The Coral Island the civilising effect of Christianity, 19th-century British imperialism in the South Pacific, and the importance of hierarchy and leadership. It was the inspiration for William Golding's dystopian novel "Lord of the Flies" (1954), which inverted the morality of "The Coral Island"; in Ballantyne's story the children encounter evil, but in "Lord of the Flies" evil is within them. In the early 20th century, the novel was considered a classic for primary school children in the UK, and in the United States it was a staple of high-school suggested reading lists. Modern critics consider the book's worldview to be dated and
Lord of the Flies (1990 film) film has a rating of 63% "Fresh" on the movie review site Rotten Tomatoes. Most heavily criticized was the way in which the filmmakers departed from the novel. Richard Alleva of "Crisis Magazine" criticized the portrayal of the first assembly on the island, a crucial moment in the book, as "anti-climactic" in the film. He lamented the fact that the conversation that Simon imagines taking place between himself and the pig, or the "Lord of the Flies", yet another of the book's most pivotal moments, was in the movie reduced to only a few moments of Simon staring at the