10. Speak on the role of the symbolism.

The Rabbits Who Caused All the Trouble

Lord of the Flies

Summary of the story:

The story is written by James Thurber in the form of a parable. It is about the rabbits who were constantly threatened by the wolves and had to escape, but didn’t find a place to stay anywhere else to live, only promises to help, if something happens. So they had to return back, where they were imprisoned by the wolves.

The novel is written by William Golding and tells us about the group of children who turned on the island after the crash of the plane. They wanted to build civilization but came to pieces and revealed human’s true nature: egoistic and violent.

Narration:

The story and the novel are 3d person narration. Moreover they are told from the point of view of objective narrators, which allows both of the authors make objective observations, take a sober view of things and be critical.

Development (body):

In this story the author relies on symbols to intensify the idea. First of all the story is an outside observation of the events, as it is directed at certain political situation and being heavily marked with symbols the story sounds more moralizing and let us perceive it as a fable.

I suppose the narrator’s use of symbols requires elaborate interpretation as the story can show strong parallels to the time of World War II. To my mind the wolves symbolize German and the rabbits represent as Jews.

The situation with the rabbits is associated with the one Jews had during WWII, when they were in danger and had to escape to that place, where they could find help and peace. Other animals were asked for help but they offered the rabbits to return back to their home promised to help if they were in danger.

Jews, like these rabbits, only tried to protect themselves and find a safe place, but they were treated as escapists. As the wolves said when other animals became interested in the rabbits’ destiny, that they were killed because they were trying to escape and, as they knew there was no world for escapists. Jews were persecuted only for their will to be happy, safe and have homeland.

In addition to it the moral at the end of the story stands for the yelling ‘to run and not walk, to the nearest desert island, where there’ll be nobody to ask for help and nobody to be imprisoned by. There, where they will find their homeland and will be able to be free.

The novel is allegoric and is heavily marked with symbols as well. Moreover symbols allow of a variety of interpretations.

1. First of all we can see a symbol in the island itself. What features are revealed in a person if he turns out in a complicated situation. To my mind this symbol is quite significant. The island’s is corrupted when the children turn out on it, but in many things we can see a new life is supposed to appear their. While innocent children are supposed to become an image of evil, violence and corruption.

2. Also in the novel speaking names can be found, like Piggy – his name stands for his appearance.

3. The appearance of Ralph is also an effective symbol. The author says he could make a good boxer with width and heaviness of his shoulders, but his eyes proclaimed no devil. I suppose the author draws our attention to the possibility of a person to become a man of evil and violence, when you have everything necessary for it, but you may not become it if you have the qualities which prevail over the negative ones.

4. A conch as a symbol represents beauty, purity, harmony, risky fragility. Also it’s the symbol of democracy – the choice of making decisions: when you hear it you may come or may not.

5. Jack and his people are in black like a symbol of evil, violence, darkness.

6. The fire indicates hope and rescue.

Conclusion (summing up and personal impression):

The story made a favourable impression on me because the author handles the problem of people’s inability and unwillingness to live in peace. I would say the author underlines the fact that the wolves (or Germans) couldn’t live in peace and didn’t want let others be happy. There is at least one more crucial problem which is discussed by the author. It is the time when the rabbits (Jews) really needed help from other animals, but didn’t get it in time.

In addition, I suppose one of the major themes of the story is also the theme of freedom which is revealed in the moral (‘Run, don’t walk, to the nearest desert island’). I think the author would like to show people’s being unable to feel free among others, if they needed to run even on some island, not just land.

I suppose both this story and Golding’s novel reinforce this idea, when people can’t be civilized and live in peace because of their hatred nature, egoism and cruelty.

All in all the story is presented in the genre of a parable and discloses its main ideas completely.

On the whole the novel is pessimistic and gloomy. Through his own experience Golding came to such a conclusion that evil was inherent in man, that man was born with a disposition to egoism, greed and violence. I fully agree with him and suppose he discussed the urgent problems of society and created a true masterpiece of the times.