Jasmine Quigley
Mrs. McConkey
ENG 3UE
December 2, 2011
The Power of Lord of the Flies, a Classic Novel
How can classic novels such as Lord of the Flies defy time? What gives them the power to live for so long while other novels around them do not survive? The sole reason is the interpretation of the audience. If we, the readers, cannot consider the novel "good" even in our current frames of mind, then it is not a classic novel. So, how does the audience calculate if a novel is "good?" Stylistic devices, coherency and cohesiveness are not the only elements that unite a novel into a unique, everlasting voice. It is a classic novel's connectability to the audience that makes it relevant in society today; it is a classic novel's unique views and moods that make a reader engaged in reading; and it is a classic novel's ability to invoke thought and reflection within the audience that separate these classics from current, short-lived novels, despite their older age. Perhaps it is even the notion that a classic novel has lived and breathed for so long without being discarded that attracts readers to such veterans, but ultimately, a classic novel's legacy remains as awe-inspiring as it ever was in the past. This success is especially true with the classic Lord of the Flies by William Golding.
Today readers can still read Lord of the Flies and apply its wisdom towards their modern lives, even though there is such an age difference from its creation to the present. "Lord of the Flies [still] remains as provocative today as when it was first published in 1954, igniting passionate debate with its startling, brutal portrait of human nature," (Erika). The audience can see the boys’ transition into this brutal nature as they read the novel, but the children do not realize the true magnitude of their sins until the moment of their rescue when they all sob and "Ralph [weeps] for the end of innocence, the darkness of man's heart, and the fall through the air of the true, wise friend called Piggy," (Golding, Lord of the Flies 225). Ralph's sadness and disgrace can also be reflected in the reader as the novel comes to a horrific close. To think that the boys were once as innocent as us is almost impossible after they lapse into such savagery. But, perhaps the most unthinkable concept of all is that we are susceptible to becoming beasts as well. Indeed, humans are still under threat of degrading and demoralizing ourselves into pitiless beasts and savages, sans innocence or identity. In addition, the circumstance in the novel itself has potential for re-occurrence in reality. This is because the author has included some connections from his life's story into the novel, making it even more realistic and relatable to past historical events and the present human condition, despite the novel being a fictional story. For example, "After graduating from Oxford in 1935, Golding continued the family tradition by becoming a schoolmaster in Salisbury, Wiltshire. His teaching career was interrupted in 1940, however, with the outbreak of World War II (1939–45). Lieutenant Golding served five years in the British Royal Navy and saw active duty in the North Atlantic, commanding a rocket launching craft," ("William Golding Biography - Family, Childhood, Story, Death, History, School, Mother, Book, Old, Information, Born, College."). Golding’s experiences working with children could have given him the premise to create his characters, and his contribution to the War would have influenced the novel’s setting and circumstance. Therefore, "Golding's fictional universe holds true if we take into account the situational context, thus proving that '... many of the things that are true of the entity of the real world are also true of the entity in the dream or fiction' (Bailin 2008: 157)," (Cmeciu, Doina^Cmeciu, Camelia-Mihaela). This is the "...test of verisimilitude. As all students of Latin know, verisimilitude literally means 'likeness to truth.' Some people claim that only a realistic novel can achieve verisimilitude because only such a novel deals with people, places, and events which we can all accept as real or true. But this is not so. A novel of fantasy, a story of the supernatural...can have 'likeness to the truth' if they are true to the world they create," ("What Makes a Good Novel."). This "likeness to the truth" and relatablity Lord of the Flies has with reality is just one reason it is so appealing, and disturbing, for its audience to read.
However, Lord of the Flies is not the first attempt at rendering the human condition unavoidable, so how is it that this classic novel has prevailed while so many other pieces of literature with the same insightful topic have failed? This is "...the test of theme. It is not possible to expect of a novelist a theme which is new, for there are no new themes, just as there are no new plots. But [we] can demand of a novelist that he throw new light on an old theme or that he view it from a fresh angle or that he subject it to the impact of a vigorous, penetrating intelligence," ("What Makes a Good Novel."). Golding does put a new light on the theme of inhumanity, but it is through the novel's mood that Golding entices the audience into seeing his views, taking the audience along with him for the ride to inhumanity. Though Lord of the Flies has an individual and unique view of its theme, it is the mood that absorbs the reader into the theme. The mood is exemplified in stylistic devices staged throughout the novel that Golding carefully orders to create an overwhelming atmosphere and suspense for the reader. The mood begins as innocent as the children, and then it darkens as the boys do as well. The mood reflects its beginning innocence when Ralph meets Piggy for the first time and, "Ralph danced out into the hot air of the beach and then returned as a fighter-plane, with wings swept back, and machine-gunned Piggy. 'She-aa-ow!' He dived in the sand at Piggy's feet and lay there laughing," (LOTF 6). It is all fun and games at this point in the novel, but the audience can see the start of a transition in mood when a littlun "...became absorbed beyond mere happiness as he felt himself exercising control over living things. He talked to them, urging them, ordering them. Driven back by the tide, his footprints became bays in which they were trapped and gave him the illusion of mastery," (LOTF 64). In this scene Golding begins to show the inhumanity reflected in the littlun's actions, absorbing the reader more deeply into the novel through his carefully chosen stylistic devices such as parallel construction and imagery. As the novel progresses, the savagery within the boys is fully revealed, and the reader is dragged along into its brutality by the darkening mood. This dreadful mood can be found when Ralph is being chased by Jack and his tribe and Ralph attempts to hide, but one of the savages appears. Ralph panics in his hiding spot as "The savage stopped fifteen yards away and uttered his cry... Don't scream. Get ready. The savage moved forward so that you could only see him from the waist down. That was the butt of his spear. Now you could see him from the knee down. Don't scream," (LOTF 220-221). Now it is no longer about fun and games, but about survival, and the mood reflects such savagery. Golding's mood also has the ability to, "…convey a sense of immediacy, tension and drama in his story. Golding is very convincing…" ("Book Review: Lord of the Flies-William Golding."), at presenting his theme by manipulating the atmosphere in the novel. His compelling moods are what nourish his new or different concepts never before explored by the reader, even though the theme of the human condition has been reviewed many times before. Golding also forces the reader to experience their own misery and disgrace as the boys do in the novel by transitioning into a morbid mood. The moods are what make the novel engaging for the reader to read, and thus capable of surviving so many years of criticism and hardship.
Through presenting an audience with its purpose, a novel may also spark deep thought within a reader. But, sometimes it is the questions asked and not the answers given within a classic novel that can invoke such reflection in its audience, which certainly makes the novel intriguing. Lord of the Flies does just this torturing goose chase of questions and answers leading to its purpose, which makes it so appealing to its readers. "It is one of those rare books which compel you to keep thinking about its message long after the book has been read," ("Book Review: Lord of the Flies-William Golding."). But, for the audience to continue reflecting on a classic novel after it has been read they need a purpose within the novel that also has a purpose to the audience. This makes the novel worth reflecting on. Golding reveals his purpose many times throughout the novel, one time being when Jack causes disorder at an assembly and Piggy tries to persuade Ralph to blow the conch and bring order back again. But, Ralph says, "If I blow the conch and they don't come back; then we've had it. We shan't keep the fire going. We'll be like animals. We'll never be rescued," (LOTF 99). Though the boys are rescued because of Jack's carelessness and savagery through an ironic twist of fate, Ralph explains that if they do not follow the rules and keep the fire going, they will all turn into savage beasts. Therefore, the purpose of Lord of the Flies is to reveal the beast within all of us, no matter how innocent, but within this purpose evolves many questions. What is the identity of the beast? How might we avoid it or destroy it? Where does it come from? What lures the beast out of hiding? How powerful is the beast? These questions leave you pondering and searching through your maze of a mind to find the answers. Why are the answers so important to the audience though? It is because they could still have an effect on present day society, giving them a very significant impact on the audiences’ lives. Overall, these lingering thoughts left behind by Lord of the Flies and other classic novels as to their purposes and answers are what truly make the novels so effective and provoking to the readers of the past, present and future.
Interestingly enough, all of the elements in classic novels such as Lord of the Flies are what make them "good" to the audience. Not everyone may enjoy reading a specific classic novel, but most of us can respect a classic novel as it is "good." But, the difference between enjoying a classic novel and respecting it comes from a reader’s own perspective as to whether the novel is "great." This "greatness" comes from a classic novel’s ability to influence a reader and make them believe in its "greatness." This is due to a classic novel’s power. "Now we come to the test which is difficult to define but which may be the most vital of all-I call it the test of impact or the test of power. To put it somewhat crudely, what does the book do to you? Does it make you laugh or make you want to cry? Does it impress you with the pathos or the tragedy of life, with the strength or the grandeur or the weakness of the little-ness of man?" ("What Makes a Good Novel."). Lord of the Flies is timeless because of all of the different elements that make it "good," such as its connectability, unique opinions and reflectiveness, but it is "great" because of its power over the reader and their interpretation of the human condition. Its influence has no end as its life has no end, and so the classic novel's success will never die. We may be scavenging for a definition of the human condition for as long as we live, and so Lord of the Flies will last as long. Its legacy will live on as long as we, the audience will allow it to. Why? Because it pushes the boundaries of thought and challenges the mind to make connections to reality through its engaging moods. The novel relates to us, intrigues us and forces us to reflect on its questions and answers because of its unique views. It is because the classic novel has power over us to change our own views. Then, this novel’s reward for satisfying us is its timelessness and ability to influence many generations to come. The capacity to influence is the power of the classic novel and the power of Lord of the Flies. And we, the audience, are the ones that give it that power to influence us and defy time.
