William Golding’s novel Lord of The Flies is a story about how a utopia can turn into dystopia through savagery and breaking rules. Golding uses a range of techniques to keep the reader hooked, however his use of characters and symbols is what makes his novel unique. All of Golding’s characters have a symbol associated with them Ralph and the conch, Piggy and glasses, Simon and the beast, and Jack with his face paint. Ralph is the main character in the novel which means the other boys on the island look up to him. Ralph is very reliant on the conch because it gives him authority and power. The conch helps the boys to create a normal society such as putting hands up to speak like at school. As the novel goes on the conch begins to lose its …show more content…
We first meet Piggy when Ralph finds the conch, during this we learn about Piggy’s ass-mar and his auntie. Piggy is known for his maturity and his knowledge however the other boys make fun of him because of his physical appearance. Piggy’s glasses are a sign of hope for the boys to begin with as they are the only way the boys can produce fire; however Piggy is not happy with them taking his specs. Piggy has one of the most unfortunate and undeserved deaths in the novel. Piggy and Ralph had approached the savage boys at Castle Rock to get Piggy’s glasses back, but it wasn’t long before a boulder was pushed off the top and struck Piggy throwing him through the air landing on his back across the red rock in the sea. This marked the boys last hope of becoming civilised …show more content…
Jack treats Piggy very poorly throughout the novel such as calling him names like Fatty and stealing his specs and using them as burning glasses, he even ends up killing Piggy and Simon. As the conch begins to lose its power Jack begins to gain power through his face paint which liberates him from shame and self-consciousness. This was the beginning of the end for their paradise. Jack believes that the beast is real and is causing concern on the island. He goes to the extent of sharpening a stick on both sides to put a sow’s head on as an offering for the beast, this soon became The Lord Of The Flies. Jack begins to oppose Ralph’s rules refusing to be a part of Ralph’s lot. Jack starts his own group, the savages, who all now have painted faces
Ralph establishes discipline, and order, and shows affection towards the other boys. Prioritizing the group's welfare, Jack is becoming more and more savage, thinks less of others, and thirsts for
The conch is gone-[Golding, 201]. In this quote, Jack is taking responsibility for Roger’s actions of being Piggy’s murder. By doing so Jack now seems more powerful to the other boys, therefore resulting in a more feared leader. Along with being power hungry, Jack has a more democratic leading style. He constantly brainwashes the little uns, by telling his that Ralph is boring and wrong and he only hunts and has fun.”
Piggy’s glasses in the book are not just represented as a tool but as a symbol. Glasses help with sight and sight is a metaphor for knowledge. Piggy is the most knowledgeable student on the island as he knows what is happening in the grown up world and is not sheltered by ignorance. “‘His specs-use them as burning glasses! ‘ “(Golding 52).
To Ralph, Piggy’s glasses were a tool used for fire and didn't really serve much more use than for Piggy to comprehend what is going on around them. “Ralph – remember what we came
This was shown from the conch shattering. Since the conch represents order, leadership, and equality, it breaking shows that society itself is broken. After this occurred in the novel the boys became uncivilized. For example the savages(boys) tried to hunt and kill Ralph. This comes to show that the conch helped them say covered, and keep everyone in
They yell a chant, "kill the pig, cut her throat, spill her blood" which also shows they have lost humanity. This also shows an example of how the boys have lost humanity and begin to act wilder and focus only on killing. This happened because they were left alone with no guidance caused by the plane accident. Ultimately, it is crucial to remember surviving with no guidance can alter human
(Golding 181). These words were spoken by Jack right after the death of Piggy, and it shows that he didn’t care about Piggy’s life, he only cared about having power and living prosperously in his own ideals. Overall the Lord of the Flies is a novel that shows the savagery inside every person regardless of how civilized they seem to be. Whether people want to believe it or not they are selfish and are evil on the inside which is told by the Lord of the Flies in the book. This is truly shown by the conch and its ability to create meetings, give people the ability to speak, and the destruction of the
Piggy’s specs symbolize rationality, intelligence, and order. Piggy’s glasses are used to start a fire and the fire is a key element in the novel since the fire is used as a rescue sign. Later in the novel when Piggy’s glasses are shattered all civility and order disappears and the island becomes complete chaos and filled with violence. The glasses also symbolize clear sight so metaphorically, the boys are blind to civilization. Towards the beginning of the book, Jack realizes Piggy’s specs can be used to start a signal fire and he quickly rips them off of Piggy.
Ralph likes the power given to him, but he fights to keep it. Jack instantly fights for power, and as a result, it turns him into a savage. In addition, Roger is not a chief, but he is Jack’s right-hand man.
During this encounter, while Piggy had died, he held something of much symbolic significance in his hands, the conch. " The conch exploded into a thousand white fragments and ceased to exist." (Golding 260). This moment symbolizes the utter breakdown of society and everything that has kept the boys grounded from the beginning. Following this, the power structure is now gone, and instead of just Jack having a moment of self-actualization, the group as a whole now realizes what has occurred.
The impact of this book on young kids is greater than any other. In Lord of the Flies the story of a group of young British students stranded on a desert island after a plane crash is thrilling and disturbing. From the first moments that the boys set foot on the island, the search for power is evident, and the events that unfold are both shocking and thought-provoking. The use of symbolism, particularly the conch, the beast, and the bonfire, conveys the important themes of power corruption and the fragility of a young civilization. Ultimately, symbolism takes this book to another level throughout the vast ideas that are presented.
Throughout the story Piggy would tell the boys he couldn’t see without them and that he would be lost without them, and the boys took advantage of that. Piggy’s glasses were taken from him and ended up in the wrong hands. They were stolen from Piggy by Jack, who wanted to start a fire for roasting a pig, he also just wanted them so Piggy would be of no help. “‘Here - let me go!’ His voice rose to to a shriek of terror as Jack snatched the glasses off his face,” (Page 40).
Piggy’s glasses connects to his integrity because he acted like his true self when he had them on. Also as shown here by the way he instantly reacted to Ralph. Ralph was in the pool, while Piggy is on the side of the pool, then Ralph squirts water onto Piggy and laughs. He thought Piggy was going to just let it go and not do anything, but “Piggy beat the water with his hand” onto Ralph (Golding 131). Piggy demonstrates the lesson he learns because if Ralph had done this in the beginning of the book Piggy would 've just taken it or try to ask him to stop.
Piggy and his glasses play very vital roles in the book. For example, without Piggy Ralph wouldn't have known how to blow the conch. Another way Piggy is vital is that his glasses are used to start the fires. The glasses can symbolize law and order which is what Piggy represents as well. Piggy is more of an intellectual person that is outcasted by the other boys because he can not do much of any physical work.
The conch is gone-” (Golding). Even the boys knew that their private society was done for, it was shattered with the conch. Further after this event, the group became more and more wild, hunting and hurting each other, fighting like beasts. All sense of logic and rationality had completely vanished, and just like when the Egwuwu mask was removed, the remaining society crumbled.