Return

A Naval Officer stood on the sand
Without grownups, the boys stood beside him
crying, acknowledging the crimes they'd committed
a semi-circle nearly complete
save three:
Simon
Piggy
The boy with the mark on his face

"Nobody killed?" the Officer asked
The savages stood silent: they knew what they'd done
Ralph, the leader, stood alone
wishing he could have done more
The boys wept
for the end of innocence
for the darkness of man's heart
for the fall through the air of the true, wise friend called
Piggy

The Officer's eyes rested
on the trim cruiser in the distance

Lightsabers and Wooden Spears

Today I watched The Lord of the Flies. The one from the 90's.

It sucked.

The dialogue and acting was terrible, the characters were flat, and the story... not at all enticing. Not at all like the book.

I know that movies never do quite as well as the books, but this one ranks up there in my list of terrible movies. With Harry Potter Six. Scratch that: This movie is worse than Harry Potter Six. At least the acting was believable in Harry Potter.

Maybe its that it was made in the 90's, but the movie was terrible.

One of the worst scenes yet was Simon's death. He comes running along the beach holding a four-foot glow-stick. He looks like a Jedi. The other boys see him, think he's the "monster", they can't say beast like the book, and run at him with their wooden spears. I half expected Simon to jump up into the air, to a few flips, then land on the ground in a sort of crouch, and proceed to cut off all of their heads with his glow-stick/light saber. But no he just stands there. Maybe it was the fact that I expected him to go all Obi-Wan Kenobi, but I think it was because Simon was not characterized well and his death didn't make me feel any sense of sorrow for him.

I'll be content as long as I can re-read the book, and not re-watch the movie.

Definitely a Re-read

I personally enjoyed The Lord of the Flies I thought that the characters and plot were deep, interesting, and most importantly, it was captivating and easy to read. None of the events seemed to be "filler" and none of the characters seemed "flat". It was hard to put down. The protagonist, Ralph, the antagonist, Jack, and the other main characters such as Simon, Piggy, Roger, and Samneric are all interesting and they feel like real people. From the amazing beginning to the terrifying end, there was nonstop action and suspense. This book is definitely a re-read.

The boys arrive on the island as the result of a plane crash, or more accurately their plane was attacked. They were leaving England during World War Two, escaping the bombing raids. Their landing on the island is followed by their appointment of Ralph as chief. This appointment is what changes the whole plot. After this moment, the boys take part in a power struggle. this struggle is what makes the book so great: it shows that not everything is fun and games. If the boys survived without any conflict, the novel would be boring. It would be unrealistic. It would not be worth reading. But it does have conflict, and a lot of it.

The book is great. I will read it over and over again

Simon: not the average choir boy

Lord of the Flies
William Goldberg

Simon is a member of the choir, the group of boys that have taken on the responsibility of hunters, but he stands out from the other boys in the choir, stands out from the other boys on the island. Most noticably, his physical attributes make him stand out from the rest, he is short, skinny, and faints often. However, Simon has a different mentality than the rest. He thinks things through, something that none of the other choir boys seem capable of. He notices things that no one else does, but most importantly, he is intelligent.

No one is perfect, and Simon has his flaw, his Achilles' heel: Simon is shy. He has trouble speaking in public and putting his opinion into words. He knows what Jack is thinking because he has spent time with him, and knows him,knows what he is capable of, knows what he will do.

Simon changed since the beginning of the novel, he has become stronger, but at the same time he has withdrawn. He no longer faints, but he is scared to say what he knows is right. He also changed loyalties, from an uncomplaining choir boy, to on of the few trying to keep everone alive. Simon's role in the story is the boy on the sidelines who must come and stop chaos from ruling, he will be the one who will finally stand up to jack, because he knows that he has to, but he must over come that Achilles' heel first