LOTF Flashcards
Chapter 1
Ralph + Piggy meet
They use conch to call the others and choir
Hold an election, Ralph leader Jack leader of hunters
Ralph Simon and Jack go exploring
Jack tries to kill a pig but can’t
Chapter 2
They hold first meeting
Ralph shares what they discovered
Devise plan that you only speak with the conch
Younger boy says there’s a beat but they make fun of him
They make a fire and use piggy’s specs
The fire burns the undergrowth and is a disaster
Younger boy geos missing probably burnt
Chapter 3
Jack tries to hunt but pig escapes
Ralph and Simon are building huts but no one helps
Ralph and Jack have convo about beast, hunting, meat, small amount of tension
Simon goes off on his own to the clearing
Chapter 4
Intro to nicknames littluns and biguns
Roger and Maurice destroy Johnny Percival and Henry’ sandcastles
Roger throws to miss rocks at Henry
Roger and Jack paint their faces
They go hunting but a ship comes and doesn’t see smoke
Ralph has mini meltdown
They have meat for dinner but Piggy gets none
Chapter 5
Ralph calls meeting
He criticises their laziness and treatment of the island
Massive argument about the beast
Jack starts breaking away from rules and reenacting hunting
Ralph and Piggy have concerned convo on what to do
Chapter 6
Parachutist falls from sky
Samneric on fire watch see and think it’s the beast
A meeting is called and they decide to find it
They go to castle rock
Ralph and Jack climb the mountain
The other boys want to build a fort and heave a rock over the ledge
Chapter 7
Ralph has dreams of home and Simon makes ominous statements
They hunt a boar and Ralph enjoys the hunt
They do the hunt dance using Robert
They decide to continue searching for beats
Ralph pressured to go up by Roger and Jack
It’s in the dark so think they see beast but just dead parachutist
Chapter 8
They hold a meeting about the beast
Jack and Ralph argue and Jack leaves the group
The rest move fire from mountain
Robert, Henry Roger Maurice join Jack
Cuts in between of Simon going on his own
The hunters kill a boar and put its head on a stick for a beast gift
Simon finds this and has hallucinogenic convo with it
The tribe raids their fire and invites them to a feast
Chapter 9
Simon wakes up and finds the dead parachutist
He sees the rest have moved and realised he must go back to tell them the beast was harmless
Piggy and Ralph join the feast
They do a pretend hunt dance
Simon runs out, thinking he’s the beast, they kill him during the dance
His body floats out to shore so does the parachutist
Chapter 10
Only SamnEric, Ralph and Piggy left of the group with littluns
Piggy avoids responsibility for Simon yet Ralph says it’s murder
Awkward convo w Samneric because they both avoid they took apart
Cut to the tribe
Roger + Robert convo about Jack beating Wilfred
Jack gives speech and manipulates that the beats still alive
The group builds a fire
The tribe raids Piggy’s glasses at night but they fight each other
Chapter 11
Ralph Piggy Samneric meeting and decide to go to castle rock to get back Piggy’s glasses
They go, Piggy blind
Argument between them and the tribe
Ralph and Jack fight
Roger pushes boulder that kills Piggy
SamnEric captured, Ralph runs away
Chapter 12
Afternoon and Ralph is hiding
He in rage breaks the LOTF skull
He goes to the castle rock with Samneric on guard at night and have secret convo
The tribe plans to hunt him in the morning, put his head on a stick as offering Samneric were tortured by Roger
Ralph says he will hide in the ferns tomorrow
He does but Samneric snitch
They heave boulders to weed him out
He gets away but they begin to burn the whole island
Big chase scene and Ralph ends up on beach shore with soldier
Everyone cries
Context of LOTF
The world had just suffered 2 wars and now a Cold War
Photos of concentration camps revealed
Golding experienced the innate evil human nature and became a nihilist
British empire falling and people are discussing colonialism
At a time of religion, Golding wanted to explore possibilities to evil including Biblical
Golding interested in Freud
Aware of damage to environment
Motivations behind writing LOTF (human nature)
To show the evil and destruction human beings are capable of without civilisation
To show human’s destructive innate nature therefore we are doomed.
Also, Golding wanted to explore what causes this: animalistic urges because of evolution? Biblical reasons because of original sin? Human psychology?
Motivations behind writing (environment)
To criticise humans destruction of the helpless natural world
To show how natural world will fight back
Motivations behind writing (religion)
To perhaps show that the only thing that can save humans is god but we reject it
Therefore we are doomed anyway
What does Golding think about human evolutions affect on evil?
Evolution: we evolved through apes therefore we still have an innate savagery within us
Once in that primitive state, like the boys, we let that primal evil out
Because we no longer have the rules and regulations of society
What does Golding think about war?
The island operates as a metaphor for what’s happening in the wider world
Because there is a nuclear war and the adults are violent and causing destruction
Acts as a microcosm for real world
How does Golding think about religion?
Island is like a paradise for them, just like Eden
However Adam and Eve caused original sin
Now all humans have this capacity to sin and have the power to destroy, just like the boys
This is because the island already has a ‘scar’
What does Golding think about Freud?
Agrees with his personality divided into 3:
Id = passions, self gratification, animalistic urges
Ego = common sense, a middle ground, striving for morality
Superego = conscience and distinguishes your moral compass
What does the conflict between Jack and Ralph represent?
A metaphor for human psychology: the fight inside all humans of self gratification and conscience of others
Simon, a bystander, shows how the superego attempts to influence us yet is pushed away by the id. Therefore humans are innately evil
Ralph’s style of leadership
‘We’ll have to have hands up like at school” = democratic, wants to hear everyone’s voice
‘Rocks right along the bathing pool as a lavatory’ = wants to take care of others
“Stillness” = charismatic
Jacks style of leadership
“Dreary obedience” = demanded power with no room to protest
“Choir! Stand still!” = short sentences mean he has complete control and no room for debate
What does Golding say about leadership?
Jack’s style is obviously bad, but Ralph is also
Because ‘things are breaking up’ due to the fear of a beast
Therefore no system works because humans are inherently bad and the system relies on them being good
Ralph
Charismatic
Somewhat intelligent
Morally grey
Civilised
Open minded
Ralph quotes
‘Ralph planned his toilet’
‘Cos I had some sense’
‘I’m chief. I’ll go’
‘He couldn’t think, not like Piggy’
‘Ralph wept for the end of innocence, the darkness of man’s heart’
‘That was murder’
What does Ralph represent?
The ego of humans
Leadership and democracy
Simon
Morally perfect
Different from the others
Quiet
Fragile physically
Understanding and intelligent
Simon quotes
‘Simon found for them the fruit they could not reach’
‘He’s queer. He’s funny’ (Jack)
‘Maybe it’s only us’
‘You’ll get back to where you are from’
‘The half shut eyes were dim with the infinite cynicism of adult life. They assured Simon everything was a bad business’
‘They think you’re batty’
‘You knew, didn’t you? I’m part of you’
‘Dressed Simon’s coarse hair with brightness’
What does Simon represent
Saintliness or a morally perfect person
Incarnation of goodness to others
Literally Jesus
Piggy
Bully victim
Very intelligent
Rational
Intimidated socially
What does Piggy represent
Science
Rationality
Intelligence and development of society
Piggy quotes
‘He was shorter than the fair boy and very fat’
‘He was intimated by the uniformed superiority and offhand authority in merridew’s voice’
‘He sort of spat’
‘What intelligence had been shown was traceable to Piggy’
‘I know about people. I know about me’
‘True wise friend Piggy’
‘I’ve got the conch!’
What did Golding wanted to show about Piggy?
He was lower class and felt intimated by the superiority of upper classes
Despite him being the most intelligent
Shows Golding’s own experience
Criticism of the upper class’s attitudes
Limitations of Piggy’s goodness
Irrational trust in adults: ‘what’s grown ups going to think?’
‘He was gesticulating, search for a formula.’ Piggy attempts to use rationality for everything but that doesn’t hold up always as hunters act without reason
Refuses to acknowledge blame for Simon death going so far to blame Simon: he was asking for it
He can’t understand Simon’s saintliness because it doesn’t stick to science, which is a downfall
