KS1 (Age 5-7)KS2 (Age 7-11)11 Plus (Age 7-11)KS3 (Age 11-14)GCSE (Age 14-17)PSHE A.I.ESL Spanish Specialist Games

Need help with Lord of the Flies - Themes? Ask our AI Tutor!

AI Tutor - Lucy

Connecting with Tutor...

Please wait while we establish connection

Hi! I'm Lucy, your AI tutor. How can I help you with Lord of the Flies - Themes today?

now

Test your knowledge of Lord of the Flies in this enjoyable quiz.

Lord of the Flies - Themes

This GCSE English Literature quiz on Lord of the Flies explores key themes such as civilisation, savagery, leadership and fear, helping you link ideas, characters and setting.

Explore the Topic →

(quiz starts below)

Fascinating Fact:

Human nature is presented as deeply flawed, suggesting that cruelty and savagery exist within ordinary children when external control is removed.

In GCSE English Literature, you need to explain how themes are developed across the whole novel. Lord of the Flies uses the island, the boys and key symbols to explore civilisation, violence, fear and responsibility.

Key Terms

Theme: A big idea that runs through a text, such as power, innocence or human nature.
Civilisation versus savagery: The conflict between rules, order and cooperation and the pull towards violence and chaos.
Allegory: A story in which characters, settings and events stand for wider ideas, like politics or morality.

Frequently Asked Questions (Click to see answers)

What are the main themes in Lord of the Flies for GCSE?

Key themes include civilisation versus savagery, loss of innocence, leadership and power, fear, group pressure and the darker sides of human nature shown through the boys’ behaviour on the island.

How do I write about themes in Lord of the Flies in an essay?

Choose one clear theme, make a focused point, use a short quotation, zoom in on key words and then link your explanation back to the exam question and Golding’s message.

Why is civilisation versus savagery an important theme in the novel?

It matters because the breakdown of rules shows how fragile civilisation can be. As order collapses, Golding suggests that ordinary boys can become brutal when power is unchecked and fear grows.

Try These Related Quizzes

1 .

Hunting pigs gives the boys a taste for violence. Which of the following is also correct?

Hunting pigs makes each of the boys aware of the need to control violent impulses

The practice of hunting pigs leads to the creation of a more cooperative society on the island

Hunting pigs is important to the survival of the boys

Hunting pigs does not contribute any benefit to the boys

Having meat to eat aids the boys' chance of survival, but the practice of hunting leads to a violent society in which the weak become dependent on the strong and are expected to obey in return for food

2 .

Which of the following appears to be missing from the final episode in the novel, when the boys are finally rescued?

Grief

Loss

Hope

Destruction

Even rescue does not offer hope. The adults who arrive on the island after it has been set on fire are themselves engaged in violence and war - there is no escape

3 .

The conch is the agreed symbol of authority on the island. It challenges which of the following?

Authority conveyed by age

Authority conveyed by uniform

Authority wielded through violence

All of the above

The conch symbolises the authority conveyed by agreement and by the boys' consent to be governed by rules and by their chosen leader. This form of authority is challenged when the strongest, the oldest and the most violent boys set up their own camp and is eventually defeated when the attack on Piggy also smashes the conch

4 .

The first priorities for the boys are to explore the island, build shelter, make a fire, find food and agree basic hygiene rules. These efforts are related to which of the following?

The innate violence of humanity

The innate generosity of children

The relationship between hunting and uncivilised behaviour

The relationship between rules, cooperation, survival and civilisation

In the beginning all the boys accept the need for cooperation and rules to ensure survival. Their incipient civilisation falls apart as the group descends into a more basic group structure defined by power and violence

5 .

Ralph mourns for Piggy at the end of the novel. How does he remember his companion?

As a useful comrade

As a true and wise friend

As an insufferable know-it-all

As an annoying, but ultimately lovable, ally

Piggy was Ralph's most loyal friend, his loyalty remaining unshaken even when the two were in disagreement

6 .

Which of the following is NOT linked to the theme of violence in the novel?

The boys' arrival on the island

The choice of leader on the boys' first day on the island

The hunting of pigs

The deaths of Simon and Piggy

The election of Ralph as leader represents the initial cooperative decision-making which later collapses into violent action as the boys hunt, steal resources and eventually kill

7 .

In Lord of the Flies, where is evil located?

In nature

In the boys themselves

Only in the rule of law

Only in the outside, adult world

While all the other boys fear the unknown, Simon recognises that evil, or the will to do violence to others, comes from within

8 .

The boys, who have been through a traumatic evacuation and plane crash, suffer from nightmares and generalised fear. What name do they give to their fear?

The Lord of the Flies

The Beast

The Wreck

The Nightmare

One of the boys claims to have seen a snake-like beast which came in the darkness, wanting to eat the children, before turning into vines in the morning. This boy is the first to die on the island when the fire gets out of control

9 .

When the boys first begin to explore, the island appears to be which of the following?

Threatening

Barren

Paradise

Magical

The island has everything which the boys will need for survival and resembles the islands of adventure stories. The novel also references the story of the Garden of Eden, in which Adam and Eve are tempted by the devil in the guise of a serpent. The Lord of the Flies refers to the devil, and the first reports of the Beast describe it as a snake. The boys "fall" from this initial paradisal state

10 .

Samneric feel both nervous and guilty when speaking to Ralph and warning him that Jack plans to hunt and torture him. Their internal conflict relates to which one of the following themes?

Loyalty

Civilisation

Violence

Evil

The separation of camps on the island, which results in division, highlights the importance of loyalty. Jack demands loyalty and would see Samneric's conversation with the "enemy" as disloyal. The twins' continuing loyalty to Ralph leads them to feed and to warn him, although they do not intend to defend or protect him (and thus draw the violence onto themselves)

You can find more about this topic by visiting BBC Bitesize - Lord of the Flies

Author: Sheri Smith (PhD English Literature, English Teacher & Quiz Writer)