Lord of the flies- english coursework how well does chapter one prepare us for the rest of the novel.

Lord of the Flies coursework

(How well does chapter one prepare us for the rest of the novel?)

William Golding's novel 'Lord of the Flies' was published in 1954. The novel explores the need for democratic organization, and tackles many themes including evil in mankind, people are inherently evil and the need for political democracy. The novel was inspired by many experiences of Golding's life; William Golding was an English teacher at an all boys school for a few years and in one of his English classes he tried to debate with the boys, it ended very badly with the boys fighting and showing they can not control themselves, this is also very relevant as this would have provided Golding with enough knowledge of schoolboys and their behavior, for this novel to be so realistic. William Golding also served in the Royal Navy and the novel was published during WWII. These past experiences are linked to the themes in which Golding choose to tackle in his novel, for example evil and savagery. Also this novel is said to be very similar to the book 'Coral Island' by R.M Ballantyne. Although Golding takes the character's names and story line, he changes it in many ways as he projects the evil and savagery onto the boys. The opening chapter of LOTF is very effective in introducing the characters, themes and symbols, and in this essay I shall explore how Golding does this.

Golding presents the characters in the opening and their relationships with the other characters in a clever way that is relevant to the rest of the novel. Chapter one immediately establishes the tension between the impulse towards savagery. Ralph closely followed by piggy arrive first on the scene, Ralph discovers a large shell like object which Piggy immediately identifies as a conch to summon any other survivors. Jack and his choir emerge from the beach and are the first sign of disturbance on the seemingly tranquil island. However the marching choir are also the first concrete example of civilization on the island, when Jacks party was about ten yards from the platform he shouted an order and “wearily obedient, the choir huddled into a line and stood there swaying in the sun.”This suggests that Golding's militant descriptions of the boy's actions were to deliberately build an image in the readers head of a very civilized and organized group of children, and then highlight their fall!

Golding from the beginning of the novel describes Ralph with empathy over Jack on both temperament, physical appearance and leadership skills “there was a stillness about Ralph as he sat down that marked him out.” Also Golding suggests he has maturity levels above the other boys and that he is a natural leader, a quality the other boys recognize when they vote him leader. The vote for chief causes a lot of trouble and conflict between Ralph and Jack as Jack assumes he should assume the role automatically. We can tell this by the description of Jack when he ...

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In contrast to the violent Jack and charismatic Ralph there is Piggy. Piggy is immediately made out to be the brains of the group with his intelligence and could have gotten in to their school through a scholarship as Ralph observes. “Piggy was an outsider, not only by accent, which did not matter, but by... and a certain disinclination for manual labour.” However he lacks appearance and physical qualities, we can tell this by Golding's first description of Piggy. “He was shorter than the fair boy and very fat... and then he looked up through thick spectacles.” Piggy's unprepossing appearance and unfitness prevent him from doing certain things therefore preventing him from making a full contribution to island life. The other boys pick up on this and therefore regard Piggy as someone with a weak character who can be bossed about.

Golding presents Piggy in the opening in such a way that suggests he is very relevant to the rest of the novel as Piggy's symbolically connects him to the pigs on the island which in following chapters becomes the targets of many of the boy's unrestrained violent actions. As the boys turn their rage against the pigs, Golding foreshadows Piggy's own murder at the close of the novel. The relationships with other characters for example Jack being jealous of Ralph being voted chief, which later on in the novel Jack becomes the leader of his own tribe which wants to kill Ralph, and the roles the characters adopt at the beginning of the the novel for example Piggy's intelligence, are very relevant to the rest of the novel.

In the choir Jack and Simon are the only boys really to be singled out from the rest of the choir. Jack as he is the leader, and Simon when he faints at the first meeting of the boys. This foreshadows later on in the book when he faints in front of the 'beast' Lord of the Flies. Also he is picked to explore the island along side Jack and Ralph in the first chapter and when the three of them are walking he 'walks between them.' This foreshadows him being stuck in the middle when Ralph and Jack lead there own groups when savagery breaks out later on in the novel. The choir as a group is also foreshadowed in chapter one by the use of metaphors. Golding describes the boys as a beast and a creature “the creature was a party of boys.” This is another way that Golding prepares us effectively for the rest of the novel as this technique of comparison between the boys and animals is a frequently used technique by Golding, foreshadowing the time when they realize there is no 'beast' only man's doing. Also the choir boys are first to turn savage, therefore this technique is effective in preparing the reader for this transformation later on in the novel.

The island setting and the symbols on the island are introduced very well and developed throughout the novel. The in depth descriptions of the island is accomplished well with the use of wild imagery. For example on Page fourteen and fifteen, there is much emphasis on the brightness and colour of the island. “within the irregular arc of the coral and lagoon was as a mountain lake, blue of all blue shades and shadowy green and purple.” This influences the reader to think that the island is like a tropical paradise full of joy and happiness. However the reader finds out throughout the novel that this is not the case and the island is really quite evil where “darkness poured out.” With the islands natural beauty and wildlife ruined by mans existence, by the end of the novel the island has almost become a microcosm of the real world. There is a good and a bad side of the island and both good and bad is committed there, just as the case on Earth.

Chapter ones name “the sound of the shell” prepares the reader for the rest of the novel through symbolism. During chapter one the reader finds out that Ralph finds a shell like object, which Piggy immediately identifies as a conch and Ralph blows the conch to call everyone else on the island together. “The sound of the shell” represents the beginning of their civilization. The conch is an important symbol on the island as its condition beginnings to deteriorate throughout the novel “Exposure to the air had bleached the yellow and pink to near-white and transparency.” Suggesting the conch is losing its power and civilization is breaking down! Eventually, near the end of the novel “the conch exploded into a thousand white fragments and ceased to exist,” implying an end to civilization and the start of savagery! Through Golding paying a lot of attention to the conch in chapter one, we the reader then pay a lot of attention to it through out the rest of novel and watch it deteriorate along side the boys civilization, making chapter one successful in preparing us for the rest of the novel.

Also Piggy's glasses are an important symbol, as when Piggy needs an idea for either himself or the group or when he is being teased Piggy tends to “busy himself with his glasses.” It is appropriate for Piggy to be the owner of the glasses that are used as a symbol of intelligence because Golding creates the character's image as an adult-like character. Just like the conch, Piggy's glasses also deteriorate throughout the novel foreshadowing the events of the plot. In contrast to the the glasses, Jack's knife symbolizes the boys infinite savagery and the growing antagonism among the boys on the island. Therefore, throughout the novel, Golding uses inanimate objects; the glasses, the knife and the conch, and language as symbols for foreshadowing.

In conclusion to the question how well does chapter one prepare us for the rest of the novel. I believe it prepares us, the reader, very well for the rest of the novel as Golding presents the characters, the setting and various objects in such a way that they foreshadow events later on in the novel but cleverly with out giving away the plot. Golding tackled some very important issues in his novel, some that are still relevant today including the need for political democracy and how society can break down. In this essay I have discussed how Golding's clever techniques in the first chapter prepared us very well for a very good novel with some unexpected events

Peer Reviews

Here's what a star student thought of this essay

sydneyhopcroft

4th of Mar 2012

Quality of writing

The Quality of Written Communication is good. There is little evidence of a more complicated syntax or use of punctuation which suggests the writer is not a fully-fledged confidant in their writing ability under exam/coursework pressure just yet, but even so, it is obvious this candidate has read and re-read their answer in order to make sure that all their spelling is correct and accurate.

Level of analysis

The Level of Analysis shown by this candidate is good, if it does indeed trail off into analysis of things other than what the question specifically asks. The contextual information is possibly a little too extensive and not all of it is required, but nonetheless as it is there, the candidate cannot be marked down for it as it demonstrates a highly sensitive awareness of the social and historical factors that influences Golding's text. However, in an exam conditions it would probably be best to integrate the contextual appreciation into the analysis, rather than lump it in block paragraph as one big chunk at the beginning of the essay. Elsewhere, this candidate excels on their analysis of Ralph's character, and also how our first encounter with Jack Merridew and the choirboys suggests that civilisation is still present, though it would be apt to suggest here what this foreshadows about the novel - how will this delicate social construct change throughout the course of the novel? Doing this is directly addressing the question, which asks candidate to address the unknown as they are only told to focus on the first chapter and what it tells us about the novel.

Response to question

In response to a question that asks how the opening chapter of William Golding's 'Lord of the Flies' prepares readers for the rest of the novel, this candidate has done well to address many of the ideas and allegories drawn up in just a few pages. Commenting on character, description and context (perhaps a little too extensively here) this candidate looks set to achieve a high B grade for their efforts. What could be improved though, is the focus on the possibilities that Golding hints at and how he hints at them. Candidates answering questions like these (this is a very popular question for this novel) will need to approach the question from the perspective of someone who does not know what happens in the rest of the novel, so really, it's more about writing from the stance of someone questioning what could happen, rather that writing from the perspective of someone who knows what happens.

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