The Research Of “Death” In William Golding’s Novels

William Golding(1911-1993)is a illustrious British writer in the 20 th century.He was awarded The Nobel Prize in Literature in 1983 for his "clear realistic narrative acrobatic gymnastics and the diversity and universality of fictional stories,explaining the state of humanity in the world today".As an excellent literary master,Golding tirelessly wrote about the living conditions of mankind with his responsibilities and literary qualities.As long as we open Golding’s novels,we will find that in his novels,the core content is "death",that is,the expression of "human death"."Death"(the death of people)is not only a vital force to propel the expansion of the plot and the transformation of the destiny of the personage,but also an important way for Golding to conduct a series of literary exploration and philosophical thinking.Unlike previous researches of China and abroad on Golding’s works,which were limited to the main topic of humanity and often centralizes Lord of the Flies,this treatise implode five novels(Lord of the Flies;Pincher Martin;The Pyramids;Darkness Visible;Rites of Passage),which are based on the background of the modern period,with the "death" event in the work as the starting point,using the death philosophy and other related theories to interpret and discuss,to unearth why Golding writes “death”and the meaning behind.Relying on this treatise,I hope to make a contribution in the research of Golding’s works in domestic academic world.This paper is divided into five parts:The introduction part chiefly analysis Golding’s life,research situation in China and abroad,and the foundation and meaning of this research.The first chapter discusses the reasons why Golding writes "death" in his novels,mainly from the influence of literary tradition(especially ancient Greek tragedies),personal experience,and the background of the time.The second chapter divides Golding’s “death” into physiological death and spiritual“death”.Among them,physiological death is divided into death by violent,death by depression,suicide and death by dedicating to the ideal;spiritual "death" is manifested in three types: emotional "death",the malformation of desire,and the lack of faith and ideal.The third chapter focuses on digging out the deep meaning behind the “death” of the Golding’s novels.Death is just a literary appearance in his novels,behind this is the writer’s worries and considerations about the human existence.Golding use death as a mirror,in order to make a detailed inquiry for the survival value of people.Therefore,I try to use Heidegger’s theory of death philosophy to explain the meaning of death for survival,to view life from death,and to sort out the survival beliefs in Golding’s works that are meaningful and valuable to modern western humans.At the same time,Golding also expressed his reflection on Western civilization.At a deeper level,redeeming human race from death is the real goal of Golding.In his works,he strives to find a way of redemption to help Western civilization and human race get out of the plight.The so-called path of redemption is love and religion.The conclusion summarizes the content of this paper and makes a global appraisal of the value of William Golding’s novel creation.Golding’s expression of "death" inspires people to examine and think about the plight of survival and the way out.This is a kind of "being to death" philosophy.With the help of "death",Golding expressed his emphasis on survival and reached the question of life.Golding writes “death” actually to ponder human situation and Western civilization and to seek for the way of redemption.This article strives to broaden the interpretation space of Golding’s novels,showing that studying the "death" writing of Golding’s novels not only has literary significance and aesthetic value,but can also prompt us to ponder the ultimate salvation of mankind.