Lord of the Flies is an allegory. It is filled with multiple symbols which include characters and events. One of these symbols include the conch. It is introduced at the beginning of the book. The conch is an ordinary beach side object, but once analyzed, it becomes a symbol of democratic order. This is shown by: when one blows into the conch, everyone on the beach unites, only those who have the conch may speak, and when the conch is disregarded, all order is lost. The conch is first introduced a couple pages into the book when ralph encounters Piggy and they are walking along the shore of the island. When Ralph saw the conch he decided that they can blow into it and the other survivors of the plane crash will be in their presence. This is shown when he says, “We can use this to call the others. Have a meeting. They’ll come when they hear us” (Golding 16). The conch then also represents civilization because throughout the course of the novel, the conch is used for summoning all the boys to notify them of important information or to have a meeting. For example, the conch is used to gather all the boys together when Ralph wants to gather all the boys to discuss building shelter. From this point on the conch is not only an ordinary shell; it is a symbol for laws, rules, government, order, and politics. …show more content…
Ralph makes the rule that whoever holds the conch may speak.
This is stated when Ralph says, “I’ll give the conch to the next person to speak. And he won’t be interrupted” (Golding 33). This also shows democracy because it suggests that everyone on the island has a voice and that each individual’s ideas will be heard. When Jack says, “But you’ve talked and talked!” and Ralph responds “I’ve got the conch” and Jack sits down grumbling (Golding 81&82) shows that the rules of the conch are respected and expected to be followed. This basic idea was used in the duration of the novel because it was the first rule the boys had on the
island. Through the middle of the novel, the conch begins to lose its importance. Another example that shows the conch as a symbol of democratic order is the fact that once the conch dies, Piggy dies as well, and the island completely gets torn apart, and the kids basically start having a war amongst them. This is shown during the conversation between Samneric and Ralph. Samneric said, “They hate you, Ralph. They’re going to do you.” “They’re going to hunt you tomorrow” (Golding 188). This shows that as the conch was no longer on the island, neither was civilization or order.
What is the function of the conch in the assembly? It serves that people could speak their mind and no one could interrupt while the person with the conch.“And another thing. We can’t have everybody talking at once. We’ll have to have ’Hands up’ like at school.”(pg.44) Ralph proposes this because it gets confusing when people are talking at once and it would work better if there is a panic.“That’s what this shell’s called. I’ll give the conch to the next person to speak. He can hold it when he’s speaking.”(pg.45) “And he won’t be interrupted: Except by me.” Ralph knows that the conch joined all together and he is proving himself to the others that he is a natural leader.
My paragraphs proved that Conch is very affective symbol during the book. The Conch represents power because Ralph became the chief with the Conch and he controlled the boys and made the rules that is fair for every one so nobody would be hurt. Conch also symbolizes democracy because it was used to communicate others, and anyone who wants to speak and nobody can interrupt him. Conch shows the unity of the boys because Ralph made the boys work together with peace and making an assembly when needed. The Conch, which is just a shell that we can see at the beach, which became a very important object in the Lord of the Flies which symbolizes power, democracy, and unity.
The conch shell represents democracy, power, and stability. When Ralph first discovers the conch shell, Piggy proposes to Ralph that they, “.can use this to call the others. Have a meeting with us. They’ll come, when they hear us” (16) and that was the birth of the conch shell. Throughout meetings that are held at the beach, the conch is used as a “speaking stick”.
At the beginning of the novel, Ralph and Piggy discover a conch shell on the beach and use it to summon the boys together after the crash separates them. The conch shell becomes a symbol of civilization and order in the novel. The shell initially is a successful way of governing the boys’ meetings, following simple etiquette—whoever is holding the shell has the right to speak. The shell acts as more than a symbol, it is a tool...
They thought their society was stable; they thought it would last. It all started with the conch shell that gathered them. In the book The Lord of the Flies by William Golding, a group of boys became nomads on an island causing them to take on the biggest challenge of their lives, survival. The traits for a successful survivalist would include cooperation, maturity and responsibility. But if they can’t achieve those traits they will crash, causing chaos on the island.
The sheer importance of the discovery of the conch, in addition to its appealing sound, it symbolizes the unity of everyone. Ralph, again, shows his leadership abilities as he recognizes the use of the conch, "Conch?" "That's what this shell's called. I'll give the conch to the next person to speak. He can hold it when he's speaking," (Golding, 33). This designation shows the beginnings of organization and sharpening skills of the children.
The conch shell represents power and authority. Whoever has the shell has the power to talk. The conch shows how people use objects to give power, like a crown. "Conch?" "That's what this shell's called. I'll give the conch to the next person to speak. He can hold it when he's speaking (pg.33)." This shows that whoever holds the conch during meetings gets to speak At these meetings a sense of order is instilled because the boys have to wait until they hold the conch to speak. The conch becomes a powerful symbol of civilization. "By the time Ralph had finished blowing the conch the platform was crowded." (Golding, 32) Ralph shows his leadership abilities as he recognizes the use of the conch. Ralph begins to take leadership over the boys by setting rules as using the conch to let everyone have a turn to speak.
The conch shell powerfully symbolizes Lord of the Flies’ shift in power. Ralph and Piggy find the shell in the beginning of the book; it’s declining importances parallels the civilization’s descent into chaos and the shift in power to Jack. First the conch symbolizes Ralph’s initial power Golding writes, “most powerfully, there was the conch. The being that had blown that, had sat waiting for them on the platform with the delicate thing balanced on his knees, was set apart” (Golding 22). The conch represents Ralph’s rise to power because it calls the boys to order. Ironically the conch’s loss of importance
The conch is a symbol of order and government. It is first used to bring the boys together, like a call to survivors from rescuers. Piggy suggests that “[they] use [the] [conch] to call the [other] [boys]” (Golding 10). The
The conch was used and discovered by Ralph who is a character in the book to call a meeting in order for the boys that are on the island to join and work together to get rescued from the island. It is a symbol which had a power that leads the group of boys to civilization that will rescue them from the island. The conch makes a loud noise when anyone blows it, and everyone that is on the island is able to hear it. When Ralph discovers the conch, Piggy who is another character in the book tells Ralph to blow the conch to call the others “We can use this to call the others. Have a meeting. They’ll come when they hear us” (Golding. 17).
The conch shell was a main and powerful symbol in Lord of the Flies. Ralph, one of the main characters, stumbles upon this symbol while walking on the beach. From this point on, the entirety of the boys respond and obey the conch.
In his novel Lord of the Flies, William Golding presents a conch shell representing the order of civilization. He uses this symbol to effectively portray the theme that humans are inherently evil and have savage desires, shown through the decline from discipline and peace among the boys on the deserted island. In the novel, civilization directly correlates to the boys’ past lives in England. Before coming to the island, there were adults present who maintained order by enforcing rules and punishing those who did not follow them. However on the island, the conch, representing this society, is a powerful object that demands the respect of the boys in a similar way that the adults do.
The conch shell was an object that Ralph found in the lagoon and was used to call assemblies. The sow’s head is a pig’s head that was chopped off and put on to a stick for the "beast". The conch is a symbol of the powers involved with civilized leadership. In the beginning of the Lord of the Flies, the boys valued the conch and the rules that came with it. The conch serves as an object that represents the sense of public law and power.
When Ralph finds a conch shell and uses it to call the boys from all over the island, they come running. The conch is a very powerful tool. When the boys have settled the conch is used to control the boys and to create an order on the island. A rule is set out by Ralph using the conch, "Whoever has the conch has got the right to talk". This shows the conch's power and Ralph's leaderhsip.
The world is constantly changing and I believe that the world is headed in the right direction. Remember all the classic science fiction your father read about flying cars and space flight? Some of that actually came true. We do have spaceships, although they're not the sleek, Star-Wars-esque spaceships we dream of. Now, some of this stands out, and for good reason. Thoughts like medicine, agriculture, and many more have changed the world as we know it. Some are ideas that we could not live without, while some are mere specks in the history of the world.