A story that is told to explain or teach something especially a long and complicated story with an underlying meaning different from the surface meaning of the story itself. (World Book, 55) 2. The Lord of the Flies. .
William Golding's The Lord of the Flies seems to be a story about little boys who are stuck on an island and the hostility that forms between Jack and Ralph, two of the main characters. On the surface, The Lord of the Flies is about savagery and disagreements but the story's meaning goes beyond bullies and tribal disputes. The Lord of the Flies attempts to "trace the defects of society back to thee defects of human nature (Golding, 204)" through the use of symbolism. .
Golding's characters appear to be school aged British boys, but in reality, they stand for basic concepts in society. Ralph, Piggy, Jack, Simon and the little ones all represent different kinds of people and their thoughts. .
The first of Golding's characters introduced is Ralph. Ralph is a twelve-year-old boy who has a deep sense of responsibility. As the story progresses, Ralph becomes the leader of the boys, and, later in the book, loses much of his "tribe" to Jack. Golding describes Ralph as "fair" in the first page of the book. This seemingly simple detail has a double meaning. In one sense of the word, Ralph has blonde hair and light skin, so he is fair. The deeper meaning of this word is "just." Ralph believes in solving disagreements by voting. For this reason, he represents democratic government. Throughout the book, Ralph's leadership abilities fluctuate. Sometimes, he is decisive and fair .
to all of his "subjects," as in his steadfast belief that the fire should be kept burning. At other times, though, Ralph's desire to vote on every issue impeded his ability to lead. This happens when the boys are trying to decide what to believe about the beastie. Ralph also believes in a sort of "representative government" on the island.
