Help! Help! Our plane has crashed!
What is your initial reaction to Lord of the Flies? What do you expect will happen to the characters you've been introduced to? Ralph, Piggy, Simon, Jack? As you read, consider what each character could represent.
posted by mmoritz at
9/01/2006 08:43:00 AM
5 Comments:
My honest initial reaction to LORD OF THE FLIES is "Why oh why do I have to read this book?" The elements of barbarism already showing in the first chapter with the killing of the pig forces me to prepare myself for what I know is the inevitable. I can already tell that there will be a power struggle between Ralph and Jack for leadership of the boys. Piggy is the peacemaker, and in the end all peacemakers end up getting hurt, whether it be physical, emotional, or both. Simon, the poor boy, is the one who needs to be taken care of. I think that he will be the one who brings Ralph and Jack back to the reality that there are more than two people on the island.
Just out of curiosity, does anyone think this book is eerily similar to the TV show LOST? I'd really like to hear your thoughts.
By
RachelP, at 9:01 AM
My first reaction to LORD OF THE FLIES was why does Ralph like to stand on his head? Piggy sounds to me likie he will overthrow Ralph as Chief when he and the head chior boy get into arguments. Piggy is the peacemaker and the one who thinks most rationally. And who is this "man with the megaphone?" Are they talking about the Dean or Priciple of the school? I think this book has a really confusing first chapter.
I do think that LOST and LORD OF THE FLIES have similar settings, with the tropical island, the pigs and the plane crash.
By
Rachel L, at 1:59 PM
SORRY I forgot to metion MAPLEHEART is RachelL
By
Rachel L, at 2:00 PM
I think the "man with the megaphone" is referring to the head of their school, or possibly the choir's head master... I could be wrong, but there's really no way to be sure. The fact that Ralph stands on his head strikes me as just plain odd... If you wanted to get all technical it could be a metaphor for the fact that their world has been "turned upside down" by the plane crash. Or you could just assume that Ralph either likes getting attention or just enjoys getting a head rush.
In response to CLEWIS's question of whether other people are enjoying the book... I really don't like the base story at all, as I have already stated. What I do like and respect is the metaphors within the book. That's something no one should dislike no matter how much you dislike the base story. I can only guess that Ralph is intrigued by the color gray because if he came from England, especially London, it is especially smoggy and the prominent color is gray. So being on a tropical island with brilliant colors would instantly draw your attention to anything dull, and in this case, familiar colors.
As far as this book relating to LOST (I'm going to answer my own question) there are many similarities. What's weird is that I am addicted to LOST and this book... well, I don't want to repeat myself. Anyhow, aside from the facts that there is a Jack in both LOST and THE LORD OF THE FLIES, and they are on a tropical island. Both of these works explore what kind of community woudl be set up if strangers were left to fend for themselves. They both explore different kinds of people (ie leaders, followers, peacemakers etc.) and they both also experiment with the idea of symbols of power (the Hatch, the conch, the guns etc.). It should be very interesting to see what other similarites arise.
Season 3 of LOST starts October 4th! WHOOHOO!
By
RachelP, at 6:49 PM
YES! Lord of the Flies DEFINITELY reminds me of LOST, though like Melissa said, it is kids instead of adults. What Melissa said about the different problems between the kids and adults really made me think: is there really any difference in the ways they deal with it? I've only seen LOST once or twice, but from what I've seen of it, the biggest problem facing the characters is keeping calm and in control of themselves. How do the characters in LOST deal with their situation compared to the kids in LOF?
By
AlisonB, at 4:16 PM
Post a Comment
<< Home