LOTF Themes:

Power

1: Why do the boys follow Jack’s lead more readily than they do Ralph’s? How are Jack’s power tactics different than Ralph’s?

A: They follow Jack’s group because of a saying, keep your friends close, your enemies closer. When they do that, they are more protected, and they are much more safe and they get meat, something much more rare on that island. When Jack uses force to get people on their side, people will go. When you aren’t forcing, and there is someone who is, it can be hard to choose the right thing.

2: What’s the point of having power on a deserted island, anyway? For Ralph? For Jack? For Roger?

A: Ralph needs to have control so he can organize the group so they can avoid peril and help safety come. Jack wants power so he can control people and be the leader. Roger wants power so he can do whatever he wants, like kill Piggy, and still be in the safe side.

3: Ralph seems to realize that with great power comes great responsibility. Does this mean that Jack, by not taking real responsibility, isn’t actually chief?

A: In my opinion, Jack doesn’t have control, he just has control over those who are intimidated by him, and will never gain their true trust. I don’t think he’s a chief because he doesn’t take responsibility. He just has followers because they are scared.

Religion

1: If Simon can be seen as a Christ-figure in Lord of the Flies, what Biblical characters might Ralph and Jack be compared to?

A: Ralph and Jack are a lot like Cain and Abel. They are equivalent in the ways like the story. Jack is Cain, and Ralph is Abel. Jack tries to kill Ralph because he is jealous of him and because Ralph is good and stands for law and order and rules, having Ralph around makes Jack look bad. In the Bible, Cain only offered God wheat and grapes from the harvest, but Abel sacrificed a newborn lamb, so God was more pleased with Abel because he sacrificed something more special instead of something easy to get. Cain is jealous of Abel because God shows him favor for his sacrifice and isn’t happy with Cain’s easy sacrifice that isn’t really a sacrifice at all. Ralph and Jack’s story is almost exactly parallel to the story in the Bible, but thankfully Ralph didn’t die.

2: What is the difference between religion and superstition in Lord of the Flies?

A: The beast is a superstitious idea made first by Jack, then he himself falls for the superstition himself. After, the beast turns into a kind of religion that Jack’s group shares.

3: Is Simon aware of all the religious symbolism that we claim he’s associated with?

A: If someone told me my life was symbolic of part of the Bible, I wouldn’t believe them. It would be very improbable that he would know that, and if he did then he would not be as afraid.

Identity

1: What does the face-painting have to do with the boys becoming more violent? Does it happen before or after the boys start to become more “savage” and “primitive”?

A: When Jack’s group first put on the face paint, they killed the pig, and turned savage shortly after that.

2: Are the boys reverting to their true identities on the island, or leaving their true identities behind as they become more primitive?

A: The boys on the island started as being one kind of person each, and after being in the situation on the island become completely different. Their true identity was smashed once they arrived, or like the author says the island actually revealed their true identities.

3: How does Simon identify the pig’s head? What does he mean when he thinks that the head is “the Lord of the Flies?” Does he even know?

A: He probably identifies it as a ruler of flies, which means death and decay, because it was rotting and covered in flies, hence he called it “the Lord of the Flies” with his delirious mind, he probably recognizes the pig like face but doesn’t concisely know.

Youth

1: Are the children innocent? Are they corrupt by the island and their situation, or do they bring their own darkness?

A: At the back of the book, William Golding said that everyone is savage, but just on the inside. Using his belief, they bring their darkness of un-innocence wherever they go.

2: Has Ralph grown up by the end of the novel? Or does weeping show that he’s still a child?

A: Having to go through as much as he did, I feel that most people would weep, cry, and morn the deaths. He had to be like an adult on the island so with relief he could be a child again he wept.

3: Which characters act the most like adults? What does “adulthood” seem to mean?

A: I think that none of them are adults, and really the only way to know what an adult is to be one yourself. Adulthood to me is something that I haven’t been, and don’t have an opinion on. Sometimes, an opinion on something is bad when you don’t know about it. In the book though it means they act like adults, at least Ralph and Piggy and Simon because they try to follow rules and order.

Wisdom & Knowledge

1: Who’s the most intelligent boy on the island? Who is the wisest? What’s the difference?

A: Piggy is very book smart and is very intelligent, and Simon has a lot of street smarts and is very wise when making decisions. The difference on the island is that wisdom gets you further than just information but together, wisdom and knowledge as a team like Ralph and Piggy work best.

2: How do the boys feel about Simon? Are they fearful? Confused? Intimidated?

A: The reason nothing happens to him early, is because they don’t understand him and are confused. The kind of stay away from him and don’t really bother him. They probably killed him because of confusion.

3: What do the boys learn during their island getaway?

A: They learn the importance of organization, even in Jack’s “tribe” this is a sort of organization, some learn it’s hard doing the right thing, basic survival needs, and what they are capable of good or bad.

LOTF Definitions:

• Crucial: Of great importance
• Weep: Shed tears.
• Hormones: A regulatory substance produced in an organism and transported in tissue fluids such as blood or sap to stimulate specific cells or tissues into action.
• Bestial: Of or like an animal or animals.
• Intimidate: Frighten or overawe, especially in order to make them do what one wants.
• Naïve: Showing a lack of experience, wisdom, or judgment.
• Irony: The expression of one’s meaning by using language that normally signifies the opposite, typically for humorous or emphatic effect.
• Martyr: A person who is killed because of their religious or other beliefs.
• Savvy: Shrewdness and practical knowledge, especially in politics or business.
• Innate: Inborn; natural.
• Privy: Sharing in the knowledge of (something secret or private).
• Wisdom: The quality of having experience, knowledge, and good judgment; the quality of being wise.
• Symbolism: The use of symbols to represent ideas or qualities
• Scholar: A specialist in a particular branch of study, especially the humanities; a distinguished academic.
• Impale: Pierce or transfix with a sharp instrument.
• Superstitious: Having or showing a belief in superstitions.
• Preside: Be in the position of authority in a meeting or gathering.
• Corrupt: Having or showing a willingness to act dishonestly in return for money or personal gain.
• Ritual: A religious or solemn ceremony consisting of a series of actions performed according to a prescribed order.
• Critique: A detailed analysis and assessment of something, especially a literary, philosophical, or political theory.
• Tame: Domesticate.
• Attain: Succeed in achieving.
• Disguise: Give (someone or oneself) a different appearance in order to conceal one’s identity.
• Dehumanize: Deprive of positive human qualities.
• Atrocious: Horrifyingly wicked.
• Brute: A savagely violent person or animal.
• Pristine: In its original condition; unspoiled.
• Strife: Angry or bitter disagreement over fundamental issues; conflict.
• Autocratic: Of or relating to a ruler who has absolute power.
• Absolute: Not qualified or diminished in any way; total.
• Power: The ability to do something or act in a particular way, especially as a faculty or quality.

Cub Scout Pet Care Academic Pin Work:

I am working on earning my pet care belt loop and pin. To get my loop, I had to take care of my dog Foxie for two weeks and make a list of all the tasks I did:

1. Fed her
2. Gave her water
3. Bathed her
4. Petted her
5. Hugged her
6. Made sure she didn’t escape
7. Dried her off
8. Gave her bones
9. Played with her
10. Let her sleep in my bed

I also had to find out three interesting facts about my dog’s breed. Foxie is a Pom-Chi:

1. In seven generations, the Pom-Chi will be a pure breed.
2. Pom-Chis are more proned to be excited more than other dogs.
3. Pom-Chis don’t need as much exercise as other dogs and do most of it in the house.

Now I’m making a poster about Foxie to share at my den meeting Friday. I started by writing a word for each letter in her name. I’ll tell you what they mean.

Foxiness: shrewdness, cunning, slyness (She’s really good at tricking other dogs into getting their bones!)

Omnipresent: being present everywhere at once (She is always there no matter where I look. She is always right by me.)

Xanthic: yellowish (Some of her fur is yellow.)

Inconceivable: totally unlikely, impossible, unimaginable (Foxie has a really big overbite and the veterinarian said she’d have trouble eating and would probably need surgery, but she can eat anything from humongous bones to things normal dogs can’t eat, and it never makes her sick!)

Exciting: creating excitement (Foxie is a lot of fun and exciting to play with!)

Now to earn my pin, I have to choose five requirements from a big list of things like develop a care plan someone could follow if we are out of town, train Foxie to do a trick, describe how she communicates with me and other animals, play with her everyday and record her mood, attend a pet show and tell about it, go to a pet store and tell what kinds of pets they have and what foods they eat, go to an animal shelter and explain reasons why animals end up there, talk to a veterinarian about his career, find out information about one of the US Presidents pets that lived in the White House and tell about it, and telling three ways pets can help people.

Pssst! Tomorrow is my birthday! I’ll be 11!