Thoughts on Lord of the Flies

Last week I read Lord of the Flies by William Golding. From what I’ve gathered it seems like this is a book that a lot of people read during middle school, but I never had to, so I decided to give it a read. The beginning of the book felt a little slow and boring to me, but as it got towards the end, I was enjoying the story.

For anyone that hasn’t read it or as a reminder, it’s a story about a group of kids that get stranded on an island and everything that happens to them. One thing I’ve been thinking about a lot recently, and it relates to this book, is how we’re a product of our environment.

In Lord of the Flies there is one boy who has a very negative influence on many others, causing them to take actions and do things that they wouldn’t otherwise. The boys that follow this leader aren’t by any means bad people. But they’re on an island without adults. They’re scared, they want food, they want to feel a purpose, and in return they follow the leader, Jack, despite the mess that he creates. Then, there are a few characters that think independently for themselves, and the majority of those characters end up getting harmed.

That idea is something that can translate into everyday life, and maybe it’s why middle schoolers are asked to read the book in the US. We all want to feel a sense of purpose and when we’re young, the things that make us feel important are often praise from others and being part of groups. Yet, the people that have made the biggest impacts in society have done so by being totally unique.

I was at Internapalooza in San Francisco last week and I heard from Naval Ravikant, the c0-founder of AngelList. There’s something that he said that I think I’ll remember forever. He basically grew up in his mom’s library/bookstore (can’t remember which) and he read tons and tons of books before he ever really met people. Then, when he got into school it was clear to him how little most people knew and how odd their desires, preferences and tastes were. He never felt an urge to stick in because he looked at everyone else and was puzzled by how they acted, which has had a tremendously positive impact on his life; it has taught him to think independently, something that many of us fail to do.

At the heart of the Lord of the Flies is this idea. The number of middle schoolers that grasp this idea through a story that in some ways is quite fucked up is very low I would conjecture. And the idea of this didn’t come to me through the book, but what happens in the book complements it.

Overall, if you haven’t read the book, I’d recommend doing so. It’s less than 200 pages and easy to get through. Sort of crazy and it goes from 0 to 100 real quick in the last quarter of the book.

Thoughts on this review/the book in general? Comment or send me a note :)

Full reading list here