Classic 9 of 40: Lord of the Flies

Why Lord of the Flies?

I have bought this book at least 2 or 3 times and have never made it through. Correction: had never made it through. It's one of those books that gets referenced all the time - "It's like Lord of the Flies around here!" Of course everyone knows the basic premise and through references I felt like I kind of already knew the story. And I mostly did. But... there were additions and nuances that I didn't know. And the ending I didn't know (and won't share here, of course).

Thoughts on the book:

This was absolutely a worthwhile read. No regrets. It wasn't super painful to get through. Interesting, but not a real page turner for me.

The good: The more I thought about it, the more I realized how many interesting ideas were contemplated in the book. It was a lot more layered and nuanced than I gave it credit while I was reading it. Fear, Leadership, Jealousy, Group Think, Justice and Society, Savagery and primal instinct.  Those are just the highlights that I noticed. The more I think about it, the longer the list gets.

But also, the power of a single voice; the power of the individual. Moral rights and wrong in face of survival, desperation, the crowd. Individual identity (as opposed to the power of an individual - Samneric, for example), the perception of others.

I was most captivated by the power of fear in decision making and leadership. It's hard not to make parallels as we are in the midst of a presidential election with the demagogue currently the front runner for the Republic ticket.

Mr. Golding did a seamless job portraying the slippery slope between Group Think to Mob Mentality. You could feel it brewing before the tipping point, but knew there was no stopping it. Just so well done.

The not-so-good: This was nowhere near what I would consider a good read. I never felt like curling up on a rainy day with this book. The premise felt so full of potential. And yet, the story felt so dry. A lot of it felt like drudging through. Maybe it was supposed to? Maybe we felt the idleness and trapped-feeling of being stuck? But until the very end of the book, it was far from gripping and engaging.

Recommended for?

This seems like the perfect required high school reading book. Or college level for social dynamics/leadership/organizational behavior. You could use this book for the basis of a dozen different college papers. Having said that, I'm still glad I read it. It's a short book and worth the read if you were never required to read it.