A View To A Death Character Analysis

-Right off the bat, the chapter title, “A View to a Death,” makes me think that someone is going to die in this chapter. It is also kind of foreshadowing the events that happen in the chapter.

-There is a lot of pathetic fallacy used to reflect the mood of the boys, such as “the air was ready to explode.” I think Golding also used this bad weather to foreshadow conflict and bad things in the future.

-Simon is described to have “lost his usual brightness from his eyes,” signalling how he as a person is starting to deteriorate. Also, because Simon is meant to represent goodness, I believe it also shows how goodness is starting to face, and evil is taking over.

-Simon is also described as “walking with a sort of glum determination like an old man,” which I think relates back to when Golding writes, “the infinite cynicism of adult life;” he realized that without order, the evil of human nature coming out will be inevitable, and he has lost hope.

-There is more pathetic fallacy as Golding writes that there are clouds coming in.

-The soldier can be interoperated as a physical version of “the beast,” as it has caused fear in all the boys, and ultimately brought out the worst of everyone. Would the boys still be together if the pilot had landed and scared everyone into thinking there was a beast?

-Piggy yells, “Stop it!” when Ralph throws water at him, which is a big step for him, as he is standing up for himself. He also throws water back at Ralph, which shows he is fighting back, and kind of shows that even Piggy is becoming less civilized, although the other boys’ version of being uncivilized far outweighs Piggy’s.

-Jack seems to have gone crazy with this leadership, as he is described as sitting on his own log, surrounded by food; h...

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...is still very much civilized.

-There is more proof that Ralph is forgetting the importance of fire and losing connection to civilization, as Golding describes it as a “curtain flapping in his head.” This imagery creates a clear picture in the reader’s mind as to what Ralph is experiencing.

-I think this page emphasizes how dire the situation is on the island for the non-savages, as Sam and Eric are fighting, two boys who are practically one person. I believe it shows how the boys are starting to fight themselves and their sanity, as they have practically nothing anymore.

-I believe that Jack taking Piggy’s glasses symbolizes that Piggy is even more useless now, and is a huge blow to Ralph, as he relies on Piggy for much of his decision making. I think it may also foreshadow Piggy’s death, as they are practically taking a part of him, and that he may be next.