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The Lord of the Flies uses several metaphorical symbols to portray William Golding’s loss of faith in humanity after having his morals “wounded by the extreme barbarity and sadism that the Second World War disclosed in the heart of supposedly civilized man” (Talon 1) . He does so by ironically presenting the story in such a way that supports his pessimistic view of mankind, making no one innocent. “The very nature of the fable is ironic since it reveals cruelty and perversity where one expects to find gentleness and innocence--in childhood” (Talon 1). “The war alone was not what appalled him, but what he had learnt of the natural--and original-sinfulness of mankind did. It was the evil seen daily as commonplace and repeated by events it was possible to read in any newspaper which, he asserted, were the matter of Lord of the Flies. The war could be regarded as the catalyst which released an already present evil. People possessed this trait in a fundamental and permanent fashion--it could emerge at any time and under any condition” (Al-Saidi 1). What’s amazing, is the way that Golding managed to seamlessly integrate multiple symbols throughout his novel to increase the impact and meaning of his work. The entire novel is one big “web of ironies” that uses symbols from Christianity alongside Greek Mythology and Ideology (Talon 1). This website will present several analyses of the various symbols and their backgrounds, that amplify Golding’s dark perception of mankind.