Golding's novel is full of symbols: from the obvious symbolism of politics and authority that we see in the conch; to the symbolic meanings of space, as when Simon acts as a divider between Ralph and Jack in the very beginning of the novel; to the symbolic identification of groups that centres around food and its preparation, with pig hunting and the associated rituals, and the littluns who forage for and eat fruit together. Examples of the different types and uses of symbols in anthropology which are discussed in "Symbolic Systems and Meanings" (Hartmann & Blass, 2007, p. 12 - 16) abound in
Lord of the Flies.
And as Hartmann and Blass also make clear, especially in "The Anthropological View of Religion", religion is an important element in studying cultural anthropology (p. 23 - 25). Not surprisingly, therefore, Golding also reflects this importance in his novel.
- What is the religion in Lord of the Flies?
- Is this religion a force for good or evil?
- Which boys are most religious?
- Who is least religious?
- Is Golding right?
Golding, W. & Epstein, E. (1954).
Lord of the Flies. New York: Perigee.
Hartmann, P. & Blass, L. (2007).
Quest 3 Reading and Writing. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Unlike my last post, which was to check an important detail, this one asks you to synthesize the ideas in the novel with the ideas that Hartmann and Blass present in "Cultural Anthropology".
ReplyDeleteEven more generally, it asks you to reflect on and respond to the sorts of issues that make this well told story novel one of the greats of modern English literature, frequently studied in high school and commonly referred to in wider contexts.
1 What is the religion in Lord of the Flies?
ReplyDeleteActually I have 2 answers
First one is the Animism, Jack tribe offer the pig's head on a stick to the beast. So they believe there is a real beast or evil on the island.
Second one is Christianity
The boys fear the beast as an embodiment of evil similar to the Christian concept of Satan
2 Is this religion a force for good or evil?
Force for evil. Because Jack tribe scarifies Simon and Piggy's lives.
3 Which boys are most religious?
Simon, his character present peace and positive, often experiences extraordinary sensations when listen to the sounds. He loves nature. So Simon is normally interpreted to Christ figure because his ability to see through misconception.
4 Who is least religious?
I think Ralph and Piggy. Because they stick with the rules. The writer doesn't mention about their belief.
5 Is Golding right?
You mean Golding can reflect the society to be a novel? Or what do you really mean?
Golf,
ReplyDeleteI mean do you agree with Golding's ideas on society and its elements as represented in the novel. In particular, is he, for example, right about religion, which on your analysis he says is not a good thing.
yep, I agree :P
ReplyDeletePeter, those are incredibly hard questions...
ReplyDeleteFor the first one, At first I thought that the religion in Lord of the Flies, is shamanic religion because shamanism is characterized as the simplest religion which "is found mostly among forager-people who hunt and gather food" (p.23), in "The Anthropological View of Religion". In "Lord of the Flies", they hunt, forage, and eat which are characteristics found in the kids' society that match with the definition given above. However, there is none of a shaman, an important detail, "who is a combination of a priest, doctor, psychologist, and pharmacist" (p.23) which means that shamanism is not exactly a religion in this story but it is the best possibility for this question. Moreover, other types of religion focus on believing in God or gods, but in Golding's book doesn't mention about kids' believe in God or gods at all, so I cut them out.
Secondly, this religion positively force to society, but it doesn't force society in term of curing physical illness mentioned by Hartman and Blass. It actually forces the community to gather and decide together about the same topics such as finding food and being rescued; in other word, it forces them to work and stay together. But it doesn't mean like all of them have to stay together happily, it would be a conflict likes in other societies.
Which boys are most religious?
I personally think Ralph and Jack are the most religious. According to the definition of shamanism, both of them can be assumed as shamans whom predominate the highest power in the society and everyone listens to them.
Who is least religious?
It supposes to be Piggy, because he is not powerful and invaluable in everyone's aspect, and also there is no one listens to him, which can assume that he is least religious.
I forgot my references again.. -*-
ReplyDeleteReferences
Golding, W. & Epstein, E. (1954). Lord of the Flies. New York: Perigee.
Hartmann, P. & Blass, L. (2007). Quest 3 Reading and Writing. New York: McGraw-Hill.
In addition, do you need me to compare "Lord of the Flies" with the article "The Anthropological View of Religion" or anything else?
Although I didn't mean "what kind of religion" when I wrote that question to think about, I like the responses from Golf and Tang. There do seem to be elements of shamanism.
ReplyDeleteI was thinking more of examples of the three aspects of religion that Hartmann and Blass discuss in the body of their essay.
With one exception, I thought that they all seem to fall for religion, although a couple perhaps less than the others. (I don't want to prejudice you by specifying what I think.)
Tang (August 30, 2011 9:32 PM),
ReplyDeleteI intended this as a very flexible discussion of an important element in the novel which also relates to the readings in Quest.
My question is really the whole post, where the sentences that are questions were just a few things to get you started exploring the issues and connections.
I don't expect you to write a research paper on each part of my question. And I'm glad to see some disagreement already - that means there is room for further discussion.
I think the killling dance is the ritual of the religion in the novel. It is a religion force for evil because it encourages killing and actually kills the innocent Simon.
ReplyDeleteThe hunters,Sam and Eric are most religious. The hunters are the people who kill pigs, especially the sow and Sam and Eric are actually the originator of the killing dance.
Even Ralph and Piggy are less religious, they are still religious because although they are outside the dancing circle, they still "found themselves eager to take a place in this demented but partly secure society."(P.152).
Simon is the least religious. He is the one cheerish the nature and seeking for truth all the time.
I think Golding's idea is wrong. If what he describes in the novel is true in our society, there will be great chaos instead of peace with some problems.
Thank you June,
ReplyDeleteI especially like your interesting comment on Simon, which contradicts at least one other comment here, and disagrees with what I suspect is a common idea.
I agree with June that Simon is the least religious of all the boys. There does not seem to be anything religious about him, although there is much that is moral, and even spiritual (whatever that might mean).
ReplyDeleteJack and his whole group seem to become increasingly religious as the story progresses: they acquire more rituals such as their dance, which changes their psychological state of mind, and leaving the pig's head on a stick; they use magic for protection from events they are powerless over, such as the beast, which the offering of the pig's head is supposed to appease; symbolism is becoming increasingly important to them, with their face paint, spears, the stolen glasses, and so on; and immediately after Simon's murder, the beast becomes an immortal, powerful supernatural being in their belief system, something that they must respect and honour with sacrifices. Would it surprise us if they ended up making human sacrifices to their god?