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His full name is William Gerald Golding. He was born in Saint Columb Minor, Cornwall, England. -
He started attending Brasenose College at Oxford. He spent 2 years studying science and then switched to the literature program. He graduated from Oxford in 1935 with a Bachelor of Arts in English and a diploma in education. -
He worked as a writer, actor, and producer with a small theater. He considered the theater his strongest literary influence. -
Golding began teaching English and philosophy in Salisbury at Bishop Wordsworth's School. His experience teaching served as inspiration for his novel Lord of the Flies. He quit in 1961 to write full time. -
He married Ann Brookfield. He later had two children with her. -
He left teaching for some time to join the royal navy during WWII. He served for 5 years before returning to his job of teaching. -
The novel was rejected 21 times by publishers. It became his most acclaimed novel. -
He spent the last years of his life quietly living with his wife. He died of a heart attack in Perranarworthal, Cornwall.