Sheng
Symbolism : Lord of the flies
In the novel Lord of The Flies written by William Golding, a plane crashed and a group of young boys, all under the age of 18 are trying to live and act like grown-ups. Items the boys have found, or already had with them, become valuable possessions which help us understand the novel. Symbolism is demonstrated in Large amounts throughout the entire novel; with items such as the conch, the glasses and the knife, they are able to survive.
The conch is one of the many symbols in the novel. The conch is a symbol of democracy: " 'We can't have everybody talking at once... I'll give him the conch... [and then] I'll give the conch to the next person to speak. He can hold it when he's speaking.' " said Ralph, as he taught a way of having rules and orders to a group of young guys, which was the beginning of their own democracy (pg.31). A democracy is a way of having order by allowing equal opportunities to all and allowing everyone to take part in important decisions. Ralph's way of making rules to a group of boys was phenomenal, because whenever he blew the melody of the conch, the boys always came into a circle to talk about things " 'We can use this to call the others. [And]have meeting['s]. They'll come when they hear us-.' " (pg.12)
Another symbol in the novel is the knife. Jack uses the knife to strike fear into the eyes of the boys, giving Jack an edge over the group; but the knife does not only symbolize power to Jack. With the knife, Jack has the reinforcement to manipulate and control the group of younger boys easily, making them turn against Ralph " 'Who will join my tribe..' " (pg.166). When the knife was first presented in the novel, Jack and Ralph went hunting. When Jack first encounters a pig, he fails to kill it and because of this, Jack becomes crazed with the idea of hunting and killing: " 'I was going to... I was choosing a place. Next time [I will]!' " (pg.29). He had his adrenalin rush and wants more, the thought of hunting blinds his civilization and his personality starts to gain savage traits. Savagery is another possible symbol of the knife other than power to Jack.
Besides the conch and the knife, the glasses, Piggy’s glasses are important to the group of boy’s experience on the island. The glasses, much like the knife do not symbolize one particular meaning. In each and every one of the boys' eye, they individually see a different symbol. Piggy's glasses symbolize intelligence towards himself, as well as being a necessity because without his glasses, Piggy's eye sight would be bad, because his vision would be fuzzy. Piggy is one of the only ones who think they will be rescued, aside from Ralph. Piggy's glasses do not only represent intelligence, but it also symbolizes being rescued. Piggy's glasses gives him an edge, because he knows without it, the group of boys would become hopeless if they plan on keeping a fire. The fire is a symbol of hope to Ralph, because it provides a source to signal planes or boats to boost their chance to get rescued: "'We've got to have... people ...looking after the fire. Any day there may be a ship out there- 'and if we have a signal going [someone might] come and take us off [the island]. ' " (pg.42). When Jack's crew raided Ralph's crew, they stole Piggy's glasses. The boys did not see them as a way to start a signal fire like how Ralph thinks of the glasses. Jack's crazed crew view’s Piggy's glasses as a fire starter; the fire is a way to cook the meat of the pigs the hunters have killed. The group of boys looked upon the glasses as a way to cook their raw meat. The fire is also used to create chants about hunting, and experiences within the tribe: " 'Do our dance! Come one! Dance!' " (pg.167). One of the tribal chants that they sang out proudly was: "' Kill the beast! Cut his throat! Spill his blood!' " (pg.168)
These three symbols: the conch, the knife and Piggy's glasses are much more then symbols, they are ways of creating communication and survival for the group of boys. These three symbols are used throughout the whole novel and help us understand some of the characters. Without them, some parts of the novel may not have happened, or ended the way Golding wrote them.
In the novel Lord of The Flies written by William Golding, a plane crashed and a group of young boys, all under the age of 18 are trying to live and act like grown-ups. Items the boys have found, or already had with them, become valuable possessions which help us understand the novel. Symbolism is demonstrated in Large amounts throughout the entire novel; with items such as the conch, the glasses and the knife, they are able to survive.
The conch is one of the many symbols in the novel. The conch is a symbol of democracy: " 'We can't have everybody talking at once... I'll give him the conch... [and then] I'll give the conch to the next person to speak. He can hold it when he's speaking.' " said Ralph, as he taught a way of having rules and orders to a group of young guys, which was the beginning of their own democracy (pg.31). A democracy is a way of having order by allowing equal opportunities to all and allowing everyone to take part in important decisions. Ralph's way of making rules to a group of boys was phenomenal, because whenever he blew the melody of the conch, the boys always came into a circle to talk about things " 'We can use this to call the others. [And]have meeting['s]. They'll come when they hear us-.' " (pg.12)
Another symbol in the novel is the knife. Jack uses the knife to strike fear into the eyes of the boys, giving Jack an edge over the group; but the knife does not only symbolize power to Jack. With the knife, Jack has the reinforcement to manipulate and control the group of younger boys easily, making them turn against Ralph " 'Who will join my tribe..' " (pg.166). When the knife was first presented in the novel, Jack and Ralph went hunting. When Jack first encounters a pig, he fails to kill it and because of this, Jack becomes crazed with the idea of hunting and killing: " 'I was going to... I was choosing a place. Next time [I will]!' " (pg.29). He had his adrenalin rush and wants more, the thought of hunting blinds his civilization and his personality starts to gain savage traits. Savagery is another possible symbol of the knife other than power to Jack.
Besides the conch and the knife, the glasses, Piggy’s glasses are important to the group of boy’s experience on the island. The glasses, much like the knife do not symbolize one particular meaning. In each and every one of the boys' eye, they individually see a different symbol. Piggy's glasses symbolize intelligence towards himself, as well as being a necessity because without his glasses, Piggy's eye sight would be bad, because his vision would be fuzzy. Piggy is one of the only ones who think they will be rescued, aside from Ralph. Piggy's glasses do not only represent intelligence, but it also symbolizes being rescued. Piggy's glasses gives him an edge, because he knows without it, the group of boys would become hopeless if they plan on keeping a fire. The fire is a symbol of hope to Ralph, because it provides a source to signal planes or boats to boost their chance to get rescued: "'We've got to have... people ...looking after the fire. Any day there may be a ship out there- 'and if we have a signal going [someone might] come and take us off [the island]. ' " (pg.42). When Jack's crew raided Ralph's crew, they stole Piggy's glasses. The boys did not see them as a way to start a signal fire like how Ralph thinks of the glasses. Jack's crazed crew view’s Piggy's glasses as a fire starter; the fire is a way to cook the meat of the pigs the hunters have killed. The group of boys looked upon the glasses as a way to cook their raw meat. The fire is also used to create chants about hunting, and experiences within the tribe: " 'Do our dance! Come one! Dance!' " (pg.167). One of the tribal chants that they sang out proudly was: "' Kill the beast! Cut his throat! Spill his blood!' " (pg.168)
These three symbols: the conch, the knife and Piggy's glasses are much more then symbols, they are ways of creating communication and survival for the group of boys. These three symbols are used throughout the whole novel and help us understand some of the characters. Without them, some parts of the novel may not have happened, or ended the way Golding wrote them.
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