Who Is He? Golding’s Fallen Being: William Golding’s Darkness Visible

Abstract

This essay delves into William Golding’s 1979 novel, Darkness Visible, tracing its origins to the aftermath of his seminal work, The Lord of the Flies (1954). Focused on the character Matty, born of fire and embodying innate human evil, the essay explores Golding’s quest to fathom the depths of this malevolence. Despite initial conceptualization in 1955, the novel underwent extensive revisions, shrouded in Golding’s reluctance to discuss it, creating an internal enigma that complicates analysis. The essay adopts an analytical approach, unravelling the mysterious identity of Matty. It navigates chronological order to decode Golding’s mystical hints, emphasizing the protagonist’s continual exploration of self: who Matty is, what Matty represents, and his purpose. Golding’s modest disclaimer regarding spiritual matters suggests that a nuanced reading is essential for a profound understanding. The essay aims to illuminate the novel’s narrative intricacies, providing insight into Matty’s identity. In doing so, it seeks to decipher Golding’s intentions, navigating the author’s reluctance to disclose, ultimately shedding light on the profound thematic complexities within Darkness Visible. This essay interprets that Matty is a fallen angel who has fallen into a pitfall and is trying to get better just as a human being tries. This paper argues relying on Golding’s claim that ‘man is a fallen being,’ and the textual evidence in the book, Matty is a fallen angel and fallen being. This is what human beings are, and Matty is one of many human beings.