Should Lord of the Flies Be Banned in High Schools?

Lord of the Flies describes a group of English boys whose ages range from 6-12 that have
been stranded on an island after their plane crashes. William Golding describes the fall of
civilization when the main character tries to keep government going but fails (3). Towards the
end of the book, Golding describes a scary scene with the antagonist and a stick sharpened at
both ends (3). Lord of the Flies was challenged in 1981 in Owen, North Carolina for being
demoralizing, in that it implies that man is little more than an animal, it was also banned in
Dallas, Texas in 1981 (1). Were the officials right in banning this book from public libraries and
schools?
Laura Miller from salon.com examines the book from the mindset of a parent worried
about her children (6). She fears that the book will give children nightmares (6). She uses a quote
from film critic Andrew OHehir: Is it pure sadism? To rub their faces in the gravity of their
predicament, and the likely fact that they will sooner or later be sacrificed to a nonexistent God
by their classmates? Now, I recognize the books literary value, no question, and the point that
its an allegory about human society and not strictly about children or for children. But thats not
how you read it when youre 11... (6). The film critic sees the value in the work and notices the
important lessons that should be taught, but in his opinion, and the opinion of the writer of the
article, the book should be banned for younger students who would not see the value or the
symbolism of the book (6). Others feel that the book is simply too violent and graphic for
students. The book contains the sharpening of a stick at both ends which can be inferred from
the text as something savage, it also contains murder and assaults in the latter half of the book
(3). But, one critic brings up the idea that the boys are just learning from the adults who arent

present on the island (7). Does this mean that the students of the modern age will read this book
and immediately start killing off their friends? This critic believes that could be possible
because no one reads Lord of the Flies as a book about a bunch of boys on an island (7). The
critic also brings to focus that the book itself is not openly offensive or racist, but it is the
metacommentary on society and the attitudes we all bring to it that makes the readers
uncomfortable (7). This means that the reader brings their own imagination into the story with
them, which is what makes it so offensive. Lord of the Flies confronts readers with things they
find uncomfortable and unpleasant, It is a threatening, frightening book (7). These critics
truly believe that The Lord of the Flies should be banned from any and all young students.
On the opposing side of the argument, many believe that Lord of the Flies should not be
banned. They see it as a classic piece of literature that shows the difficulties of a group of 6-12
year olds living on a secluded island with no grown-ups. In a book review, one writer said:
Although Lord of the Flies is found offensive by some, it has some redeeming qualities. It is a
classic story of survival in which the characters have to live with each other for a long time
without any adults, and overcoming the challenge of the beast (5). This writer recognizes the
critics and their concern about the violence, but it is also important to realize what the real story
is about (5). The writer also keeps an eye on the Constitution when talking about banning books;
The first amendment says that we have freedom of speech, press, assembly, religion, and
freedom of petition. By censoring a book you are infringing upon the authors freedoms. In The
Day They Came to Arrest the Book by Nat Hentoff, Barney states "show me a book that offends
no one and I will show you a book that no one, in the whole history of the world has willingly
read" (5). This writer feels that when reading a book, one must remember that the writer worked
hard to push a point across (5). In every book, there will be something that offends someone,

whether that be a curse word or a murder there is always something (5). Censorship completely
ignores the first amendment because then the government is telling you what you can and cannot
read, and that's wrong, the writer of the book review feels very strongly about censorship (5).
They believe that censorship will eventually lead to every book being banned because everyone
will find something wrong in every book (5).
In the novel Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury you can find that the firefighters actually
burn their books, effectively banning the people of their country from reading them. Their
dystopian society mirrors what the United States could turn out to be if they start to ban books
freely. A book tells a story that can directly correlate to their time period, Lord of the Flies has a
direct tie to the World War II era with the atomic bomb that the boys see (3). If the U.S starts to
ban these books, the stories that the authors of these novels are trying to tell will be lost forever,
and the people will soon forget the stories with the passing of each generation. The writer who
opposes book banning is correct, especially in their argument including the U.S Constitution.
Writers rights are being violated if the government continues to ban these educational novels. In
order to show students the importance of the books and what they can learn from them, teachers
should require that these books be read.

Citations
Baldassarro, R. Wolf. Banned Books Awareness:. Banned Books Awareness. Deep Forest
Productions, 2013. Web. 8 May 2015.
Frank, Erin M. Lord of the Flies: The Educational Value of Goldings Text. Pell Scholars and
Senior Theses, 1 May 2010. Web. 8 May 2015
Golding, William. Lord of the Flies. New York: Coward-McCann, 1962. Print.
Hemingway, Mark. In Defense of Book Banning. The Federalist. 11 Mar. 2014. Web. 8 May
2015.
Lord of the Flies Book Review:: Book Review Analysis. Lord of the Flies Book Review ::
Book review Analysis. 123HelpMe.com. Web. 8 May 2015.
Miller, Laura. Books That Deserve to Be Banned. Saloncom RSS. The Associated Press, 28
Sept. 2011. Web. 8 May 2015.
Smith, S. E. Challenged Book: Lord of the Flies. This Aint Livin. 4 May 2011. Web. 8 May
2015.