Revision sheet for Golding's Lord of the Flies. Contains quotes for different characters and themes, some analysis and ideas about context, as well as summaries and possible questions and mark schemes.
Ralph
Law abiding, hardworking, works for the good of everyone, has faith, duty, reason
Psychology- ego, organised, mediates the id and superego, deals with reality, avoids
negative consequences of going against rules by compromising
‘The fair boy’
Stands for civilisation, morality and leadership
His power goes with order and civilisation, as well as the influence of symbols like the conch
and piggy’s glasses
Defeat comes in the form of a hunt- he becomes a victim of the savage forces it represents
and has literally become the prey
Saved by a deus ex machina (unlikely thing that appears to save a hopeless situation)
Devastated when he realises he is no better than jack and has a darkness inside as well
(after Simons death)
‘The average, rather more than average, man of goodwill and common sense’ Golding said
in a lecture
Calm, not used to rage, not a natural leader
Excited at first to be on the island but scared of staying there forever
‘My fathers in the navy. He said there aren’t any unknown islands left’ he trusts the adults to
find them unlike jack
‘There was a mildness about his mouth and eyes that proclaimed no devil’
‘But i tell you there isnt a beast’
‘Big enough to be a link with the adult world of authority’
‘His fair hair was plastered over his eyebrows and he pushed it back’
‘Became fear, hopeless fear on flying feet’ when being chased at the end
Jack
Represents destructive forces in society, ruthless, evil, plays on people’s fears to gain power,
tyranny, sadistic
Psychology- id, uncoordinated instinctual desires, primitive, motivated by pleasure, illogical,
never considers reality, only wants to fulfill needs
Stands for the desire for power, amorality and selfishness
When he takes piggy’s glasses, it emphasises his power and the demise of their hope of
being rescued
Addicted to a state of frenzy and bloodlust and convinces the boys this is a valid state of
interacting with the world which further eroded their sense of morality and allows jack to
manipulate them
Initially keen for rules but becomes obsessed with hunting. His desire to control and
subjugate proves more powerful than his desire for empathy
Totalitarianism- a society where citizens do not share power equally and disobedience is
punished
‘Bolting look’ ‘opaque mad look’
‘Black cloak circling’
‘Two light blue eyes, frustrated now, and turning, or ready to turn, to anger’
‘I ought to be chief, sadi jack with simple arrogance’
‘Snatched’ ‘slammed’ ‘looked round fiercely’ ‘viciously’
‘dog -like, uncomfortably on all fours yet unheeding his discomfort, he stole forward’
‘Less a hunter than a furtive thing, ape-like’
‘Maddening- the promise of meat’
,‘The compulsion to track down and kill that was swallowing him up’
‘Inevitably leading’
‘Laughing and shuddering’
‘Rage elemental and awe inspiring’
Piggy
‘Because what’s rights, right’
‘Like a crowd of kids’
‘Ass mar’
The first killing of a pig foreshadows his death
‘Specs’- symbolise the voice of reason and logic
The intellectual, outsider, scientific, rational
Psychology- superego, critical, moral compass, forbids unacceptable behaviour
Ignored because of his appearance
His glasses are a true symbol of power- even after the conch is powerless jack understands
the value of the glasses as they are necessary to start a fire
Physically vulnerable
Lower class
‘Listening and interpreting to the assembly’
‘Martyred expression of a parent’
‘Life, said piggy expansively, is scientific, thats what it is’
‘Centre of social derision’
Simon
Philosopher who functions on a higher plane, mysterious, likes to be alone
Exists outside the conflict of civilisation and savagery
Kind, helpful, dedicated to the common good, connection to nature, has an inherent
goodness rather than taught by society
Christ figure- mystical connection to the environment, saintly and selfless disposition, meets
a tragic and sacrificial death, however he dies before he is able to speak to the boys and his
death exemplifies the power of evil instead of showing the way to salvation
With his death, the last vestige of civilised order is taken away, leaving brutality and chaos to
take over
Confrontation with the lord of the flies foreshadows his death- it is not complete until he
comes face to face with the beast that exists in the boys
‘Passion beat about simon with awful wings’
‘The clouds opened and let down the rain like a waterfall’- biblical, pathetic fallacy
He knows about the beast- omniscient
Free will- man’s inherent evil takes advantage of this to do bad things
Encounter with the beast- similar to temptation in the garden of eden
‘Honey coloured sunlight’ ‘candle like buds’
‘Simon became inarticulate in his effort to express mankinds essential illness’
‘There were no words and no movements but the tearing of teeth and claws’
‘The beast was on its knees in the centre, its arms folded over its face’
‘Sculptured marble’ ‘dressed simons coarse hair with brightness’
Roger
Evil, bloodthirsty, kills piggy senselessly
, Destroys the conch too- least able to understand the civilising impulse
Represents brutality and bloodlust at its most extreme
“He’s a terror”
‘With a sense of delirious abandonment’ when killing piggy
‘Carried death in his hands’
Samneric
Last to remain loyal to Ralph
Initially sympathetic to Ralph but give themselves over to jack after he tortures them
‘Their substantial unity was recognised’
Represent loss of identity - originally sam and eric but by the end theyre just samneric
“Cried out of the heart of civilisation”
Civilisation/ savagery
‘Which is better- to have rules and agree, or to hunt and kill?’-piggy
‘The conch exploded into a thousand white fragments and ceased to exist’
The conch is used as a symbol of government and leadership, over time it loses meaning,
becoming powerless. It symbolises communication and is a vessel of political legitimacy and
democratic power
Ultimately their savagery brings about the rescue that their coordinated efforts were unable
to achieve
Humans have the instinct to live by rules and act peacefully but also to act violently to obtain
supremacy
Law vs anarchy, good vs evil
explored through the dissolution of their civilised moral disciplined behaviour as they
accustom themselves to a wild brutal barbaric life
‘After all, were not savages. Were english; and the english are best at everything’
‘Maurice still felt the unease of wrong doing’
‘Conditioned by a civilisation that knew nothing of him and was in ruins’ about roger
‘They were savages it was true; but they were human’
Leadership
Society/democracy/dictatorship
start off as a democracy with an elected leader, Ralph who holds meetings, sets rules and
establishes law and order. the conch- symbol of democratic power and ensures equal
opportunity, links to a state of calm and peacefulness
jack is convinced he should be the leader and uses violence to get what he wants. He rules
with fear and terror. ‘the chief’ he has lost his name and issues orders without any
discussion. He uses the war paint to become someone else and less human.
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