BOYS WILL BE BOYS THERE'S A PIG'S HEAD.

n  n    Book Reviewn  n
3 out of 5 stars to Lord of the Flies, a coming-of-age novel written in 1954 by William Golding, who was a Nobel Prize winner. Most people have either read this book during middle/high school (in America or Great Britain), or have heard of it because of its supposed cannibalism story line. But wait... it wasn't cannibalism -- huge exaggeration to set straight, right from the beginning. But let's back up... At a time of war, a group of pre-teen boys are in a plane that crashed onto an isolated and jungle-like island. They are forced to grow up quickly when they have no food, water or shelter easily at their disposal, e.g. in the kitchen cabinet. It's a story about how to take care of yourself in the jungle when you have nothing but raw supplies. The novel is full of themes from loss of innocence to the differences between savagery and civilization. It asks the question what type of a person are you -- a leader or a follower? The story charts the actions of the boys as they grow up, hunt for food, build shelter and learn how to work together. They divide into opposing teams, trying to see how is the best leader. They learn to help each other and watch others die.

I read the book once and tried a second several years ago, but what I realized is that the world today is a very different place. While I appreciate the themes and characters being brought to life in this novel, it didn't have as strong an impact on me as it has for others. I think it may be the kind of novel that is best read when you are a teenager, as it helps with understanding things are the same today as they were 75 years ago, in terms of growing up and learning how to work together. When you've got a classic like this one paired up against something like The Hunger Games, it's a tough choice. They deal with the same sort of context in terms of "survival of the fittest," but one is a dangerous game and another is an accident. I like them both, but I'd choose The Hunger Games, even tho it's less well-written. "Teen/Childhood" angst, lessons to be learned, education versus playtime, all great concepts both books addressed, but the difference is when a book almost goes out of the way to try to teach me something versus it naturally happening. I still believe it's a good book, and it should be read, but if it were written today, I don't think it would be as popular.

n  n    About Men  n
For those new to me or my reviews... here's the scoop: I read A LOT. I write A LOT. And now I blog A LOT. First the book review goes on Goodreads, and then I send it on over to my WordPress blog at https://thisismytruthnow.com, where you'll also find TV & Film reviews, the revealing and introspective 365 Daily Challenge and lots of blogging about places I've visited all over the world. And you can find all my social media profiles to get the details on the who/what/when/where and my pictures. Leave a comment and let me know what you think. Vote in the poll and ratings. Thanks for stopping by.

This book will forever haunt me and be forever intertwined with my freshman year of high school. Its a great book for a classroom and was where I was first taught symbolism in a way that really stood out to me. This book is so rich in literary devices I remember it being the first moment where I realized the art of reading and writing as something far beyond storytelling and how much careful craft brings a work to life. I was hooked, I think from that moment on I had it in my mind that to be someone who analyzes literature was a rock-star type vocation to me. But I will also never forget the way it was taught. Our teacher, who I remain close friends with to this day, had us play a simulation for two days where we were in the same situation as the kids in the book (before we began the book) and had to discuss and plan how to organize our lives to survive on this island. Think Model UN but for Lord of the Flies.

Reader: it was chaos. Everyone made bad deals or broke deals finding it funny to screw people over, multiple people clamored over who was in charge, people such as myself bounced from group to group doing devious deals or gossiping about what other groups were doing (I have always been a gossip queen), and by the second day we were all shouting at each other and feeling like we had somehow been so bad at this game that the teacher would never have his class play it again. Which, at that age, is sort of a mark of pride to some and so once the chaos began those few gleefully pushed for more chaos. Our teacher never interjected, only watched from afar while grading our exams from the previous week--a brilliant time management idea I've come to realize.

Finally our teacher stepped in. We eagerly awaited hearing we were terrible at this and fully destroyed the purpose of it, only to hear that this was what happened almost every single year. And then we read the book, which felt like looking into a mirror. Chilling moment to be confronted with yourself that way. He did this game every year until he retired, it's quite often cited as a favorite memory from high school for those who were there.

(Book 508 from 1001 books) .tLord of the flies, William Golding

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.

In the midst of a wartime evacuation, a British aeroplane crashes on or near an isolated island in a remote region of the Pacific Ocean. The only survivors are boys in their middle childhood or preadolescence. Two boys—the fair-haired Ralph and an overweight, bespectacled boy nicknamed "Piggy"—find a conch, which Ralph uses as a horn to convene all the survivors to one area.

Ralph is optimistic, believing that grownups will come to rescue them but Piggy realises the need to organise ("put first things first and act proper").

Because Ralph appears responsible for bringing all the survivors together, he immediately commands some authority over the other boys and is quickly elected their "chief".

He does not receive the votes of the members of a boys' choir, led by the red-headed Jack Merridew, although he allows the choir boys to form a separate clique of hunters.

Ralph establishes three primary policies: to have fun, to survive, and to constantly maintain a smoke signal that could alert passing ships to their presence on the island and thus rescue them. The boys establish a form of democracy by declaring that whoever holds the conch shall also be able to speak at their formal gatherings and receive the attentive silence of the larger group.

Jack organises his choir into a hunting party responsible for discovering a food source. Ralph, Jack, and a quiet, dreamy boy named Simon soon form a loose triumvirate of leaders with Ralph as the ultimate authority.

Upon inspection of the island, the three determine that it has fruit and wild pigs for food. The boys also use Piggy's glasses to create a fire. Although he is Ralph's only real confidant, Piggy is quickly made into an outcast by his fellow "biguns" (older boys) and becomes the butt of the other boys' jokes. Simon, in addition to supervising the project of constructing shelters, feels an instinctive need to protect the "littluns" (younger boys).

The semblance of order quickly deteriorates as the majority of the boys turn idle; they give little aid in building shelters, spend their time having fun and begin to develop paranoias about the island. The central paranoia refers to a supposed monster they call the "beast", which they all slowly begin to believe exists on the island.

Ralph insists that no such beast exists, but Jack, who has started a power struggle with Ralph, gains a level of control over the group by boldly promising to kill the creature. At one point, Jack summons all of his hunters to hunt down a wild pig, drawing away those assigned to maintain the signal fire.

A ship travels by the island, but without the boys' smoke signal to alert the ship's crew, the vessel continues without stopping. Ralph angrily confronts Jack about his failure to maintain the signal; in frustration Jack assaults Piggy, breaking one of the lenses of his glasses.

The boys subsequently enjoy their first feast. Angered by the failure of the boys to attract potential rescuers, Ralph considers relinquishing his position as leader, but is persuaded not to do so by Piggy, who both understands Ralph's importance and fears what will become of him should Jack take total control. ...

عنوانهای چاپ شده در ایران: «سالار مگس ها»؛ «خداوندگار مگسها»؛ «بعل زبوب»؛ نویسنده: سر ویلیام گلدینگ؛ (بهجت، ابتکار، افراشته، آپادانا، ابر سفید، رهنما، امیرکبیر)؛ ادبیات انگلستان؛ تاریخ نخستین خوانش روز بیست و پنجم ماه اکتبر سال 2012میلادی

عنوان: سالار مگس ها ؛ نویسنده: سر ویلیام گلدینگ؛ مترجم: حمید رفیعی؛ تهران، بهجت، 1353، در 372ص؛ چاپ سوم 1385؛ شابک 9646671918؛ موضوع: داستانهای نویسندگان بریتانیا - سده 20م

عنوان: بعل زبوب ؛ نویسنده: سر ویلیام گلدینگ؛ مترجم: محمود مشرف آزاد (م آزاد)؛ تهران، ابتکار، 1363، در 270ص؛

عنوان: سالار مگس ها ؛ نویسنده: سر ویلیام گلدینگ؛ مترجم: رضا دیداری؛ تهران، افراشته، 1363؛ در 282ص؛

عنوان: سالار مگس ها؛ نویسنده: سر ویلیام گلدینگ؛ مترجم: سوسن اردکانی (شاهین)؛ تهران، آپادانا، 1363؛ در 336ص؛ چاپ دیگر تهران، ابر سفید، 1390، در 327ص؛ شابک 9786009254552؛

عنوان: سالار مگسها؛ نویسنده: سر ویلیام گلدینگ؛ مترجم مژگان منصوری؛ تهران، پرگل، 1379؛ چاپ دیگر تهران، رهنما، 1382؛ در 443ص؛ شابک 9643670937؛ چاپ دیگر 1385؛ چاپ بعدی 1388؛ شابک 9789643670931؛

عنوان: خداوندگار مگس ها؛ نویسنده: سر ویلیام گلدینگ؛ مترجم: جواد پیمان؛ تهران، امیرکبیر، چاپ دوم 1395؛ در 287ص؛ شابک 9789640018743؛

عنوان: سالار مگس‌ها؛ ویلیام گلدینگ؛ مترجم ناهید شهبازی‌مقدم؛ تهران، آموت 1396؛ در 317ص؛ شابک 9786003840317؛

از جمله آثار برجسته ی کلاسیک جهان، که «ویلیام گلدینگ» در آن؛ شور و هیجان خویش را در یک قصه ی تمثیلی، با قدرت و صداقت توصیف کرده، داستان ماجرای شگفت آور گروهی پسر بچه است، در مدرسه ای «انگلیسی»، که در طی جنگ هسته ای و خانمانسوز، عازم منطقه ای امن میشوند؛ ولی سقوط هواپیما، آنها را ملزم به اقامت در جزیره ای استوایی میکند؛ در آغاز، همه چیز به خوبی پیش میرود، و آنها بی دغدغه و سبکبال، جزیره ی خوش آب و رنگ و سرسبز را، درمینوردند؛ اما اندک زمانی، پس از آن، شرارت و تندخویی پسرها، بهشت زمینی را، به دوزخی از آتش و خون، مبدل میکند، و تمامی مظاهر خرد و پاک اندیشی، از وجودشان رخت برمیبندد؛ کشمکش درونی نیروهای متضاد خیر و شر، درون مایه ی داستان را شکل میدهند

تاریخ بهنگام رسانی 22/06/1399هجری خورشیدی؛ 15/05/1400هجری خورشیدی؛ ا. شربیانی

Lord of the Flies is a parable of the human nature…

His mind was crowded with memories; memories of the knowledge that had come to them when they closed in on the struggling pig, knowledge that they had outwitted a living thing, imposed their will upon it, taken away its life like a long satisfying drink.

Ever since primordial times man is ruled by two opposite forces: a wish to create and a wish to destroy… And to destroy is much easier than to create…

There was the brilliant world of hunting, tactics, fierce exhilaration, skill; and there was the world of longing and baffled commonsense.

And since primordial times man is ruled by fear… And the greatest fear is the fear of the unknown… To make the unknown less cruel and dangerous man tries to placate it offering the unknown sacrifices and worshiping…

“We’ll kill a pig and give a feast.” He paused and went on more slowly. “And about the beast. When we kill we’ll leave some of the kill for it. Then it won’t bother us, maybe.”

Millenniums pass but the primordial instincts remain and they make man look for an enemy and fight.

“

لا أظن أحدا درس الإنجليزية ولم يسمع على الأقل بهذه الرواية
كنتُ في عامي الرابع وقت دراستها
ومن أول وهلة جذبتني
وبينما كان زملائي يهتمون بما سيأتي منها في الامتحان
كنت أنا ألتهمها التهاما‏


لن أنسى ما حييت شعوري وأنا أقرأ الحوار ما بين سيد الذباب وسايمون
ثم مقتله بعدها

المرة الأولى كنت بجوار دكتور المادة أمام الجميع
أقرأ هذا الجزء على زملائي -ولم أكن قد وصلت له بعد في قراءتي المنزلية
ولكن بما أنه المشهد الأهم-ويحمل لغز اسم الرواية الغريب- ‏
فقد ارتأى الدكتور قرائنا له ومن ثم مناقشته بتمعن

أذكر يومها أنني اهتز صوتي للمفاجئة التي حلت علي
استطعت السيطرة على نفسي حينها وتخبئة ارتعاشة يدي
ثم تناسيت الأمر مع الصديقات عند انتهاء المحاضرة
وعندما عدت لمنزلي انخرطت في بكاء مرير
رائية لحال سايمون المسكين -شخصيتي المفضلة ‏
والذي لم أكن أتوقع له هذا المصير

أذكر أنني نظرت بسذاجة إلى أمي(رحمها الله) المندهشة نائحة:
سايمون ماااااااات عااااا
‏:‏D
...



أثر في حديث رأس الخنزير مع سايمون كثيرا
كنت وقتها في العشرين ولا أظنني قرأت حوارات كهذه من قبل
‏ كنت أرى المشهد أمامي متجسدا
ولا أعلم الآن هل ذلك بسبب براعة الكاتب أم شدة تأثري‏
ذلك أنني لم أعد قراءتها مجددا

-----------

تحدث فرويد قبل وفاته بقليل عن الغريزة التدميرية في البشر
‏ عن حب الإنسان للقتل والعنف والدمار‏
والرواية صورة مصغرة لذلك المجتمع البشري
الذي يترنح‏ ما بين الفطرية والبدائية، والتمدن والتحضر

يجد أطفال ما بين الثامنة والثانية عشر أنفسهم في الطبيعة‏
بمعزل تام عن قوانين الكبار
وبالطبع يكون همهم الأول هو البقاء على قيد الحياة

راح المؤلف يستخرج خبايا النفس البشرية بإظهار وحشيتها وقابليتها للشر
متناولا صراع الانسان الأبدي بين الغريزة والسلوكيات المدنية المكتسبة ‏


‏(لقد شارك جولدنغ نفسه في الحرب العالمية الثانية كضابط في البحرية البريطانية
واشترك في معركة إغراق أقوى بارجة ألمانية -بسمارك )‏

يفترض جولدنج اندلاع حرب تتعرض فيه انجلترا لضربة نووية
ويفترض وجود طائرة انجليزية قامت بإجلاء مجموعة من الفتية إلى خارج ‏البلاد
(بهدف لإنقاذ حياتهم والحفاظ على النسل الانجليزي من الاندثار‎)

وعندما تسقط تلك الطائرة فوق جزيرة نائية
ينجو الأطفال فقط
ويقتل الطيار اثناء محاولته النجاة بالمظلة



يبدأ هؤلاء الصبية ببناء مجتمعهم الجديد (المصغر) ‏
ويدور الصراع بين السلطة المدنية المتمثلة في رالف‏
والمعارضة المسلحة (السلطة العسكرية) المتمثلة في جاك‏
‏ ‏
‏-وفوق كل ذلك فنحن لسنا همجيين، لأننا إنجليز، والإنجليز هم أفضل الناس في جميع ‏

دائما ما تنقلب تلك النظرة الاستعلائية الشوفينية على أصحابها في كل زمان ومكان
‏ لقد تحول الأطفال إلى مسوخ همجية تستلذ القتل والعنف‏
ينقلب مجتمعهم الصغير إلى مجتمع وحشي همجي ‏

رالف هو الشخصية المحورية في الرواية
تعطيه وسامته سمة استعلاء ‏
وكعادة الرفاق يسخر من بيجي بسذاجته الطيبة
رالف يبدو مثالي المظهر لكنه يعوزه الذكاء ‏
هذا الذكاء يعوضه بيجي (وهو إسم تدليل يعني الخنزير الصغير)‏

بيجي هو ذلك الطفل السمين الطيب الظريف ‏
‏-شخصيتي المفضلة رقم 2- ‏
الذكي برغم سذاجته في تعامله مع رفاقه ‏
بالإضافة إلى إصابته بالربو وقصر النظر الحاد

وبنباهته يقترح على رالف استخدام الصدفة (بدلالاتها الرمزية) وتحويلها إلى بوق بصفيره يستطيع ‏عقد الاجتماعات
ومن ثم اعتبرها الجميع رمز السيطرة والحكم_ ومن يحملها هو فقط من يستطيع التحدث
كما أن بيجي هو من استخدام نظارته- بإيعاز من رالف الساخر- لتكثيف أشعة الشمس وذلك لإشعال ‏النار ‏
‎
بيجي هو صوت العقلانية المكروه من الغالبية ‏
ويعتبره البعض رمزا لطبقة المفكرين والمثقفين ‏
الذين لا تستمع إليهم الدول المستبدة ‏
بل تحاول بشراسة القضاء عليهم

جاك يتسم بالدموية والوحشية من البداية
وهو يؤمن بالقوة ويتلذذ بالدماء
الأحداث تتسارع في الصراع ما بين قوة المنطق ومنطق القوة
وجاك يقوم بانقلاب عسكري يطيح به برالف وتصير له الغلبة
‏(ربما أراد جولدينج أن يشير إلى أن الهيمنة واليد العليا دوما تكون ‏للاأخلاقيين والدمويين)‏‎

حتى ذلك اليوم الذي يرى فيه الأطفال من بعيد جثة الطيار مع مظلته على أحد الجبال فيظن الجميع ‏أنه وحش الغابة
فيصطاد جاك خنزيرا بريا يقطع رأسه وينصبه على رمح في أعلى قمة الجبل كرمز لقوة فريقه
ويبدأ الاحتفال بهذه المناسبة بشعائر كطقوس للصيد ‏
يطلي الأطفال وجوههم بدم الخنزير المذبوح متحولين إلى برابرة‏

وفي ظل هذا الجو المشبع خوفا وقهرا وعويل بربري يضل سايمون طريقه‏
فيجد نفسه أمام رأس الخنزير المعلق الحائم من كان حوله الذباب (سيد الذباب) ‏
وهنا يبدأ سايمون في الهذيان (أفضل وأقسى مشاهد الرواية)‏
ليدور الحديث بينه وبين سيد الذباب الذي يسخر منه ومن أمله في الخلاص وفي صلاح الأحوال‏

وعندما يعود سايمون شبه مترنح وجريح إلى الجمع
يهجم عليه الجميع قاتلين إياه ظنا منهم أنه ‏الوحش بصراخه غير المفهوم وتغير هيئته ‏‎
‎ ...

وهكذا لم يأت الشر بفعل الوحوش ‏
بل من البشر أنفسهم


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الرواية تستحق القراءة بكل تأكيد
كما ان هناك أكثر من فيلم يحكي قصتها
وإن لم أشاهد اي منهم حتى الآن

ولكنها حالة مختلفة لن أستطيع نسيانها

I just don't buy it.

This book is famous for unmasking what brutes we are, just under the surface, but, well, for all the hype, it just isn't convincing. People--even teenage boys--just aren't as savage as Golding seems to want us to believe, and nothing in this book persuades me otherwise.

Perhaps if I'd gone to English boarding school I'd feel differently--but then that's the real irony of this book, that the brutality from which the British Empire was supposed to save so many people and cultures was in fact the Brits projecting their own savagery onto others.

But the rest of us, no, we aren't monsters underneath. A little messed up, maybe, a little more raw, but nowhere near the kind of brutes that Golding wants us to believe.

Interesting story. For me it doesn't hold up by current day tastes. It's definitely a parable or allegory of social mores, how man once left without social structure degenerates to base instincts. I liked it well enough but would have preferred more details in order for it to work. There was a plane crash? Where was the wreckage? It describe the path cut in the jungle but doesn't describe the wreckage or how the children survived. Skipped right over that part. The kids just appear on the beach. The author, I think was too en rapt with the symbolism and theme rather than telling the story. For example, everyone eats fruit but there is never a description of the fruit or how they eat it, what it tastes like. The author flies over all these sort of details and focuses on proving his theme.
David Putnam author of the Bruno Johnson series.

DAMN!!
I think reading this book as an adult affects me more. You come to realize that things and circumstances can change drastically with no rules or repercussions.

I really loved Lord of the Flies and think everyone should read this one day. It's not a long book but it will make an impression on you.

It makes you think and dread what would happen if...
“Maybe there is a beast… maybe it's only us.”

The writing of William Golding was well done and detailed on the breakdown of humanity and sensibility.
With no rules to govern, you can easily see how a group will follow the stronger and more manipulative leader. Let it be a lesson to us all to always have a sense of morality and know when as a society we've crossed the line.

Recommended to everyone!!

This book shocked me. Not so much because of the content, I will come onto that, but because my gentle, kind, mother recommended it to me. My mum who mutes the TV when a swear word is coming up and who can't stand any type of violence recommended a book that involves children killing each other. Perhaps in her case familiarity has rendered the content less offensive--she studied it in high school and it had her childish scrawls all the way through, also entertaining! That said, there was a lot to this book. I can see why it has become a classic. I guess, I was just taken aback having started the story and expecting it to continue in a Peter Pan type "lost boys" style...when it took a violent turn in a "no going back" direction.

A group of boys are abandoned on an uninhabited island. Ralph takes the lead and formulates a rescue plan. But it isn't long before the group are embroiled in internal conflict as they battle for supremacy and status. What is really needed is for them to band together and for everyone to do their part to keep the group alive and alert any ships that happen to be passing. But they cannot even get that right--those meant to be tending the fire are off hunting pigs when the first vessel draws near. The divisions widen over time as some of the children begin to adopt savage-like behaviour resulting in tragedy.

It is not a Christian book but there are a great number of spiritual analogies and lessons worthy of comment. The book reminds us that children do not learn sin from their parents. They are born sinful and if not disciplined, given appropriate boundaries and taught right from wrong, they will choose sin as it is predetermined due to the fall--"born in sin and shapen in iniquity." The book also reminds us that man is not basically good or innocent but the opposite.

There is also a lesson about the pack mentality. How much easier is it to fall into sin or temptation in a group than it is alone? When young people goad, dare and egg each other on they can be capable of great evil--peer pressure is a powerful force. We see it in the media when a group loses control and in a violent frenzy attacks a person in the street. But we will not ultimately stand before God in a group but by ourselves to account for our behaviour. It is why the Bible warns us about the company we keep and who we choose to be our friends.

I was also reminded of the damage that can be done to children who spend too much time playing video computer games. They become lost in their own worlds of darkness where theft, violence and killing are normalised and those who murder are heroes not criminals. Lord of the Flies made me realise how easy it was for these children to begin playing a very dangerous game with life and death when they became immersed in their own world and had lost touch with reality. Maybe it will make some parents think about what their children are filling their minds with alone in their bedrooms. We shouldn't be surprised when the same children translate their video game world into a murderous rampage on our streets. That is what they have been taught to do!

The last chapter of the book was for me the most impactive as the sequence of events was unexpected. The narrative is chilling in places but definitely held my interest and I wanted to know what happened to the children in the end. There are a few swear words in the book but nothing major. There is no sexual content. There is some graphic violence and animal slaughter. This book is not really suitable for younger children but may hold lessons for older teens.

I would recommend the book for Christians for the spiritual lessons that can be learned but it is not particularly uplifting!

Here is another book I read in school. This was another story to open my eyes. I was shocked at how horrible the children became, including willing to murder. I was a wallflower in school and I was scared of most people around me and this book inflamed my fears.

I had just come through Junior High School, which is 'humanity in the raw' as my uncle says and it was the toughest 3 years of my life. High School was better and people seemed to be more reasonable and human, but I can't forget the cruelties of Junior High. If a group of Junior high students were away from adults, I can totally see this story of the boys on the island playing out this way and tribes forming and the kids devolving into murderous beasts. High School, I think there is more of a collective feeling and people branch out. Difference begin to be okay. I think High Schoolers would come together, mostly, to survive, while those in Junior high, well, William Golding had the right of it. That is the age of conformity.

We had some great discussions, my friends and I in high school. We came together and watched the R rated movie outside school and discussed the themes of the stories. I ran with a brainy bunch and I loved discussing literature with them or movies. The school wouldn't let us watch the movie during school hours, so the teacher actually came to one of my friends houses, to watch it with us and then discuss it. That was cool.

The story is harsh and I have heard many people say they find it farfetched and don't believe it would happen. Well, I was a different sort of child, on the outside, during those Junior high years and I can totally see this happening. If you were in the group, you didn't see the cruelties of the herd, but on the outside, oh you could see them. I'm not trying to say people are terrible. I think this stage in life is terrible. Kind things did happen and good people did good things, but there were some horrible things happening as well. If you were outside the herd, you certainly knew it. There was so much bullying going on and toxic masculinity too.

This book is like the shadow side of humanity. My dad is a councilor and he always said Jung had the right of it. We have to see our shadow side and accept it, or it will end up ruling us subconsciously if we only deny it. This book also shows the choices we have to make as humanity. We can come together and help one another, or we can hunt one another down for differences. I'm simply glad there were adults around while I was going through Junior high.

I think this is a fantastic book and I want to read it again. I do miss having people to discuss it with. Part of the reason I loved school was we would be assigned a book like this to get us thinking and then we would discuss it in class. I love hearing the opinions and the ways someone interprets the story or theme or idea or scene. Reading it alone, you experience the book, but there is no communal sharing of the story. That is what I miss. I love to read a book and have that communal experience.