The Lord of The Flies Symbols
The Lord of the Flies is an allegory, which means that Golding implores constant symbolism throughout the novel. These symbols are specifically used to expose what Golding sees as humanity's nature. Golding portrays humanity’s hopeful and detrimental qualities with the following symbols: the conch, the beastie, body paint, and Simon.
The conch shell that Raph calls meetings with represents organization and democracy. In the following quote, it is obvious that the conch calls everyone together, but more importantly everyone collectively respects the person who blew it, "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)
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Golding uses the respect for the yielder of the conch to symbolize respect for authority. Also, the person who holds the conch must be the only speaker. This rule shows that the conch represents government because rules are so closely associated with it. Golding utilizes the respect and rules of the conch to show that humans are capable of coming together and respecting authority, but the question remains, “For how long?.” The next symbol directly answers the previous question.
The imaginary beastie that the children conjure up forces the civil government of the conch to disassemble. The beastie sends fear into the children and allows Jack to rise to power because he takes advantage of this fear. Simon, however, rationalizes the beastie is not real, but exists within the boys, "only us.” (Golding) This logic lacks respect from the other boys, though. The beastie causes the boys to separate from Ralph and his organized government and begin to follow Jack and live like savages. Golding symbolizes the evil that surrounds and exists within humanity through the boys’ irrational fear of the beastie and the effect this fear has on their …show more content…
lives. Golding portrays this inner darkness quite literally later in the novel. The boys transition into savagery by painting their faces after they join Jack’s group. Golding states, "They understand only too well the liberation into savagery that the concealing paint brought.” This quote shows that Golding specifically illustrates that the paint symbolically changes the boys into savages. The boys seem to lose all sense of morals and humanity when they put on the paint because they feel they are no longer the person they were before. In a specific instance with modern humanity, people “paint their faces” by assuming a false identity on the internet and then slandering other people. In the same way, Golding uses face paint to describe how humans can assume a different identity and then are not held to the same moral standards. On the contrary, Simon never painted his face and always displayed logic and morals.
He does this on several occasions, rather it be saying that the beastie lives within “only us” or always contributing to Ralph’s group. That being said, Simon represents the logic humanity can possess in the following quote, “[Simon saw] the picture of a human at once heroic and sick.”(Golding) In this scene, Simon doesn’t see a monster, but only a human. In this way, Simon recognizes that mankind is evil, which shows that he is logical. Since Simon is the only character on the island with this type of rhetorical thinking, Golding symbolizes the good in human nature through Simon even though he is not
respected. Through these four symbols, Golding paints an eloquent picture of humanity at its most basic level. Golding uses seemingly-innocent, young boys to establish his points about humanity because theoretically the boys should not be under any negative influence. In that way, humanity’s true colors can fly throughout the island. Golding symbolizes detrimental qualities such as concealment and irrational fear through face painting and the beastie. That being said, he offers hope for humanity in the form of the conch and Simon. Works Cited Golding, William. Lord of the Flies. Penguin Books, 1999.
In the novel Golding writes, “Simon looks around to make sure that he is alone, then he sits down to take in the scene, marveling at the abundance and beauty of life that surrounds him” ( ). In this quote, it is telling us that Simon is try to find the good in being alone on the island. This quote doesn’t say it, but Ralph was there with him. Being all alone on an island affected everybody except for Ralph and Simon.
The influence of power, or “power hungry”, has had a huge effect on many people who feel that they must be in charge. These people often have trouble being told no or being told that they can’t be in charge. People throughout history have done it in many ways. Our own government displays this when we elect a new president every four years. These candidates often tell the public what they want to hear and how they’ll make it a better place, when, in reality, they only mean half of it and they just want to be able to have the power of the president. In the novel Lord of the Flies, by William Golding, the antagonist, Jack, shows throughout the book that he craves power and feels that he deserves it more than anybody else.
Our first aspect of Fear in the novel comes into play with the Beast. This fictional character becomes the center of the boys problems on the island and brings a long chaos and death. Simon is murdered due to the befuddlement of Simon being mistaken as the beast when in fact he was the jesus like figure and his death was a representation of sacrifice. The beast was not something tangible it was simply the boys because the beast was themselves. Our biggest demons in life rest within oneself, and on the island the beast was just a justification for the boys to blame their wrong doings on. William Golding refers to this using the role of simon by stating: “Fancy thinking the Beast was something you could hunt and kill! You knew, didn’t you? I’m part of you? Close, close, close! I’m the reason why it’s no go? Why things are what they are" (158)?
“The duty of the youth is to challenge corruption,” Kurt Cobain once said. The Lord of the Flies tells a fictional story of a group of kids whose plane crashes on an island. Among these boys is Jack, a choirboy who is eager to hunt and create laws. However, in Lord of the Flies, the character Jack shows himself to be an arrogant tyrant because throughout the novel he acts in a way that is cruel, evil, and violent.
The book Lord of the Flies has changing symbolic values in objects and places. These values reflect humanity's nature to become savage. This is demonstrated by the symbols in their mirroring of the boys. In Lord of the Flies, by William Golding, the meaning of symbols evolve throughout the story with the conch standing for civilization and then the breakdown of order in society, Piggy’s specs meaning knowledge then Jack’s power, and the fire first representing hope then ultimately destruction.
Mankind is innately evil. The allegorical novel, The Lord of the Flies, allows for little interpretation about human nature. William Golding depicts the idea, “evil is an inborn trait of man” (Golding). Throughout the novel the children who have crash landed on the island begin to uncover their savage nature. Although all of the children somehow succumb to a heinous behaviour, Jack, Ralph, and Roger become most noticeably corrupt. Ultimately, it becomes clear that malicious intent is intrinsic in mankind.
Writer Steven James said, “The true nature of man left to himself without restraint is not nobility but savagery.” This quote can be used to accurately describe Jack Merridew, one of the young boys who becomes stranded on an unknown island in the Pacific. Lord of the Flies was written by William Golding; the novel explores the dark side of humanity and the underlying savagery in even the most civilized person. The novel opens on a group of British boys between ages six and twelve stranded on a tropical island without adult supervision. The boys elect a leader in an attempt to form a civilized society; however, their peaceful island descends into chaos as Ralph and Jack continuously argue over who should be the leader of the island. From the beginning of the novel, Jack is seen as power hungry, envious, and manipulative to further his own agenda, the anti-thesis to Ralph’s concern with social order and their future.
When the boys first arrived on the island, their behaviour was civilized and they attempted to convince themselves that they would soon be rescued by their parents. As the days passed, the boys began to open their eyes and realized that sitting around was not going to benefit them in any way, and most importantly it would not help them survive. Because of their new unrestricted life on the island, the boys become ruthless and replaced their previous identity.
Civilization vs savagery is an internal conflict the group of boys faces in Lord of the Flies. Ralph, Jack, and Simon are on their way back to the meeting spot after they have ruled that they are on an island. As they make their way through the jungle back to the meeting spot, they find a piglet caught in a tangle of vines. Jack draws his knife in an attempt to kill the piglet for meat. He is unsuccessful and cannot bring himself to do it. Ralph and Simon question him on why he hesitates to kill the pig. “They knew very well why he hadn't: because of the enormity of the knife descending and cutting into living flesh; because of the unbearable blood” (Golding #29). This quotation incorporates blood and savage-like imagery. The quotation also
“Maybe there is a beast… maybe it's only us” (Golding 80). Referencing the savagery of human nature, this statement is one with great accuracy. While reading Lord of the Flies, written by William Golding, many themes and problems presented themselves. The book really highlighted the use of power, and the types of people using it. People in society, whether they want power or not, can use their authority without the best intentions, corrupting themselves and others into inhumanity. For example, Jack uses his urge for authority, and eventually his control, to create an extremely savage tribe of boys, by pushing his own wants and laws onto them. This type of power can demoralize many people, including the ultimate
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.
America should be a place where being an individual, expressing your thoughts and opinions, shouldn't matter, sadly that is not the case. People are scared to be themselves which leads to them conforming to what people want and what's "normal" in society. As John F. Kennedy said, "Conformity is the jailer of freedom and the enemy of growth", conforming to others means they are controlling you because of this you cannot grow and have your own thoughts and opinions because you are always trying to reach that expectation. You remain under the direction of who you are conforming to and who others want you to be that along the way you lose sight of who you really are and cannot flourish. I whole heartedly agree with this quote because people need
“Earth is abundant with plentiful resources. Our practice of rationing resources through monetary control is no longer relevant and is counter-productive to our survival.” - Jacque Fresco. Lord of The Flies explores how a group of boys ultimately become savage after trying to ration resources. In William Golding’s Lord of the Flies, a group of English boys are shot down while on a plane that crash lands onto an Island during World War II, where without any adults must survive on their own. They must overcome themselves and figure out how maintain a successful society. Through characterization and symbolism, William Golding asserts that man is innately savage and must be controlled through a civilized society.
Like Jack, the boys no longer value kindness, compassion, or empathy, Instead, they resort to violence and force. This is shown when the boys do their dance and chant “kill the beast! Cut his throat! Spill his blood!” (Golding 168) This chant is one of violence and savagery. When the boys see Simon crawling out of the jungle, they don’t care if it’s a human or a beast, their first instinct is just to kill. Another example of the boy’s lack of compassion and empathy, is when they participate in tying up Wilfred and allow Jack to beat him for no apparent reason. Jack’s tribe continues to slip further into savagery. They rebel against, and destroy everything that represents kindness, order and civilization. This is evident when Jack, Roger, and Maurice go to Ralph’s camp, taunt Piggy, steal his glasses to make a fire, and beat up the civilized group. Piggy’s death and the breaking of the conch also represent the group’s disintegration of humanity. Piggy says while holding the conch: “Which is better-to be a pack of painted niggers like you are, or be sensible like Ralph is?” (Golding 200) The tribe chooses savagery over order when Roger releases the boulder that kills Piggy, and shatters the conch. The evolution of savagery is complete when the group’s morals and values become the laws in which they abide
Simon has a spiritual perception, a mystical connection to nature that none other characters possess. He also makes it clear that the beast real identity is the evilness which exists inside everyone. Finally, Simon treats other characters, especially the little boys with kind manners and shows interest in their well-being, contrasts to the cruelty of Jack and many boys who have let their savagery rule over them. After his death, Golding then shift the focus from Simon’s body toward the unchanging nature, such as the sun, moon, and earth that is because the character Simon, represents a knowledge as fundamental as the natural