Lord of the Flies

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1. 
   dbello Teacher
   High School - 12th Grade

   Ralph begins to realize that he is losing his ability to behave in a civilized manner.The idea that he is slipping into the realm of savagery is what forces him to re-think his current state of being.  Perhaps not as severe as the other boys, but enough for him to contemplate the true, hard reality of their situation. His attitude had become jaded because he is fearful for his life, as well as the lives of the other boys. He begins to wonder whether they will ever be rescued at all. After some doubtful thoughts Ralph is able to find the strength within himself to persereve. He hangs onto "life" in his mind so that he can muster the strength to physically survive. In the end Ralph does not throw in the towel, in this sense Ralph demonstrates the heroic qualities that make up the human experience.

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   Posted by dbello on Tuesday August 19, 2008 at 5:11 PM
   
   

2. 
   eabettencourt Teacher
   High School - 10th Grade

   There are numerous forces that act upon Ralph as his attitude changes.  One of the most significant, and interesting, is how Golding uses the ever-growing length of Ralph's hair to demonstrate how frustrated Ralph becomes when trying to make points or sort things out.  There are several instances when Ralph is described as brushing the now-long hair out of his eyes.  Symbolically, Golding is showing us how the amount of time spent on the island, represented by the legnth of Ralph's hair, impacts Ralph's ability to articulate his thoughts or sometimes even to sort out his thoughts within his own head.

   When analyzing Lord of the Flies, it is important to look beyond the literal - try to keep an eye out for the figurative and/or symbolic forces that impact Ralph and the others.

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   Posted by eabettencourt on Friday August 22, 2008 at 2:29 PM
   
   

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