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WJEC GCSE English Literature Lord of the Flies Context and Key Points
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Context and key points to include in essays for top grades. I used these to achieve an A* grade in this exam.
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Points to useGolding believed that evil exists inside everyone and is only contained by the rules of society. He
thought that under the right conditions, evil could come to the surface and ‘normal’ people could
commit terrible crimes.
Golding was shocked by the horrors of World War Two, which he realised were carried out “coldly”
and “skilfully” by educated people who came from a “tradition of civilisation”.
Golding taught boys in private schools for many years and wrote that he understood young boys
with “awful precision”.
He believed that adventure stories like ‘The Coral Island’ were unrealistic in their optimistic view of
how young boys would act without adult supervision or rules.
Golding twists the normal structure of adventure stories as the boys are rescued but they’re not
saved from their new knowledge of their own evil.
The boys don’t keep track of time. There are only clues about how long the story takes, such as the
boys’ “long hair” and the decomposition of the airman’s body. Losing track of time symbolises their
abandonment of the civilised world.
The boys say “Wacco”, “Wizard” and “Whizzoh” to show how excited they are. It’s the slang terms
that public schoolboys would use in the 1950s, it makes them sound very innocent.
At the start the boys are “children” and their meeting is and “assembly”. By the end, the group is
called “tribe” and each child is a “savage”. They’ve lost their identities and are no longer innocent.
At first, Jack wants to be called by his surname to show he’s not a “kid”. By the end, he’s “the Chief”,
he’s lost his identity and defines himself by how much power he has over the other boys.
The lack of names and individuality in the novel supports Golding’s intention to create an allegorical
novel. Ralph: “The boy with fair hair”, Jack: Merridew, Piggy: Appearance.
Most of his novels take place in villages and on islands.
Allegorical fiction – The message of the book is made through symbolic figures, actions and
representation.
Writing about Piggy’s glasses:
First, they expose the breakdown of law and order. They belong to Piggy but are used with
permission to start fires that are essential for rescue and hygienically cooked food.
Later, Jack refuses to respect Piggy’s right to the glasses by punching him, breaking a lens
and stealing them to light fires. Jack is challenging Ralph’s style of leadership, which has kept
things reasonable on the island.
Piggy’s glasses represent the idea of possession or ownership but by using them to start the
fire, Jack replaces the rule of law with personal desire and need.
They contribute to the irony of the novel as Piggy is unable to see clearly without them, yet
is able to see the truth better than others.
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