Lord of the Flies Group

Question:

katmadden123
katmadden123
Student
High School - 12th Grade

Explain the title "Lord of the Flies"

After reading chapters 6,7, and 8.

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Posted by katmadden123 on Sunday August 3, 2008 at 5:29 PM and tagged with lord of the flies, meaning, significance, title.

Answers:

  1. parkerlee
    parkerlee Teacher

    eNotes Editor

    The beast's head on the stick is Beelzebub (Prince of Darkness), and the flies, the demons swarming around him. The flies attraction to putrefying flesh also represents the boys' fascination with savagery and violence, the hunting instinct necessary for their survival but turning against them in the end.

    Sources:
    http://www.enotes.com/flies/group/discuss/what-allegory-l...
    http://www.enotes.com/flies/q-and-a/chapter-5-6-what-simo...
    http://www.enotes.com/flies/q-and-a/what-most-important-s...

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    Posted by parkerlee on Monday August 4, 2008 at 1:05 AM


  2. mrerick Teacher
    High School - 12th Grade

    eNotes Editor

    Simon is unable to convince the boys that the beast isn't an actual, physical thing, so the pigs head on the stick becomes his physical representation of the beast.  Because it is placed in an area of clearing, it appears to be watching over everything around it, including the flies swarming over the pile of pig guts below it - hence, the head is "lording" over the flies.

    The way this physical representation of the beast lords over the flies is indicative of the way the metaphorical beast lords over the kids on the island.

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    Posted by mrerick on Monday August 4, 2008 at 6:27 PM

  3. dparcher
    dparcher Teacher
    High School - 9th Grade

    The emphasis for the struggle of power unfolds with great multiplicty in this saga.  We see the struggle for command of both the entire clan as well as it's resultant sub-groups.  The author presents us with the man's innate struggle of civility vs. barbarism and utlimately the over popular theme of good vs. evil.  To address the question directly, we look at the conflict between Jack and Ralph competing for the position of Lord of the herd of rather dependent sheep, or allegorically, the Flies.

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    Posted by dparcher on Tuesday March 24, 2009 at 5:07 AM