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Lord of the Flies. Last of the Allegories. LOTF: Last of the Allegories. What is an ALLEGORY? A figure of rhetoric The use of symbols to portray a moral or message Fables or parables are short allegories with one definite message Example: “The Boy Who Cried Wolf”
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Lord of the Flies Last of the Allegories
LOTF: Last of the Allegories What is an ALLEGORY? • A figure of rhetoric • The use of symbols to portray a moral or message • Fables or parables are short allegories with one definite message • Example: “The Boy Who Cried Wolf” In this fable, the boy is an allegory for children who do not tell the truth and are not believed in the end
LOTF: Last of the Allegories Allegory VS. Symbol • They are similar, but an allegory is sustained longer, and is more fully detailed. • Example: In LOTF, Piggy’s glasses symbolize intellect, knowledge, and civilization. • Example: In LOTF, the allegory of Piggy’s glasses express the eventual and unavoidable decline of mankind when faced with terms of survival.
LOTF: Last of the Allegories The Role of an Allegory • Allegories were the method of choice for education many years ago. Why? • Entertainment • Easy to remember = Easy to pass on • Underlying principles were used for teaching lessons
LOTF: Last of the Allegories The Decline of the Allegory • We are a LITERALISTIC CULTURE grounded in an era of INSTANT GRATIFICATION (that including the information we receive). We are tired of figuring out “the message,” rather, we want it clearly delivered upfront. • Proves why allegories are difficult to comprehend • LOTF is one of the last novels to have substantial allegories
LOTF: Last of the Allegories Allegory Exposed in LOTF Political Allegory (think: WWII, Cold War, atomic destruction) Psychological Allegory (think: human psyche) Religious Allegory (think: Garden of Eden, Christ-like characters, God VS. Satan)
LOTF: Last of the Allegories Political Allegory The world was divided into two “camps”: Free World VS. Soviet Union. Which characters represent these two camps? Ralph and Jack The Cold War brought about fears of atomic destruction – those of which were materialized in LOTF.
LOTF: Last of the Allegories Psychological Allegory • Freudian Understanding of the Human Psyche: • The Id: The part of the unconscious mind that works to gratify its own impulses. Character? JACK • The Superego: Part of the mind that seeks to control impulsive behavior (of the Id). Character?PIGGY • The Ego: Part of the mind that mediates between the Id’s demand for pleasure and the controlled thoughts of the Superego. Character? RALPH
LOTF: Last of the Allegories Religious Allegory • The Garden of Eden = the island • Describes the perfect living condition with food/water, good weather, etc. Favorable details show its (close-to) “perfect” state: UTOPIA. • Golding portrays this “Eden” with a sense of evil at the same time to create a foreboding of something terrible. The island ends up in a state of misery: DYSTOPIA.
LOTF: Last of the Allegories Religious Allegory Lord of the Flies = Satan/evil (living inside mankind) Simon = quiet/observer; always does good to benefit others (littluns); used as the sacrificial lamb; he is the Christ-like symbol. His encounter with the Lord of the Flies is important because it represents something pure/good VS. evil in its worst form (Satan).