Guidelines

What is an allusion in Lord of the Flies?

What is an allusion in Lord of the Flies?

An allusion is a reference to another work of literature or art. William Golding’s Lord of the Flies directly and indirectly alludes to Shakespeare’s ‘King Lear,’ the Bible, and other literary texts. The story’s setting alludes to the Garden of Eden, and descriptions of a ‘snake-thing’ allude to the devil.

What is the allusion to coral island in Lord of the Flies?

The Coral Island is directly referenced by Golding in Lord of the Flies. During the first assembly when Ralph is persuading the boys that they can have a ‘good time’ on the island, he says: ‘It’s like in a book’.

How does William Golding use biblical allusions in Lord of the Flies?

Golding effectively uses the lord of the flies as a biblical allusion because he is able to exploit the underlying tone of subtle evil that begins to surface within the boys, through their worship of a disgusting thing.

Are there any biblical allusions in the Lord of the flies?

One of the largest biblical allusions in the entire novel can be found as soon as the book begins, as the island represents the Garden of Eden, with the lush groves of fruit In many classic novels, authors use biblical allusions to highlight a certain character or situation.

What was the allusion to coral island in Lord of flies?

This is an allusion to popular adventure stories like The Coral Island, which Golding saw as unrealistic portrayals of what would happen if boys were stranded on an island. Eyes shining, mouths open, triumphant, they savored the right of domination. They were lifted up: were friends.

How is King Lear allusion to Lord of flies?

When the protagonist in ‘King Lear’ dies, another character, Gloucester, reflects, ‘As flies to wanton boys, are we to the gods. They kill us for their sport.’ Here, he suggests that the gods take the lives of mortals as thoughtlessly as young boys take the lives of flies. The allusion to Shakespeare enhances the tragic tone of the story.

Is the Lord of the flies a Christian story?

One of the major points of debate between critics who have studied Lord of the Flies is the significance of the substantial number of allusions to Judeo-Christian mythology.