Read Lord of the Flies by William Golding (1954) and also seen the scene "the death of Piggy" in the two film versions directed by Peter Brook (1961) and Harry Hook (1994).

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Media Assignment

We have read Lord of the Flies by William Golding (1954) and also seen the scene “the death of Piggy” in the two film versions directed by Peter Brook (1961) and Harry Hook (1994). The black and white version by Peter Brook is very close to the text since the characters look the same in the film as they are described.

Harry Hooks’ intentions for this film were to make it have a lot of action and to make money from it. Where as Peter Brook is just trying to make a moving image of the text and he doesn’t plan to make it more exciting.

        The colour version by Harry Hook is quite different from the text because of how it has been adapted to fit modern life. It has been adapted so much that it isn’t really a moving image of Golding’s novel. It is quite different because of the variations that have been made. Such as how it is in colour and the children are American and not English. Also they swear in this film. Harry Hooks’ intentions for this film were to make it have a lot of action

Differences between films

        

In Peter Brooks’ version of the film a spear is levered under the rock before the eventual death of piggy. This is important because it is showing that the murder is premeditated and that the children had intentions to kill him. In Harry Hooks’ version, one of the boys pushes the rock. This is wrong because it is showing that Piggys death is not necessarily premeditated and it could have just been an accident what is not as bad as murder. In the text a spear is placed under the rock implying that it was heavy and needed some force to move it.

        In the text it says that “Ralph heard the great rock long before he saw it. He was aware of a jolt in the earth that came to him through the soles of his feet, and the braking sound of stones at the top of the cliff. Then the monstrous red thing bounded across the neck and he flung himself flat while the tribe shrieked” This is saying that when the boulder started rolling down the cliff, Ralph jumped on the floor and made no attempt to save piggy. He was looking out for himself and that he didn’t care what happened to Piggy.

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In Harry Hooks’ version Ralph Shout’s “no” showing that Ralph cares about what happens to piggy. Even though he doesn’t make an attempt to save him it is still showing that he is making an effort to warn him instead of thinking about himself. This is a significant difference because it is showing that Ralph cares about Piggy in the colour version but not in the text and the black and white version.

        Also in the text and the black and white version the tribe shriek when the boulder is released from the hill top, but in the colour ...

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