Lord of the Flies (1951)

This designation is the literal translation of Beelzebub. (And, no, I am not joking.)

Lord of the Flies was rejected by many publishers before being accepted by Faber & Faber. An initial rejection labelled the book as “absurd … Rubbish & dull”. The book was originally titled Strangers from Within, which was considered “too abstract and too explicit” and was eventually changed to Lord of the Flies.

Wikipedia

Strangers from Within. Hmm. Now we’re hearing about The Enemy Within. It may have taken 73 years for the boys in the book to grow up to be the Make America Great Again followers, but make no mistake, this presidential election has brought the worst out of their leader.

At an allegorical level, a central theme is how the desire for civilisation conflicts with the desire for power. Lord of the Flies also portrays the tension between groupthink and individuality, rational and emotional reactions, and morality and immorality.

Ibid

End of message.