Lord of the Flies Study Guide
by William Golding

This study guide helps readers of Lord of the Flies by William Golding understand and interpret the novel. Included are concise chapter summaries, character analysis, explanation of themes and symbolism and much, much more! This site will guide you through the novel, quickly and easily. Enjoy.

» Chapter Summaries

This section has summaries of every chapter. They include the main action of the chapter and comments about how Golding builds the action and weaves into it the meaning of the novel. These summaries should not be used as substitutes for reading the novel.

» Character Analysis

Includes descriptions of all the main characters in the novel. They include the person's physical description (as taken from the novel, not the movie), plus comments on their actions and involvement with symbolism and theme.

» Themes & Symbolism

This section attempts to explain the theme of the novel, and how Golding presents it through his use of symbolism. The first section looks at theme and the second discusses each symbol in depth and how they collectively work together to convey the meaning of the novel.

» Important Quotes

The quotes on this page are not explained here, though most of their meanings are fairly evident. Some quotes do have a brief explanation in front of them. Although many printings of this novel exist, the most prevalent seems to be the Perigee Book paper-back (with the drawing of a boy with leaves in his hair on the cover) published by the Berkley Publishing Group and all page numbers refer to this printing

» The Map

A map of the island where the novel took place!! Plus, a description of the island, and the time period of the novel.