Student Essay on Lord of the Flies:The Real Beast

Lord of the Flies:The Real Beast by William Golding

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Essay

1. " `What I meant is... maybe it's only us.'...Simon became inarticulate in his effort to express mankind's essential illness."-Simon

Simon says this during a meeting discussing the beast. Proposals that the beast lives in the jungle, the air, and the sea all come up. Simon is the only one who thinks that the beast not a monster, but an element of human temperament. These words confirm Golding's belief that there is potential wickedness in every man. Although Simon does not seem to fully grasp the idea himself, he is the only one that understands the true character of the beast- human nature. Simon's idea is laughed at and the boys' chatter drowns his voice out. He was unable or unwilling to explain himself to the cruel boys.

2. "Fancy thinking the Beast was something you could hunt and kill!" -Lord of the Flies

The Lord of the Flies says this to Simon when he has a seizure and hallucination in the glade. This quote means that the Beast was not a creature, but just fear, barbarianism, and other dark qualities of human character.

3. "You knew didn't you? I'm part of you? Close, close, close!" -Lord of the Flies

The beast interrogates Simon, "You knew didn't you"" This is referring to when Simon realized the beast was part of the boys, not a monster. "I'm part of you? Close, close, close!" means that the beast is something the boys can never run away from.