Hello everyone!
I am back with another book review, Lord of the Flies by William Golding.
I'll give a brief synopsis because I feel like this is one of those books everyone at least knows the general premise of. Following a plane crash on an island, a group of British school boys has to stay alive and try to get rescued without the help from any adults. Ralph is elected leader with backlash from the ever controlling Jack Merridew, who wants to focus on hunting. As the book progresses, the boys lose their ability to maintain a civilized life, turning to the inherent evil of man.
Like I said, I don't remember a lot about what we discussed in class about this book. I know that Jack represents the evil of man, Ralph the uncertainty of accepting that evil and there was something about Simon being the innocence and later the loss of that innocence.
I don't know if this book has the most amazing writing style, in fact, there were a few times when it was a bit boring for me. Golding's ideas are there, but I think as a more modern reader, this book is a little hard to stick with. Re-reading this book again, I felt like I didn't love it as much. I think I had this idealized version in my head from when I read it years ago, and when I picked it up again, I was kind of bored, to be honest.
But I am still giving this book five stars for two reasons: The first is because of the sentimentality attached to it. Even if I hated it now, I loved it years ago and couldn't bear to give it a lower rating. The second reason is that it is one of the only classics I haven't wanted to bash my head in with. There were some slower points, but I was always generally interested both times I read it.
This book talks about the evil of man and that might just be scarier than any other horror book I've read because it is something that is in everyone. Given the situation, you can become like Jack, take control and kill to get what you want, or you can remain with your principles and hope to get rescued before you yourself have to succumb to the evil nature within. I think that is why this book has survived so long, despite the slower moments. People are so horrified at what these children are capable of, but in the end, anyone could be capable of that. Hmm, maybe this is where I got my cynicism from?
A quick scan of the reviews will tell you that this book has polarized ratings. Some people love it, and some people hate it. I'm in the camp of people who love it, but I can definitely see the reasons why people hate it.
Overall, a great classic!