Lord of the Flies: The Impact of World War II William Golding's Lord of the Flies was heavily influenced by his experiences as an officer of navy during World War II. Golding's war service gave him a darker, more realistic look at life and contributed to the novel's imagery. As Golding described it, World War II awakened him from his falsified beliefs about human nature by showing him the true human condition (“Lord of the Flies,” Novels 175). Lord of the Flies, as Golding explains, is “an attempt to trace the faults of society to the faults of human nature” (qtd. in “Lord of the Flies,” Novels 189). William Golding based much of Lord of the Flies on his experiences in World War II, which provided a more realistic and accurate story. Before joining the British Royal Navy in 1940, Golding lived a sheltered life as an English teacher at a private school, supervising boys. a bit like the characters in the novel. He was unprepared for the violence and chaos of war and was injured in a detonator accident early in his service ("Lord of the Flies," Romans 175). He was appointed captain of a small rocket launcher during the sinking of the Bismark and participated in the landing (184). After the war, Golding returned to teaching. He published three unsuccessful books, all rejected for being derivative, and was eventually inspired to write Lord of the Flies. Reading RM Ballantyne's The Coral Island, he wondered how the story would develop if the boys "behaved as they actually would" (175). By giving his characters the same names as those in The Coral Island and making direct references to Lord of the Flies, William Golding responded to the Victorian worldview with his own darker, more realistic vision,... .. middle of paper. .....realistic depiction of the human condition, which Golding himself attributes to his service in World War II ("Lord of the Flies", Novels 175). Golding's service in World War II gave him a sharper outlook on life, which influenced the plot of Lord of the Flies to be more derivative and realistic. Novels for students. Ed. Diane Telgen. Flight. 2. Detroit: Gale, 1997. 174-95. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Internet. March 4, 2014. “Lord of the Flies.” World War II to the wealthy 1950s (1940s-1950s). Comp. Joyce Moss and George Wilson. Detroit: Gale, 1997. 228-34. Flight. 4 of literature and its times: profiles of 300 notable literary works and the historical events that influenced them. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Internet. March 4, 2014. “'The Lord of the Flies and the Bacchantes.' Classical World 57.4 (1964): 145-46. JSTOR. Internet. March 4. 2014.