William Golding: Lord Of The Flies

James Rhodes

Ms. Kleinberg

Author essay

21 October 2015

William Golding William Golding is a Nobel Prize winning author that is unquestionably one of the more influential British authors of the twentieth century. “William Golding’s writing style mostly used classical literature, Christian symbolism and mythology and all his novels are distinct from each other.” (William Golding). Though he has written more than just his first novel, Lord of the Flies is Golding's most notable work and is what he is best known for. A grotesque but apparently realistic depiction of human interaction and civilization. A very strong literary influence is the book “The Coral Island” which is a very similar concept to Lord of the Flies. There are many things that

Golding was born in Cornwall, England on September 19th, 1911. As a child, some of his favorite authors included H.G. Wells, Edgar Rice Burroughs, and had been writing stories since the age of seven (William Golding). He was raised in Marlborough, Wiltshire, where he attended the Marlborough Grammar School. Where his father, Alec, was a schoolmaster and specialized in science. This is a reason why Golding initially attended Brasenose College at Oxford University to study Natural Sciences, before switching to English Literature. “a crucial change that marked the beginning of Golding's disillusion with the rationalism of his father” (Novels for Students 175). Golding would go on to become a schoolmaster like his father in Salisbury, Wiltshire. Here his experience gained from teaching some out of control children, would serve as inspiration for Lord of the Flies. His father influenced Golding to become a teacher and social worker. Albeit, a career cut short for the moment as Golding enlists with the Royal Navy in 1940, to fight in World War

“Raised in the sheltered environment of a private English school, Golding was unprepared for the violence unleashed by the war.” (Novels for Students 175). Golding was at the famous sinking of the Bismark, and Operation Overlord. During the invasion of Normandy, Golding was given the command of a rocket launching craft. “I began to see what people were capable of doing. Anyone who moved through those years without understanding that man produces evil as a bee produces honey, must have been blind or wrong in the head.” (William Golding Biography). Golding was influenced by his horrific World War II experiences to write about the dark aspects of human action. All these experiences helped formulate his belief that every man has evil hidden inside him. This would also serve as his influence for the writing style of Lord of the Flies. After World War II, Golding returned to teaching and writing. In 1954, Golding goes on to write Lord of the Flies, which explores the savageness of human nature (William Golding Biography). This sets the precedent of future novels, in which he examines the struggle of good vs evil in