Summary of the novel - Lord of the Flies · 1954

William Golding's prose, plastic, colorful, tense, belongs to the most vivid phenomena of post-war British literature. Golding's works are characterized by dramatic, philosophical depth, variety and complexity of the metaphorical language; for apparent simplicity and ease of narration in the author's books conceal the integrity and severity of the form, the verified coordination of details. Each component of the writer's work, preserving artistic independence, "works" on a pre-determined philosophical concept, often contradictory and controversial, but invariably dictated by sincere anxiety for the fate of man in a dislocated world; embodied in the flesh and blood of artistic images, this concept turns the whole structure into a generalization of almost cosmic latitude.

Golding's concepts, in general, were based on an extremely pessimistic attitude to human nature and the prospects for its evolution. The optimistic view of the expediency and irreversibility of the historical process, belief in reason, in scientific progress, in social reconstruction, in the primordial kindness of human nature, seem to Golding - in the light of the experience of the war years - no more than illusions that disarm people in their desperate attempts to overcome the tragedy of being. Formulating his goals, the writer put at the heart of the problem of human research with all its dark sides. Man suffers from the monstrous ignorance of his own nature. The truth of this position is beyond doubt for me. He devoted his work entirely to the solution of the problem, which is a human being.

The validity period is undefined. As a result of an explosion somewhere in the nuclear explosion, a group of teenagers who were being evacuated are on an uninhabited island. First on the seashore there are Ralph and a fat boy with glasses called Piggy. Having found a large shell on the seabed, they use it as a horn and call all the guys. Running boys from three years to fourteen; The last to come singers of the church choir, led by Jack Meridew. Ralph suggests choosing the "main". In addition to him, Jack claims the supremacy, but the vote ends in favor of Ralph, who suggests that Jack lead the chorus, making them hunters.

A small squad of Ralph, Jack and Simon, a fragile, fainting chorister, goes to the reconnaissance to determine whether or not they were on the island. Piggy, in spite of his requests, they do not take with them.

Climbing uphill, the boys experience a feeling of unity and delight. On the way back they notice a pig caught in a creeper. Jack is already bringing the knife, but something stops him: he is not yet ready for murder. While he hesitates, the pig manages to escape, and the boy is ashamed of his indecision, giving himself an oath to strike a fatal blow next time.

The boys return to the camp. Ralph gathers the meeting and explains that now they will have to decide everything themselves. He suggests setting the rules, in particular, not telling everyone at once, but giving voice to the one who holds the horn - so they call the sea shell. Children are not afraid yet, that they, probably, will not be soon rescued, and they anticipate a cheerful life on the island.

Suddenly, the kids push forward a frail boy of six with a birthmark to half a face. It turns out that that night he saw a beast - a snake, which turned into a vine in the morning. Children suggest that it was a dream, a nightmare, but the boy is firmly on his own. Jack promises to search the island and check if there are snakes; Ralph says with annoyance that there is no beast.

Ralph convinces the guys that they, of course, will be saved, but for this it is necessary to breed a large fire at the top of the mountain and support it so that they can be seen from the ship.

Together they build a fire and set it on fire with the help of the Piggy's glasses. The maintenance of fire takes on Jack with his hunters.

Soon it turns out that nobody wants to work seriously: Simon and Ralph continue to build tents; hunters, after being carried away by the hunt, completely forgot about the fire. Due to the fact that the fire went out, the guys were not noticed from the ship passing by. This is the reason for the first serious quarrel between Ralph and Jack. Jack, just at this moment, killed the first pig, offended that his feat was not appreciated, although he understands the justice of Ralph's reproaches. From helpless rage, he smashes the Piggy glasses, teases him. Ralph struggles to restore order and establish his supremacy.

To maintain order, Ralph gathers the next meeting, now knowing how important it is to be able to correctly and consistently state his thoughts. He again recalls the need to follow the rules that they themselves have established. But the main thing for Ralph is to get rid of the fear that has crept into the souls of the kids. Jack, who took the word, suddenly pronounces the forbidden word "beast." And in vain, Piggy convinces everyone that there is no beast or fear, "unless one scares each other" - the kids do not want to believe it. Little Percival Wims Medison introduces an additional confusion, arguing that "the beast is coming out of the sea." And only to Simon the truth is revealed. "Maybe it's us ..." he says.

At this meeting, Jack, feeling his strength, refuses to obey the rules and promises to track down the beast. Boys are divided into two camps - those who personify reason, law and order (Pig, Ralph, Simon), and those who represent the blind force of destruction (Jack, Roger and other hunters).

The same night, on duty at the campfire, the twins Eric and Sam resort to the camp with the news that they saw the beast. All day the boys rummage around the island, and only in the evening Ralph, Jack and Roger go to the mountain. There, in the wrong light of the moon, they take for the beast the corpse of a paratrooper hovering on a slingshot from a downed plane and flee in fear.

At the new meeting Jack openly rebukes Ralph in cowardice, offering himself as a leader. Without receiving support, he goes into the forest.

Gradually, Piggy and Ralph begin to notice that in the camp there are fewer and fewer children, and realize that they went to Jack.

Dreamer Simon, who has chosen a clearing in the forest where one can be alone, witnesses a hunt for a pig. As a victim to the "beast" hunters plant the pig's head on the stake - this is the Lord of the flies: after all, the head is completely covered with flies. Once he sees, Simon can no longer take his eyes off "these ancient, inevitably recognizable eyes," for the devil himself is looking at him. "You knew ... that I was part of you. An inseparable part, "- says the head, as if hinting that she is the incarnate evil that engenders fear.

A little later, the hunters led by Jack raid the camp to obtain fire. Their faces are smeared with clay: under the guise, it's easier to create outrages. Taking the fire, Jack invites everyone to join his squad, seducing hunting freemen and food.

Ralph and Piggy scared to eat, and they go with the rest of the guys to Jack. Jack again calls on everyone to join his army. Ralph, who recalls that he was elected the main democratic way, confronts him. But as a reminder of civilization, Jack opposes primitive dance, accompanied by a call: "Beast! Suddenly, Simon appears on the playground, who was on the mountain and with his own eyes made sure that there was no beast. He tries to tell about his discovery, but in the dark he is mistaken for the beast and killed in a wild ritual dance.

The "tribe" of Jack is located in the "castle", on a rock resembling a fortress, where with the help of a simple lever on the enemy you can throw stones. Ralph, meanwhile, tries hard to support the fire, their only hope of salvation, but Jack, who somehow sneaked into the camp one night, steals Piggy's glasses with the help of which the guys are building fire.

Ralph, Pig and the twins go to Jack in the hope of returning points, but Jack meets them hostilely. In vain, Piggy tries to convince them that "the law and that we are saved" is better than "hunt and destroy everything." In the ensuing fight, the twins are taken prisoner. Ralph is seriously wounded, and the pig is killed by a stone thrown from the fortress ... The horn, the last bulwark of democracy, is broken. The instinct of murder triumphs, and here Jack as the leader is ready to be replaced by Roger, personifying dull, bestial cruelty.

Ralph manages to escape. He understands "that the painted savages will not stop at anything." Seeing that Eric and Sam are sentinels, Ralph tries to lure them to his side, but they are too scared. They only inform him that hunting is preparing for him. Then he asks them to take the "hunters" away from his hiding place: he wants to hide near the castle.

However, fear is stronger than the notion of honor, and the twins give it to Jack. Ralph is smoked out of the woods, preventing him from hiding ... As Ralph rushes around the island as a hunted beast, and suddenly, having jumped ashore, stumbles upon a naval officer. "Could look more decent," - blames those guys. The news of the death of two boys amazes him. And imagining how it all began, he says: "Everything looked wonderful then. Just "Coral Island".