Dbq Lord Of The Flies Analysis

603 Words3 Pages

Usually, when the term “beast” is mentioned, negative connotations are developed. In Lord of the Flies, the meaning of the entire story is determined by the symbolic definition of the “beast”. Lord of the Flies surrounds a group of boys stranded on an island. The presumed idea of a beast materialized and spread amongst the group. Initially, the beast represented fear. According to “The Terrors of the Unknown” (Doc. A), “They externalize these fears into the figure of a beast”. “They” would be referring to the boys stranded on the island. The unfortunate boys are left without a motherly figure when times got fearful. Inturn, the boys form the figure of the beast. As mentioned in “Now He Says it Was a Beastie” (Doc. B), a six-year old boy with a mulberry-colored birthmark, one of the stranded …show more content…

Lord of the Flies takes place in the wake of World War Two. According to the text in “The Off-Stage Protagonist” (Doc. C), “War is not the mere occasion of the novel, but rather the off-stage protagonist in this drama of evil.” The term “protagonist” often refers to a main character and most often one having positive actions. In other words, the document is stating that war is not only part of the setting, but a main character or influence in this story of evil occurrences. “A Sign… From the World of Grown-ups” (Doc. D), has further explanations as to why the beast is able to be currently defined as a representation of war. Such as, “So, as the stars moved across the sky, the figure sat on the mountain-top and bowed and sank and bowed again...” This excerpt is based around a parachuter who past away by being shot on his voyage back to land. Sam and Eric, two of the young men on the island, found this parachuter and its movements from the strong, whistling wind. They automatically assume the figure of the dead body is the beast. Sam and Eric then scrambled back to Ralph, their leader, to tell of the

Open Document