(Penguin Great Books of the 20th Century) (Penguin Great Books of the 20th Century) Penguin Great Books of the 20th Century; Penguin Great Books of the 20th Century
192 pages
English language
Published Oct. 1, 1999 by Penguin (Non-Classics).
Lord of the Flies is a 1954 novel by Nobel Prize–winning British author William Golding. The book focuses on a group of British boys stranded on an uninhabited island and their disastrous attempt to govern themselves. Themes include the tension between groupthink and individuality, between rational and emotional reactions, and between morality and immorality.
The novel has been generally well received. It was named in the Modern Library 100 Best Novels, reaching number 41 on the editor's list, and 25 on the reader's list. In 2003 it was listed at number 70 on the BBC's The Big Read poll, and in 2005 Time magazine named it as one of the 100 best English-language novels from 1923 to 2005. Time also included the novel in its list of the 100 Best Young-Adult Books of All Time. Popular reading in schools, especially in the English-speaking world, a 2016 UK poll saw Lord …
Lord of the Flies is a 1954 novel by Nobel Prize–winning British author William Golding. The book focuses on a group of British boys stranded on an uninhabited island and their disastrous attempt to govern themselves. Themes include the tension between groupthink and individuality, between rational and emotional reactions, and between morality and immorality.
The novel has been generally well received. It was named in the Modern Library 100 Best Novels, reaching number 41 on the editor's list, and 25 on the reader's list. In 2003 it was listed at number 70 on the BBC's The Big Read poll, and in 2005 Time magazine named it as one of the 100 best English-language novels from 1923 to 2005. Time also included the novel in its list of the 100 Best Young-Adult Books of All Time. Popular reading in schools, especially in the English-speaking world, a 2016 UK poll saw Lord of the Flies ranked third in the nation's favourite books from school.
I went into this book with a pretty correct idea about what it would be about. It reminded me of every job I've ever had; a bunch of childish boys trying to decide who's in charge.
What surprised me is that it was actually a nice little tropical vacation of sorts. I should have read it in wintertime.
I'm sure if this book wasn't a mandatory read in schools a lot less people would hate it. It's fantastic, I don't get sick of reading it. The most interesting part of this great book is that it's not actually realistic! It acts more as a classic theory from the past, that humans are innately savage. But, when 6 boys actually got trapped on an island in real life, they worked together and took care of one another. That fact makes the book an even better of a read for me. It's captivating how a story from an author often paints a world not true to our own.
The book was well written, but its topic failed to strike me as moving. We all understand the basic absurdity of power, why bother reading about it? I suppose this book is valuable as a teacher about the barbarism of society; as someone who understood that from a very young age, it just didn't resonate with me.
Short but intense read. After having a course in psychology and sociology, it is fascinating that so many topics are covered. Will read again and annotate.
First read this as a teen, this time reading as an adult I found it more impressive. Superbly written, haunting & it captures so much about human behaviour & emotion. I also loved the sense & feel of place. Truly a book worthy of it's classic status.
Unlike most middle schoolers, I was never assigned this text. In a way, reading this text as an adult results in a greater understanding of the world and, therefore, a stronger insight into the inner workings of the island. I feel I would have appreciated this novel in the sixth grade but would not have understood the underlying themes as clearly as I do now.
For example, the conch is a symbol of power but doesn't actually give Ralph the authority he had thrust upon him at the start. When considering politics and religion, we hold many similar symbols - ones which are meant to convey power or faith but actually amount to very little when the structure is stripped away. There are a handful of other such symbols/themes, but for the sake of spoiling the novel I'll let them rest.
I read this book in 7th grade. I hated it. It's a horrible book. I don't agree with the "take away lessons" about society this book supposedly brings us. It is a book of ugliness and bullying.
I was supposed to read it again in 8th grade and 9th grade. I refused. It's not that hard of a book to understand and even 2 years after reading it, I had no troubles with the related schoolwork.
Do not recommend.
I wasn't expecting such a dark book. I though it was a philosophical story, but no... It is a deep, horror story.
A bunch of kids are stuck in an island with one of the greatest "monsters" ever created.
The writing fits the story perfectly, with the narrator never giving us the real number of kids, the name of "piggy", or why they crashed in the island.
This book is disturbing in the way it portrays children. The writing is excellent, and thoroughly gripping.
A classic for certain. Frantic and unsettling, this book is the well-known tale of the pursuits of children landing on a desert island, forming a society and eventually and inevitably descending into a chaotic dystopia. Fast-paced, creative, quirky and haunting - top story, really enjoyed it!
I feel like people have been telling me to eat pizza my whole life. I ignored their requests and blindly ate other food. Year after year people would say "why don't you try the pizza?" or "how can you not even want to try it?". Then, suddenly, one day I tried pizza and it was amazing. It lived up to expectations and I finally understood what everyone was talking about. My life changed and I was suddenly exposed to a piece of food that I couldn't understand how I ever lived without.
That is how I felt while reading Lord of the Flies.
This book is a classic, and for all the right reasons. It has incredible depth with beautiful metaphors, it examines society as a whole; any praise I could give this book has been said before, and probably in a more elegant fashion. There were elements from this …
I feel like people have been telling me to eat pizza my whole life. I ignored their requests and blindly ate other food. Year after year people would say "why don't you try the pizza?" or "how can you not even want to try it?". Then, suddenly, one day I tried pizza and it was amazing. It lived up to expectations and I finally understood what everyone was talking about. My life changed and I was suddenly exposed to a piece of food that I couldn't understand how I ever lived without.
That is how I felt while reading Lord of the Flies.
This book is a classic, and for all the right reasons. It has incredible depth with beautiful metaphors, it examines society as a whole; any praise I could give this book has been said before, and probably in a more elegant fashion. There were elements from this book that I recognized only because I saw it repeated in other mediums so it was refreshing to get to the source of that inspiration.
I knew the basic concept of the book but the details of the events or how the society is formed and challenged were all knew and it made for an incredible experience. This was a very raw and brutal read and I was hooked. I didn't expect the level of barbarism that took place and if people are outraged over how violent The Hunger Games is I bet this book caused quite a stir in the 50's.
I liked everything about this book and I see myself reading again in the future.
I'd probably have liked this book if I'd not taken it to pieces in high school, but even without that it probably would have struck me as clunky.
Incredible story. So tragic and provocative.
Somehow I managed to avoid reading this in high school. A good story, very well written, rather exciting, certainly more violent than I expected it would be. I'm not sure it works as a kind of cautionary tale, as some say it does, other than to caution us to not leave pre-adolescent children alone on an island (which frankly seems rather obvious).
I remembered enjoying this story quite a bit as a kid, probably because it was gory and shocking and quite a bit different from the boring stuff they usually had us reading. Stuff like Great Expectations and Jane Eyre, which were both snooze-fests for a 14-year-old boy. Probably also because it deals with human nature and now, as an adult, I know that I'm really into those types of books from years of sampling across genres.
Lord of the Flies was very good the second time around, as an adult, and the story has aged well. The ideas it presents are still relevant and come up for debate every day. Most significantly, the importance of law to maintaining society.
I'll definitely be rereading this one again in the future, but this time I won't wait 16 years for another go at it.
