William Golding was born in 1911. As a child, he enjoyed reading. By the age of twelve, he had already decided to become a writer and carried out this thought through college- where studied literature. In 1939, Golding joined the Royal Navy to fight in World War II. The war changed him. When he returned, his view of the nature of humans was completely different. Contrary to popular belief back then- that man was naturally kind-hearted but society was evil, he came to believe that there was a dark side to every man despite of what his environment may be. "The war was unlike any other...It taught us not fighting, politics, or nationalism, but of the nature of man." Golding's war experiences influenced his writing- showing both the good and evil sides of human beings. Another experience that influenced his writing was the fact that he taught in an...