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"..this book is a valuable addition to any collection of literacy criticisms and analyses."
—School Library Journal (print)
"Because many high school classes read Othello, this will be a welcome addition to your collection."
—The Gale Group (print)
A seemingly simple tale of schoolboys marooned
on an island, Lord of the Flies has proven to be one of the
most enigmatic and provocative pieces of literature ever published.
This source probes the many layers of meaning in the novel, examining
its literary, philosophical, historical, scientific, and religious
significance. Beginning with a literary analysis that explores
the universality of the novel's characters, the story is
considered as subversion of the adventure tale, comparing
it to such classics as Treasure Island and Robinson Crusoe. From
these literary depictions of savagery, this study delves deeper,
confronting the long-running philosophical and biological debates
about human nature that have absorbed such influential thinkers
as Rousseau and Darwin. The full meaning of Lord of the Flies
is further contextualized by tracing historical views on civilization,
from the Victorian perspective, to the very real horrors
of World War II. This source integrates analysis and primary
documents, with excerpts from materials as diverse as the Bible,
the writings of Darwin, and war crimes interviews, to explore the
very nature of human aggression and evil. This work will spark students
to consider intriguing connections between Golding's masterpiece
and broader concepts of civilization, altruism, political leadership
responsibilities, and the history of western imperialism.
In addition, this online sourcebook provides
the user access to:
- Character analysis with photos
- Island map (artist interpretation)
- An interview with William Golding on the publication of his
book, The Paper Men
- E-texts of: Robinson Crusoe, The Coral Island, Tom Brown's
Schooldays, Treasure Island, The Fifth Form at St. Dominic's,
Stalky & Co., The Longest Journey, Swiss Family Robinson,
Journey to the Center of the Earth, Westward Ho!, Ivanhoe, The
Last of the Mohicans, Robin Hood and others
- Extensive overview of Charles Darwin's theories on evolution,
with full text of The Origin of Species and The Descent
of Man.
- Biographical profiles of William Golding, R.M. Ballantyne,
Daniel Defoe, Rudyard Kipling, P.G. Wodehouse, George Orwell,
John Betjeman, E.M. Forester, H.G. Wells, Charles Darwin, Jean
Jacques Rosseau and others
- World War II profiles of Neville Chamberlain, Winston Churchill
and Adolf Hitler
- Nuremberg War Crimes Trials Transcripts
- Historical photograph collections of concentration camps including
Treblinka, Auschwitz, Bergen-Belsen, and Sobibor
- Glossary of cultural references and historical idioms from
Golding's Lord of the Flies
- Contextual timelines
- Web-based study questions
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