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Childhood
At the age of 12 he attempted unsuccessfully, to write a novel. He then became frustrated and found an outlet in bullying his peers. Later in life, William described his childhood as a self brat. After primary school, he went on to attend Brasenose College at Oxford University. His father dreamed of his son becoming a scientist, but William decided to study English literature instead. In 1934, a year before graduating, William published his first work, a book of poetry called " Poems." -
Teaching
After graduating from college, Golding worked in settlement houses and the theater for a time. In !935 he took a job teaching English and philosophy at Bishop Wordsworth's School in Sailsbury. The unruly young boys he taught served as an inspiration his novel he would later write "Lord of the Flies" -
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Royal Navy
In 1940 Golding temporarily abandoned teaching to join the Royal Navy and fight in WWII. He spent most of the next 5 years on a boat, except for a seven month stint in New York, where he helped Lord Chewell at the Naval Research Establishment.
During WWII, he fought battleships at the sinking of the Bismark, and also fended of submarines and planes.
Like his teaching experience, Golding's participation in WWII would prove to be a key material in his novel -
Lord of the Flies
in 1954, after 21 rejections, Golding published his first novel "Lord of the Flies." The novel told a gripping story of a group of boys stranded on a deserted island after a plane wreck. -
Death
Golding spent his last years living peacefully with his family at their house near Falmouth,Cornwall, where he continued to write. On June 19, 1993, Golding died of a heart attack in Perranarworthal, Cornwall.
