Thursday 9 December 2010

Some final symbols. (rw5, Lord of the Flies)

The very last sentence of Golding's novel tells us how the smartly dressed naval officer, who compares the boys adventure to Coral Island, to give the boys some privacy as they recover from their crying, "[allows] his eyes to rest on the trim cruiser in the distance" (1954, p. 202).

Why does Golding go into so much detail when he describes the officers dress? What is its symbolic importance?
Why does the officer mention Coral Island? What does this symbolize?
And what sort of symbol is the cruiser that concludes the story?
__________
References
Golding, W., & Epstein, E. L. (1954). Lord of the Flies. New York: Perigee.

1 comment:

  1. Golding describes into so much detail because he wants to emphasize and gives ironic opinions through illustrate of physical things. The details of officer represent the rules of civilization, the world of law and the position of adult people.

    Secondly, the coral island in the novel "Lord of the Flies" has more closely identified with the paradise. The inhabited island locates at the heart of ocean. It’s pure place, no rules and freedom. The boys can create whatever they want beyond their own mind. I imagine the coral island as raw canvas, and the boys as artists. They have paintbrushes and 2 choices of color between black or white. But all of them choose to paint black color on canvas. Color painting comparative is not surprising as it seems easy for black more than white. The main reason is that the boys expose the real character and do it under their mind, which belong to devil.

    For the cruiser, in a definition of metonym, I see cruiser is associated with a carrier used in war. The story starts in the period of the world war and ends by symbol from war. It’s perfect to give many hidden points to readers.

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