Constructing A Myth: The Mythical Patterns In Lord Of The Flies

There exists a "return to myth" in the 20^th century, which is defined as "the mythical age" by the German novelist Hermann Broch(Segal 337). Modern writers have been observed to be fascinated with myths. Their interests in myths are primarily explained in the terms of the relation of myth and literature. First, myth functions in modern writers' works to create a meaningful place for man in a world oblivious of his presence. Second, the modern artists inherit the myth-making faculty, which has been infused into their creative minds. Finally, myth provides tangible sources such as images, plots and themes, etc. for modern literary works. In this sense, myth attracts the critics' attention in their analyzing and interpreting a modern literary work. How myth tells its story becomes the critics' concern.William Golding, one of the most outstanding English novelists in the second half of the 20^th century, devotes himself to the trend of myth making in the 20^th-century literature. This thesis then focuses on how he constructs a myth namely, the mythical patterns he uses in writing Lord of the Flies. By Lord of the Flies, he creates a myth of human nature, a myth of western civilization and a myth of the modern world.This thesis begins with a survey of the "return to myth" in the 20^th-century literature. Accompanied with diversified theories on myth in the 20^th century, the modern writers find themselves a new path for their artistic creation in this chaotic and meaningless modern world. For William Golding, his experience during World War Two defines the dominant mythological motif of his myths, that is, the darkness of man's heart while his reading of Greek classics provides sources of mythological allusions, images and archetypal patterns. Both Chapter 2 and Chapter 3 concentrate...