Loss of Innocence in Lord of The Flies

Imagine This: Stranded on an Island

Picture yourself stuck on a deserted island with just a bunch of kids, far away from the comforts and rules we’re used to. In William Golding's novel, Lord of the Flies, there's this big idea about losing innocence that’s explored through what these boys go through as they try to survive. The theme of losing innocence pops up all over the place in the book, showing us how dark humanity can really get when left unchecked. Let's break down some moments from the book where innocence is lost and talk about what that might mean for us.

The Descent into Savagery

So, one big way we see this loss of innocence is how the boys change from regular kids to wild savages. At first, they try to keep things normal by making rules and picking a leader. But as time goes on, their behavior gets pretty wild. These once well-behaved kids start doing violent things. Remember when Jack and his gang kill their first pig? That was like the starting point for their savage ways. Golding writes something like, "The pause was only long enough for them to understand what an enormity the downward stroke would be" (Golding, 1954). That moment shows how they realize they’re capable of awful stuff.

The Tragic End of Simon

Then there’s Simon, who sort of stands out because he’s so pure and good-hearted. While other boys are going nuts, Simon tries hard to stay innocent and finds peace in nature. But in a tragic twist, he gets mistaken for the beast and ends up killed by the others. It’s a really sad part that shows just how deeply innocence can be lost when chaos takes over. Golding paints this scene by saying Simon's body looked like "a blue-white scar" (Golding, 1954), symbolizing lost purity and darkness winning.

The Moral Compass Goes Missing

Another piece of this loss is how their sense of right and wrong starts falling apart without adults around to guide them. They gotta make their own rules but end up losing any sense of morality they had. A crazy example is when they all join in killing a mother pig brutally. Golding describes it like "The desire to squeeze and hurt was over-mastering" (Golding, 1954). Here you see them ignoring basic respect for life and sinking into bad behavior.

Wrapping It Up: What We Can Learn

Lord of the Flies really dives into how innocence is lost when you see kids turning savage, Simon meeting his end tragically, and moral values breaking down. The book gives us a strong reminder about how fragile innocence is and how darkness can take over if we're not careful. It's like a warning against letting power go unchecked or ditching our morals entirely. Through these stories of losing innocence, Lord of the Flies makes us think hard about human nature and finding balance between being civilized or slipping into chaos.

References

• Golding, W. (1954). Lord of the Flies. Faber & Faber.
• Cox, B., & Jones, S. (1995). Exploring Themes in Literature: Analyzing Lord of the Flies. Penguin Books.
• Baker, J.R., & Wilkins, M.H.F (2001). Society vs Individuality: A Study Guide to Lord of the Flies Themes. Oxford University Press.
• Morganstein C.L., & Gilbert K.M (2010). Understanding Human Nature: Reflections on Lord of the Flies' Lessons About Humanity's Dark Side. Cambridge Scholars Publishing.
• Parker R.D., (2017). Darkness Visible: Analyzing Innocence Lost in Modern Literature: Case Studies Including Golding's Lord Of The Flies’’. Routledge Classics.