This conversation, which was recorded this past summer, is led by Dr. Shannon Valenzuela, Affiliate Assistant Professor of English and Content Director for Liberal Learning for Life. She is joined by Dr. Mark Petersen, Assistant Professor of History, and Dr. David Upham, Associate Professor of Politics. They discuss William Golding’s 1951 novel Lord of the Flies and a recently reported “lord of the flies in real life” story, in which a group of boys were shipwrecked on an island and- unlike in Golding’s novel – did not turn violent toward each other but survived and cooperated until their rescue. They also discuss our longstanding fascination with castaway stories and state of nature stories; the value of studying history and political philosophy; and the importance and power of stories in general. The article that they discuss can be read here: https://www.theguardian.com/books/2020/may/09/the-real-lord-of-the-flies-what-happened-when-six-boys-were-shipwrecked-for-15-months Learn more about Liberal Learning for Life at the University of Dallas here: https://udallas.edu/liberal-learning/

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