humans inherently good or evil?  What does it mean to be civilized?  Rules of government – democracy vs. dictatorship? What type of government works best? Why?  What are the outcomes when evil is an influence?

15. Use of the names Ralph and Jack as the main characters from The Coral Island. Simon from the Bible “Simon called Peter”, Peter was the other boy’s name in The Coral Island Mention of Coral Island and Treasure Island Numerous biblical allusions throughout

16. Basic Philosophies to Consider While Reading Humans are inherently evil; society establishes government to curb evil instincts “We all saw a hell of a lot in the war that can’t be accounted for except on the basis of original evil” Humans are inherently good; humans are born good and are corrupted by society Humans are inherently neutral; our experiences determine the balance between good and evil Which do you agree/disagree with now? Choose the one with the closet alignment to your own ideas.