What is a possible theme statement for the novel Lord of the Flies by William Golding?

William Golding's Lord of the Flies
is a symbolic novel. It is set on an uninhabited tropical island, so immediately Golding
has made the world of this novel a microcosm (small world) for something bigger. In
other words, what happens on this small island is a picture of what is happening in the
rest of the world on a larger scale. 

The characters of
this novel are English schoolboys who are the sole survivors of a plane crash. These
characters are all young (and therefore closer to innocence) and presumably well
disciplined (as proven by Jack and his choir boys); they are not hooligans who are
accustomed to causing trouble. These boys know how to follow rules and obey authority,
qualities which should keep them "civilized" longer than
most.

What happens throughout the novel, though, is that
these civilized boys quickly divest themselves of their uniforms and their respect for
the authority they elected (Ralph). Soon--much, much too soon for a group of disciplined
children--things on the island turn into a fight for survival. Golding refers to the
boys as savages, and their behavior fits his
description.

Simon and Piggy are murdered, and Ralph is the
next to be targeted. If help, in the form of a naval commander, does not arrive, Ralph
would not survive. In the final chapters, it is clear that there is someone even more
inclined to savagery than Jack; if the boys are not rescued, Roger would probably have
established a horrific reign of cruelty and death.

While
there are many potential sub-themes to this novel, Golding is clearly making the
statement that human nature, without the restraints of civilization or authority, will
devolve into savagery. Rather than being elevated by freedom, human nature becomes more
base and evil. Every character and every movement of the plot serve to advance this
theme, and the fact that is a microcosm suggests Golding's view that this is a universal
truth.