Lord of the Flies has entered the culture. Ralph, Jack
and Piggy are archetypes of human fallibility, but most of all they
are real characters, fully imagined and leaping to life off the
page.
First published in 1954, this classic novel has sold millions of
copies worldwide (more than 25 million in English alone). It has
been translated into all the major languages, and many minority
ones (Georgian, Basque, Catalan). It has been adapted for radio,
made into two films, dramatised for the stage.
Lord of the Flies has reached the status of a cultural
referent that does not need to be named: the conch has been used as
a symbol for explaining things as diverse as internet protocols and
voting structures; Piggy's spectacles and physique have become a
recognisable icon. What is more, any gathering of active, unruly
children is likely to be described as 'like something out of
Lord of the Flies'.
The power of Golding's tragedy has had such effect that the
novel risks being oversimplified by its own legend. But a
re-reading of the novel will always sweep one back to the freshness
and vividness of the text, the characters remaining real children,
and the tragedy continuing to be unbearable. The extraordinary
beauty of Golding's coral island and the poignancy of his
characters' youth and vulnerability produce an experience of unique
and perpetually surprising intensity.