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Symbolism of Lord of the Flies
Analysis of Lord of the Flies as an allegory
Analysis of Lord of the Flies as an allegory
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Recommended: Symbolism of Lord of the Flies
Throughout Lord of the Flies, by William Golding, the readers notice numerous symbols within important objects and events that occur. William Golding used symbolism in Lord of the Flies to reveal an allegory, and that allegory is human nature. Each symbol represents a small aspect of human nature, and without the symbolism and the allegory, the book would be just a simple adventure story. A few of the symbols written in the book are the conch, the fire, and the Lord of the Flies; all of them have important meanings.
One of the many symbols in the book is the conch, but it’s how the conch is used as a reference in the book which leaves the impact. The conch is a shell found on the beach by Piggy and Ralph at the beginning of the book. Both Piggy and Ralph agree to use the conch as a trumpet to call all of those on the island together, “ ‘We can use this to call the others. Have a meeting’ ” (16). The conch isn’t just an object, but a symbol. William Golding uses the conch to symbolize rule of law and civilization. The symbolization of the conch still exists today, but instead of using a conch, modern society uses announcements over
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In chapter two the boys decide to assemble a signal fire in hope of getting rescued," ‘There's another thing. We can help them to find us. If a ship comes near the island they may not notice us. So we must make smoke on top of the mountain. We must make a fire’ " (38). Not only does the signal fire increase the boys’ chance of getting rescued, but it symbolizes technology and the boys' connection to human civilization, but like all of technology, it threatens destruction; like towards the end of chapter two when the boys accidentally start a large portion of the island on fire. Technology also connects people to society today by social media, but it can also lead to destruction like
The meaning behind the conch shifts throughout the story. It begins as a symbol for order and civilization, as exemplified by Piggy when he states, “We can use this to call the others. Have a meeting. They’ll come when they hear us.” , and becoming
William Golding wrote the novel Lord of the Flies to draw attention to the chaos in society during the Second World War. Throughout the novel, there is a large amount of symbolism that gives the readers a better understanding of his ideas and concepts. There are many symbolic objects in the Lord of the Flies that help to expand his perception of the Second World War and his theme of there being a little bit of evil and savagery in everyone. Three of the most important symbolic objects are Piggy’s glasses, the conch shell, and the signal fire.
In William Golding’s Lord of the Flies there are many examples of symbolism. The conch shell represents order, the appearance of the boys represents savagery, and the fire on top of the mountain represents rescue. These examples are all symbols in the book.
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.
Power as defined by the Oxford Dictionary is “the capacity or ability to direct or influence the behavior of others or the course of events.” In the book Lord of the Flies, written by William Golding, power and in some cases the lack of power play a vital role in explaining the story. The story is about a group of young British boys who are stranded on an island and forced to create a civilization of their own. William Golding chose a conch shell to symbolize power. The conch shell plays a very vital role in representing power and the way that a civilization created by power, can be slowly broken down because of lack of power.
Generally speaking, the conch has represented democracy and collectiveness throughout the novel. Golding uses the conch to highlight many different ideas in the book by setting the story on an island, which is a microcosm of the entire world and the world that the boys lived in before encountering the fateful crash of the plane. The group of boys encounter problems which, even on this island, they are unable to escape from. It is important to remember that at the same time, there is a nuclear war taking place. The ‘long scar’ that ‘smashed into the jungle’ implies that the island has already been ruined permanently. It seems as though the attempt to remove the boys from a war-filled world has failed because the island is already contaminated by the crash of the plane, which was shot down by an enemy plane, this is somewhat related to warfare. The boys now need to survive on the island and this causes problems revolving around social order, as there are no adults present. In that case, some of the problems are attempted to be resolved by using the conch.
Without order in any society, things are bond to fall apart. Having order is like having rules, without them there is no structure. The situation is similar to being in school, when students don’t raise their hand before they speak; the classroom becomes more complex and has no type of order. This relates to the boys on the island going from using him conch to not using the conch anymore. As time went on the boys became more like savages, this can be seen through the destruction of the conch. With the conch losing its power, the society began to tear apart on the island.
In the novel Lord of the Flies, author William Golding tells a story about a group of conservative boys who get stranded on an island after a plane crash. The boys are left to take care of themselves by finding food, water, and setting up a social system to keep order. The boys had to do this because there were no adults to guide them. The boys establish rules to keep everything on the island under control. Eventually the boys break these rules to accommodate their own selfish wants and needs. When the rules are broken the order on the island falls apart and a violent fight for power begins. Lord of the flies was published during the era of the cold war. The cold war was a tension for power between Russia and the U.S., a dictatorship and a democracy. Just like the struggle for power in the cold war, the novel Lord of the Flies also has a struggle for power between a dictatorship and a democracy. In order to convey order, Golding uses the conch to symbolize how fragile society and its rules can be.
The conch symbolizes power because it is the only thing that can bring all of the boys together. In the beginning of Lord of the Flies, Piggy shows Ralph how to blow into the conch shell. “By the time Ralph finished blowing the Conch the platform was crowded.” (Golding 32). Whenever Ralph blows the conch, all of the boys come together and they have a meeting where they all talk to each other about what is the best decision to make. In those meetings, whoever is holding the
The first symbol, which is used all throughout the book, is the symbol of the Conch. The conch was a large shell which piggy had first unearthed on the island. The conch shows powers all throughout the book and always commands respect form the boys due to its importance. The importance and power would best be compared to that of a congregation when a Rabbi removes the torah from the ark, which holds it. The first quote which best shows the importance of the conch is when it is used by Ralph and Piggy to summon all the boys together when they find themselves alone on the island. "The Conch, we can use this to call the others. Have a meeting they'll come when they hear us- (16)." Then again at the second meeting we see how the boys are drawn to the Conch and how it is like a magnet to the boys, which draws them to who ever uses it. "By the time Ralph had finished blowing the conch the platform was crowded (32)." The conch also shows the first idea of civilization and rules. One example is when there is disorder because everyone I talking at once. "Conch, that's what the shell is called. I'll give the conch to the next person who speaks. He can hold when he is speaking (33)." Finally the conch is used for is to show how Piggy does so much to help them and does not get credit for it. It was used that way when Piggy was the first one to see the Conch and Piggy was the one who knew what it was and instructed Ralph on how to use it.
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
One of the most important themes running through the whole story in Lord of the Flies by William Golding is the power of different symbols. Golding frequently uses symbolism, which is the practice of using symbols, especially by investing in things with a symbolic meaning. The main point of each symbol is its use and its effect on each of the characters. They help shape who the characters are and what they will be. The symbols weave their way throughout the story and are more powerful than they first seem.
The conch was one of the first signs of symbolism to show up. In the beginning of the book the conch held great power, and you could only speak to the group if you held the shell. Due to that rule in start of their time on the island the conch beheld great power. They used the conch as a sense of civilization. The conch “governed” the boys. But as they spent more time on the island the influence faded. In chapter 10 when Jack stole piggys glasses to have fire instead of the conch it shows how value the shell. The conch is one of the only thing that showed authority, and when it broke the island when to chaos.
Thought out history, there has been an eerie question thats been ceased to be answered; Is man involuntarily savage? In the book Lord of the Flies by William Golding, Golding addresses this question. The book is set placed on a deserted Island during the devastating and tragic World War II. Schoolboys from Great Britain were being evacuated when their plane is shot down. The only surviving boys are stranded with no adult milieu to cultivate them and are therefore are victims of the non existing dexterous society. Golding uses the Conch to symbolize the concept of society. Throughout the novel, the boys relationship with the conch displays Golding theme that once civilization ceases to exist one will become savage.
In the Lord of the Flies, William Golding uses a variety of symbols to represent ideas, or abstract notions or conceptions about people, places, and things. A symbol, according to the Webster's Dictionary, is an object that stands for something in addition to its literal meaning. In the book, there is a continual breakdown of society and civilization on the island. During this breakdown, Golding uses symbolism to further explain the process. Some of the things he symbolizes in the novel are the island itself, the conch, the boys clothing, and the violence.