DYSTOPIAN FUTURE

Click on the following website to answer the questions provided as you read through the novel "Lord of the Flies":

https://www.cliffsnotes.com/literature/l/lord-of-the-flies/study-help/essay-questions

 

1) "In a moment the platform was full of arguing, gesticulating shadows. To Ralph, seated, this seemed the breaking up of sanity." How is sanity defined? How does this novel contribute to an understanding of sanity and of madness? What are some other instances of madness in the novel?

2. Explain Piggy's point of view when he responds, "Course there aren't [ghosts] . . . 'Cos things wouldn't make sense. Houses an' streets, an' — TV — they wouldn't work" (Chapter 5). What does Piggy mean when he says that technology couldn't function if a supernatural beings existed?

3. Ralph says in Chapter 12 "there was that indefinable connection between himself and Jack; who therefore would never let him alone; never." What is that connection? How does it develop and what does it signify?

4. When Simon sees the Lord of the Flies, Golding writes that his "gaze was held by that ancient inescapable recognition" (Chapter 8). What recognition is Golding referring to?

5. Why does Simon's role as a visionary make him an outcast in the group? What other visionaries have been outcasts in their societies?

6. How does Golding use color to link Jack with the Lord of the Flies? Are there other instances of Golding using color to link characters or provide symbolism?

7. In Chapter 11, when Ralph announces that he's calling an assembly, he is greeted with silence. How do silence and speech function in this novel, and why is silence so threatening to the boys?

8. In Chapter 3, Piggy asks the boys "How can you expect to be rescued if you don't put first things first and act proper?" What does Piggy mean by "act proper?" Why does he feel acting properly will bring them success in being rescued? Contrast this sentiment to the actual reason a rescue ship spots their smoke signal.

9. Who or what is being described with this phrase: "There was the brilliant world of hunting, tactics, fierce exhilaration, skill, and there was the world of longing and baffled common-sense" (Chapter 4)? How do the two worlds represent facets of humanity?

10. Describe some of the ways the vision of a human "at once heroic and sick" (Chapter 6) is represented in the novel and within the larger context of history as well. Does Golding prescribe a remedy for the "sickness"?

Also make sure to click on the following link to supplement what you have learned from your reading and during class discussions and lectures:

https://www.cliffsnotes.com/literature/l/lord-of-the-flies/critical-essays/major-themes

 

Once you have completed the novel "Lord of the Flies" and answered the attached discussion questions complete the following worksheet to think, reflect and answer the following questions related to "Dystopian Futures":

 

STUDENT WORKSHEET

 

 

Discuss these questions individually, in  pairs or in small groups for roughly five to ten minutes per question.  Proceed to fill in the worksheet.

 

What are the problems facing society today? List them.

Is it society’s aim to eliminate these evils?  Is it possible to eliminate them? 

 

Is a utopia ever achievable in reality?  If not, why not?

 

 

Is a dystopian society possible in reality?  Where can we find examples in literature and popular culture like television and cinema?

 

What do you think are the strengths and weaknesses of these three ways of thinking about human nature?

- human beings are essentially good

 

 

- human beings are essentially evil

 

- human beings are neither essentially good nor evil, but are formed by their environment