...Analysis of the Major Characters In Lord of the Flies by William Golding In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements in English 140 Submitted by: Ryan Mark L. Catanio Submitted to: Prof. Donna Alna C. Cortez September 08, 2014 A. Author’s Biography William Golding Biography Author (1911–1993) a. Synopsis William Golding was born September 19, 1911, in Saint Columb Minor, Cornwall, England. In 1935 he started teaching English and philosophy in Salisbury. He temporarily left teaching in 1940 to join the Royal Navy. In 1954 he published his first novel, Lord of the Flies. In 1983, he was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature. On June 19, 1993, he died in Perranarworthal, Cornwall, England. b. Early Life William Golding was born on September 19, 1911, in Saint Columb Minor, Cornwall, England. He was raised in a 14th-century house next door to a graveyard. His mother, Mildred, was an active suffragette who fought for women’s right to vote. His father, Alex, worked as a schoolmaster. William received his early education at the school his father ran, Marlborough Grammar School. When William was just 12 years old, he attempted, unsuccessfully, to write a novel. A frustrated child, he found an outlet in bullying his peers. Later in life, William would describe his childhood self as a brat, even going so far as to say, “I enjoyed hurting people.” After primary school, William went on to attend Brasenose College at Oxford University. His father hoped he would become...
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...so the boys can be on his side, and he can make himself “chief”, but Ralph the wiser out of all of them tries to set rules and the boys don't want that. So they turn against Ralph and they make Jack the chief. Jack then starts to get power hungry because some boys didn’t follow him and he starts to threaten and hurt the boys because they didn't choose there side. Since all these things were happening and the majority of the boys going to Jacks side the older boys who are easily influenced automatically go to Jacks side because everyone is doing it. Melissa Dittman a physocologist wrote “What makes good people do bad things” and it states,” just the right dose of certain social situations can transform ordinarily good people into evildoers.” This shows how a group of people can easily change the mindset of a person. Golding shows how the older more rebellious boys are easily influenced. The older boys are more rebellious and they want to do what they want so they go to Jack. Jack starts to hurt the boys, poison the minds of the boys and they cause them to do bad things, and gives false information. But before they split apart Ralph was chief, and he was realizing the damages that Jack was doing with the group of boys. Ralph then says to the boys,”what are we? Humans? Or animals? Or savages.” The boys had act tremendously different since they had arrived on the island and Ralph sees that. This shows how Ralph is the most responsible and sees the evil slowly growing in all of the...
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...Wyatt Lowe Period 3 10-31-12 Piggy Analysis In the story Lord of Flies, by William Golding, there are many conflicts between the characters and the island, but some of the more important come between Piggy and the group. Piggy is seen to the group as the outsider, the member who doesn’t fit in. Although they treat him as an outcast, Piggy’s smart wits and his ideas are used by the group in reluctance, but end up playing a big part in the story. For example, it was Piggy's idea to use his glasses to start the fire. Jack, the leader of the choirboys, right from the start, reveals a deep dislike for Piggy. During the very first meeting when Piggy is asking the boys for their names Jack says, "Shut up fatty you talk too much." But when the fire is allowed to go out and they miss the possible chance of getting rescued Piggy says to Jack, "You didn't ought to have let that fire out, you said you'd keep the smoke going...." And Jack punches him in the stomach. Perhaps Piggy was right when he later told Ralph that Jack hated Ralph but he knew that Ralph would hit him back so he vented his anger on Piggy, who couldn't fight back. Piggy’s outer appearance serves as a vessel for the boys to make fun of him. Little do they know that his thoughts and ideas would help better the group and create a better chance of arriving back home. At the beginning of the story, we see Piggy following Ralph everywhere he goes, babbling off ideas and thoughts in his head. After his encounters with...
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...opposite of democracy. Piggy and Ralph start to establish order after the plane crash has set things in disarray. After Ralph calls a meeting by blowing the conch, he tries to convince the kids that there are no adults on the island and at this time Ralph lays down rules that must be followed in order to survive on the island. First, when someone wishes to speak at an assembly he must hold the conch shell. No one is allowed to interrupt the holder of the conch except Ralph. Ralph shows his leadership abilities as he recognizes the use of the conch. He says“That’s what this shell’s called. I'll give the conch to the next person to...
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...of the boys, Ralph and Piggy, discover a conch shell on the beach, and Piggy realizes it could be used as a horn to summon the other boys. Once assembled, the boys set about electing a leader and devising a way to be rescued. They choose Ralph as their leader, and Ralph appoints another boy, Jack, to be in charge of the boys who will hunt food for the entire group. Ralph, Jack, and another boy, Simon, set off on an expedition to explore the island. When they return, Ralph declares that they must light a signal fire to attract the attention of passing ships. The boys succeed in igniting some dead wood by focusing sunlight through the lenses of Piggy’s eyeglasses. However, the boys pay more attention to playing than to monitoring the fire, and the flames quickly engulf the forest. A large swath of dead wood burns out of control, and one of the youngest boys in the group disappears, presumably having burned to death. At first, the boys enjoy their life without grown-ups and spend much of their time splashing in the water and playing games. Ralph, however, complains that they should be maintaining the signal fire and building huts for shelter. The hunters fail in their attempt to catch a wild pig, but their leader, Jack, becomes increasingly preoccupied with the act of hunting. When a ship passes by on the horizon one day, Ralph and Piggy notice, to their horror, that the signal fire—which had been the hunters’ responsibility to maintain—has burned out. Furious, Ralph accosts Jack...
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...Golding Analysis of Major Characters Themes, Motifs & Symbols Ralph Ralph is the athletic, charismatic protagonist of Lord of the Flies. Elected the leader of the boys at the beginning of the novel, Ralph is the primary representative of order, civilization, and productive leadership in the novel. While most of the other boys initially are concerned with playing, having fun, and avoiding work, Ralph sets about building huts and thinking of ways to maximize their chances of being rescued. For this reason, Ralph’s power and influence over the other boys are secure at the beginning of the novel. However, as the group gradually succumbs to savage instincts over the course of the novel, Ralph’s position declines precipitously while Jack’s rises. Eventually, most of the boys except Piggy leave Ralph’s group for Jack’s, and Ralph is left alone to be hunted by Jack’s tribe. Ralph’s commitment to civilization and morality is strong, and his main wish is to be rescued and returned to the society of adults. In a sense, this strength gives Ralph a moral victory at the end of the novel, when he casts the Lord of the Flies to the ground and takes up the stake it is impaled on to defend himself against Jack’s hunters. In the earlier parts of the novel, Ralph is unable to understand why the other boys would give in to base instincts of bloodlust and barbarism. The sight of the hunters chanting and dancing is baffling and distasteful to him. As the novel progresses, however, Ralph, like Simon...
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...A Guide to Writing the Literary Analysis Essay I. INTRODUCTION: the first paragraph in your essay. It begins creatively in order to catch your reader’s interest, provides essential background about the literary work, and prepares the reader for your major thesis. The introduction must include the author and title of the work as well as an explanation of the theme to be discussed. Other essential background may include setting, an introduction of main characters, etc. The major thesis goes in this paragraph usually at the end. Because the major thesis sometimes sounds tacked on, make special attempts to link it to the sentence that precedes it by building on a key word or idea. A) Creative Opening/Hook: the beginning sentences of the introduction that catch the reader’s interest. Ways of beginning creatively include the following: 1) A startling fact or bit of information Example: Nearly two hundred citizens were arrested as witches during the Salem witch scare of 1692. Eventually nineteen were hanged, and another was pressed to death (Marks 65). 2) A snatch of dialogue between two characters Example: “It is another thing. You [Frederic Henry] cannot know about it unless you have it.” “ Well,” I said. “If I ever get it I will tell you [priest].” (Hemingway 72). With these words, the priest in Ernest Hemingway’s A Farewell to Arms sends the hero, Frederic, in search of the ambiguous “it” in his life. 3) A meaningful quotation (from the book you are analyzing...
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...This instance per se is the point in which a significant divide is formed between the more civilized, moral boys e.g. Ralph, Piggy, Simon and the less civilized, primitive boys e.g. Jack, Roger. This instance foreshadows the future gang of Jack’s of whom are more interested in hunting and satisfying their heinous, sadistic natures rather than in being rescued and returning to civilization. Though the fire is used to show civilization and the boys’ link to it, its main effect is to show the antithesis of...
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...Soledad O'Brien states, “I've learned that fear limits you and your vision. It serves as blinders to what may be just a few steps down the road for you” (qtd.in “Soledad O'Brien Quotes”). Being apprehensive can lead one astray from his or her goals, and can cause complete change within a person. In the novel Lord of the Flies by William Golding, a group of British boys are stranded on an island, without any any adults, after their plane crashes. Amongst the boys, some, such as Ralph, Piggy, and Simon are rational and still have their minds and bodies invested in being rescued. The other’s, under the command of Jack Merridew, have let rumours of of a beast, and a blind, burning, passion to hunt fog their minds leaving only the lust for savagery...
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...Analysis of Simon as a Symbol Simon was a character of few words, but when he spoke, his comments were wise and important to the progression of the story. He strongly connected to nature and the figurative beast on the island. Along with this, his actions emulated those of a hero as he always tried to help others. In ‘Huts on the Beach’, Simon demonstrated his deep connection with nature as he: ‘walked with an accustomed tread’ (57) to his special place: ‘He came at last to a place where more sunshine fell. Since they had not so far to go for light the creepers had woven a great mat that hung at the side of an open space in the jungle; for here the patch of rock came close to the surface and would not allow more than little...
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...responsibility and attempt to have order such as the “adults”, they immediately begin to decay into corruption. This change is also seen in the setting of the novel. When the children arrive to the island, it is lush and full of beauty. Some would compare this initial beauty to that of the Garden of Eden. As time moves on an unholy being both directly and indirectly influences the children, playing with their emotions especially pride. As each of the children’s pride begins to grow so they also begin to fall. Eventually it all ends in violence and brutality, and the first to go are Simon and Piggy who represent the characteristics of logic and moral reasoning. In any situation involving pride and violence, logic and moral reason are the first two things to be killed off. The manner in which they are killed is ironic in itself. Simon, the logical one, is corrupted by the Lord of the Flies and loses his mind. Piggy, the moral reason, dies by trying to get others to listen to him. By fighting for what he believes in the others kill him off to shut him up. Logic question the meaning of it all, and although others listened to him the supernatural overruled him. Moral reasoning tried to help others yet it was the others who killed...
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...The story is written by O. Henry and tells us about the life of a man with 2 personalities at the same time: Jimmy Valentine, who used to crack saves and Mr. Ralph Spencer, the phoenix that arose from Jimmy Valentine’s ashes, who wanted to start a new life with a beloved woman. | The story is written by Saki (Hector Hugh Munro) and tells us about a group of people: an aunt with 3 children and a bachelor. The aunt tried to come down the children by telling them a story. But it was so dull for them that this bachelor had to tell another one, much improper that the aunt’s one. | Narration: | The story is 3rd person narration and the main form of presentation is narration with elements of dialogue. The story told from this point of view is more confiding and sounds true to life. Though told from the 3rd point of view it nevertheless helps us to feel an emotional connection with all characters. The author tries to reveal Jimmy’s personality both with the help of his thoughts, words and actions and the author’s description of the events, to show us his hard way of gaining a better life. | Though the story is told from the 3d person point of view, we can say that the events are shown through a bachelor’s perception. As well as in “ARR” the main form of presentation is narration with elements of dialogue and here the characters are described from the outside only. | Development (body): | The author uses the straight line narrative, which means that the sequencing of events in...
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...International Relations Theory The new edition of International Relations Theory: A critical introduction introduces students to the main theories in international relations. It explains and analyzes each theory, allowing students to understand and critically engage with the myths and assumptions behind each theory. Key features of this textbook include: • discussion of all of the main theories: realism and (neo)realism, idealism and (neo)idealism, liberalism, constructivism, postmodernism, gender, and globalization two new chapters on the “clash of civilizations” and Hardt and Negri’s Empire innovative use of narratives from films that students will be familiar with: Lord of the Flies, Independence Day, Wag the Dog, Fatal Attraction, The Truman Show, East is East, and Memento an accessible and exciting writing style which is well-illustrated with boxed key concepts and guides to further reading. • • • This breakthrough textbook has been designed to unravel the complexities of international relations theory in a way that allows students a clearer idea of how the theories work and the myths that are associated with them. Cynthia Weber is Professor of International Studies at the University of Lancaster. She is the author of several books and numerous articles in the field of international relations. International Relations Theory A critical introduction Second edition Cynthia Weber First published 2001 by Routledge Second edition published 2005 by Routledge...
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...Reading the Novel in English 1950–2000 i RTNA01 1 13/6/05, 5:28 PM READING THE NOVEL General Editor: Daniel R. Schwarz The aim of this series is to provide practical introductions to reading the novel in both the British and Irish, and the American traditions. Published Reading the Modern British and Irish Novel 1890–1930 Reading the Novel in English 1950–2000 Daniel R. Schwarz Brian W. Shaffer Forthcoming Reading the Eighteenth-Century Novel Paula R. Backscheider Reading the Nineteenth-Century Novel Harry E. Shaw and Alison Case Reading the American Novel 1780–1865 Shirley Samuels Reading the American Novel 1865–1914 G. R. Thompson Reading the Twentieth-Century American Novel James Phelan ii RTNA01 2 13/6/05, 5:28 PM Reading the Novel in English 1950–2000 Brian W. Shaffer iii RTNA01 3 13/6/05, 5:28 PM © 2006 by Brian W. Shaffer BLACKWELL PUBLISHING 350 Main Street, Malden, MA 02148-5020, USA 9600 Garsington Road, Oxford OX4 2DQ, UK 550 Swanston Street, Carlton, Victoria 3053, Australia The right of Brian W. Shaffer to be identified as the Author of this Work has been asserted in accordance with the UK Copyright, Designs, and Patents Act 1988. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, except as permitted by the UK Copyright, Designs, and...
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... or a particular group of words or phrases, at one single point in a text. Unlike literary elements, literary techniques are not necessarily present in every text. Literary terms refers to the words themselves with which we identify and describe literary elements and techniques. They are not found in literature and they are not “used” by authors. Allegory: Where every aspect of a story is representative, usually symbolic, of something else, usually a larger abstract concept or important historical/geopolitical event. Lord of the Flies provides a compelling allegory of human nature, illustrating the three sides of the psyche through its sharply-defined main characters. Antagonist: Counterpart to the main character...
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