Piggy Lord Of The Flies Quote Analysis Essay

Zarate 1
Jennifer Zarate
Yoshida
World Lit.
29 November, 2015
2nd & 3rd Paragraphs
Goldings ideology is first shown through the character Piggy’s attitude and mindset. Piggy has demonstrated that he is the most mature out of all the boys through the way in which he expresses himself and the concern that he has towards the boys’ needs. This statement is supported by Piggy’s statement “ ‘Like kids!’ he said scornfully ‘Acting like a crowd of kids’ ” (pg.38). Here Piggy demonstrates a part of him that makes him bitter and rude. Although Piggy is a kid himself, he gets upset at the boys on the island and yells out “like kids”. This statement shows that Piggy believes that he is superior to the boys on the island and believes that they should

act older and more mature than they are. Golding then uses the word “scornfully” to demonstrate the way that Piggy feels about the rest of the boys on the island. He clearly shows his displeasure of being around people who do not care to analyze a situation as much as he does. Piggy then goes on to say “acting like a crowd of kids” which builds on the idea that Piggy believes himself to be superior to the others and this could make him be considered uptight or annoying. Some may argue that Piggy acting this way was the reason why he was killed. This also provides evidence of Goldings ideology because as Piggy grows throughout the novel, he continues to behave in such a way that ends up driving Jack and the hunters mad. Adding on, Piggy demonstrates evil lives in everyone whether one knows it or not because although Piggy believes that he is providing the boys with knowledge and wisdom, he does not realize that this will build on to the tension that is seen between Jack and himself. Golding also includes evidence that proves Piggy’s usefulness when Ralph says, “What was the sensible thing to do? There was no Piggy to talk sense. There was no solemn assembly for debate nor dignity of the conch” (pg. 196). Throughout this quote Piggy’s advice and ‘wisdom’ appear to be needed by Ralph. When Ralph says “There was no Piggy to talk sense” He understands that Piggy was the reason why he took most decisions and why he was the type of leader that he had become. Ralph also realizes that without Piggy he does not know what to do and is doubting any idea that may come to mind. At this point, Ralph is completely doubting himself as a person. Golding goes on to say “There was no solemn assembly for debate” which shows that although the boys never really agreed with each other their debate was usually the reason that Ralph took action. And now that he has lost Piggy and his assembly he has no resources to rely on Ralph appears to be confused on what steps to take next and that shows that without Piggy he is just a kid. The conch also made up a big part of the society that Ralph and Piggy tried to achieve because it brought hope to the boys that there was still a chance for control and for their dignity to live on. However since the conch was also destroyed, Ralph has completely lost hope of living in a civilized environment like the one that he and Piggy craved. This helps explain Goldings Ideology because it demonstrates that Ralph is more upset about losing the conch than he is about losing Piggy. This proves that materialistic things are more important that the friends that are made since Ralph was This is demonstrated by including the conch in a thought that started with PIggy. It shows that Man is selfish since the only reason that Ralph was mourning the lose of Piggy was because he knew that he had lost the one that benefitted from the most. Lastly, Piggy shows himself to be the same person when he says, “Which is better, law and rescue, or hunting and breaking things up?” (180). This provides evidence that shows that even after all hope seems lost for him, he continues to talk sense into Jack. The phrase “what is better” shows Piggy being mature once more because he is open to Jack’s opinion, although he knows he will not agree with it. Continuing, Piggy also demonstrates wisdom when he says “law and rescue, or hunting and breaking things up” because he is trying to persuade Jack and the boys to agree with him and join together like in the beginning. This quote proves that Piggy remained the same throughout the novel and continued to provide support and advice the boys to do the right thing. These three quotes prove Goldings ideology because they demonstrate that although one may find themselves in a troubling position, they do not always have to lose themselves. Instead they can provide the support that others need. Also, Golding wanted his audience to see that even the wisest person can make mistakes but that does not always lead them down the path of evil.
Golding continues to used the changes that each character goes through to show that although evil may live inside one, a person’s background contributes greatly to their outcome. To prove this, Golding uses the character Jack who grew up in a good home and could be considered stuck up and selfish. Throughout the novel these characteristics are shown through the way that he handles being stuck in an isolated island. Jack first begins to reveal his true self when he says “ ‘There were lashings of blood.’ said Jack laughing and shuddering, ‘You should have seen it’ ” (pg. 69). This quote demonstrates the beginning of Jacks transition from civilization to savagery. When Jack says “lashings of blood” he is referring to the blood of the dead pig. Here Jack is creating a visual for the rest of the boys as a way to gain respect and power. He is also reassuring himself since in the past he was frightened and failed to kill the pig. Golding then goes on to say “ Jack laughing”. Jack appears to have enjoyed killing pig and finds it being a great accomplishment. This later proves to be the start of Jacks “thirst for blood” as he not only continues to kill pigs but goes after Ralph as well. This quote shows a different side to the music loving boy that was presented in the beginning. However, it also shows that although Jack is becoming a savage he still has civilization in him. This is demonstrated when Golding uses the word “shuddering” because although Jack was laughing he seemed uncomfortable and frightened. This shows that Jack has not lost himself completely because he still has trouble killing others without feeling guilty or sick. Finally, when Jack says “ You should have seen it” he is really trying to influence Ralph and the boys to brutally kill the animals on the island. This encourages the rest of the boys to become hunters since they too want to feel the sense of power that Jack appears to have. This quote shows that after a certain amount of time humans began to change and reveal their “true” selves. Jack begins to portray a darker character who enjoys destroying those around him. This change from being an uptight choir boy to a savage demonstrates that men are inherently evil since no one taught Jack to act this way. Instead he is the one who is encouraging those around to become more like him. Adding on, Jack’s laugh was a way of showing that humans enjoy watching others suffer. This makes them evil since they lack pity and are selfish. As the story builds on, Jack continues to lose himself and become someone he does not recognize. “He looked in astonishment no longer at himself but at an awesome stranger” (pg.63).

This quote provides evidence regarding Jack losing himself.

THe first thing that Golding says is “He looked in astonishment” this helps the reader understand that Jack was also surprised at the new person that he saw in front of him. This shows that Jack was not aware that he was becoming someone that not even he could recognize. The word “astonishment” represents the curiosity and excitement that Jack experienced during that moment. The next phrase “no longer at himself” shows that Jack has lost who he was and does not believe that the person who he was before has completely disappeared. Lastly, Golding includes the phase “at an awesome stranger” to provide an inside look at what Jack could have been feeling. At this point Jack realizes that he has lost himself. This should be depressing but when Golding includes the word “awesome” it helps to understand that Jack believes that this new “stranger” will be the thing that he needed to be considered a proper “chief”. This proves Goldings ideology by showing that Jacks ambitions are so strong that he has the need to change who he was. Towards the end of the novel, Golding portrays Jack as a completely different persona, demonstrating that when the evil inside a person takes over they become powerless. “See? See? That’s what you’ll get! I meant that. There isn’t a tribe for you anymore! The conch is gone” (pg.181). The phrases used in this quote portray Jack as a power hungry psycho based on the way that he reacts when Piggy is killed. The phrase “that's what you’ll get! I meant that” shows that Jack has lost all hope of civilization. He is forced to threaten those around him in order to gain complete power, and since Piggy was Ralph’s main idea supplier Jack knew that he was getting in his way. It is also seen that Jack feels no remorse about what happened since he states that he meant for Piggy to die, and based on the amount of times that he disrespected Piggy this was no surprise. Jack is referring to Ralph

throughout this quote since he has always been jealous of him. He then goes on to say “There isn't a tribe for you anymore”. Jack is overthrowing Ralph and believes that he is superior to Ralph. however, Jack knows that if Ralph remained in the tribe then he would have no chance at becoming chief and gaining the power that he so badly craves. Finally, Jake states that “the conch is gone” and since this conch had always been what made Ralph the chief, Jack was relieved when it was destroyed alongside Piggy. However, the conch also provided some control and order, but it has been seen that Jack does not believe in following orders from anyone. This quote shows Jacks selfishness and proves just how far people will go to get what they think that they deserve. It is seen that Jack pays no attention to what anyone else thought and this was why he did not get along with Piggy since he would always prove Jack wrong or defy his authority. Goldings main reasoning for this quote was to show that ambition is a natural human emotion and that it is not taught. He also wanted to include how selfishness and jealousy also makes up a part of the human mind. For example, Jack could not stand Ralph being in power because he believed that he deserved the power and authority that came from being chief. Golding uses the character Jack’s personality changes to demonstrate that the situations that occur in one’s life can cause them to completely lose themselves.