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Illustrated portrait of The Lord of the Flies

A character in Lord of the Flies

The Lord of the Flies

The Lord of the Flies is the sow’s severed head mounted on a stick and surrounded by insects.

The book

Cover of Lord of the Flies by William Golding
Lord of the FliesWilliam Golding, 1954

Schoolboys build a society from scratch and discover how quickly rules can give way to fear and violence.

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Who they are in the book

Spoiler-free

The Lord of the Flies is the sow’s severed head mounted on a stick and surrounded by insects. In Simon’s hallucination, it speaks and claims the beast is part of the boys. It is not a separate supernatural character confirmed by the narration; it gives voice to Simon’s understanding of fear and violence.

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