When studying literature, an important element to go over with students is foreshadowing. Whether in a short story, play, or novel, the literary device causes the students to act as detectives while they are one the edge of their seats trying to guess what will happen next.
Foreshadowing can be a difficult element to pick up. It takes a skilled reader to be able to see the subtlety that the author uses to keep the reader aroused. Foreshadowing, however, is not as cut and dry as many people assume; sometimes the author uses foreshadowing as a red herring, something that is meant to distract the reader or lead them in the wrong direction.
The storyboard is an example of three types of foreshadowing from the text. Looking at the specific instances and their outcomes helps students to understand the type of foreshadowing used. Each example of foreshadowing is centered around a particular character.
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Student Instructions
Create a storyboard that illustrates the types of foreshadowing and their outcomes in Lord of the Flies
Introduce the most common literary elements used in literature. Give simple definitions of elements like themes, setting, and foreshadowing. Teachers can explain why these elements are significant in literature and how using literary elements can enhance the context and meaning of the writing.
After students are clear on the basic concept, give them simple and interesting examples to enhance their understanding. Settings and characters can be easy to understand but a bit difficult to analyze. Foreshadowing can be a bit difficult to explain and understand hence teachers should focus on every single detail while giving examples.
Give students a text that includes the use of some literary elements. Students can identify these elements and highlight them with different colors. For instance, using pink highlighter for themes, yellow for Irony, and green for foreshadowing. This exercise will improve critical thinking and help in the identification process.
Ask the students to think about the viewpoint from which the tale is told. The third-person restricted point of view in "Lord of the Flies" mostly follows Ralph's viewpoint. Examine how the reader's comprehension of the events is affected by this choice of narrative voice. Students can also discuss how the use of literary elements would change if the story was written from the perspective of a different character.
Each student has their own pace of understanding new concepts, so teachers can customize the lectures a bit according to the proficiency level of students and adjust the activities for different students.
By evoking a sense of dread and anxiety, foreshadowing in "Lord of the Flies" adds to the mood. It raises the island's general sense of dread by implying that more sinister occurrences or conflicts are imminent. Students can reflect on the relationship between the atmosphere of the story and the use of foreshadowing to get a deeper understanding of the topic.
The repeated allusions to the youngsters' deepening gloom and ferocity are another instance of foreshadowing. Their actions presage the catastrophic events that take place later in the novel as they get more aggressive and disorderly. For instance, one of the boys talking to the head of the beast or Piggy getting hit by a rock and later meeting his tragic ending also because of another rock.