In Lord of the Flies, William Golding uses fire, a conch, a pair of glasses, and several other items to symbolize the journal from civility to savagery. Through the symbol of the conch, the importance of stability, order, and civilization are established. When the boys first arrived on the island the conch was used to summon and unite the boys in order to form a civilization. The conch also serves as a regulator of democracy, ” We ” ll have to have hands up, like at school… then I’ll give them the conch [to speak]” (Golding 31) said Ralph. This universal understanding that everyone would follow and respect the rules of the conch allowed every individual to speak his mind and to be a functioning member of society.
However, as time progressed the mutual respect for authority and the power of the conch began to diminish. The assembly began to disrespect the whoever held the conch. As a result, the rules of their society began to become unstable. “As Piggy stood on the platform, the white conch gripped in his hands… .” (141), the conch that was once vibrant in color and importance, was now faded and irrelevant. As the walls of civilized society crumbled, the boys gave into their animal desires and disregarded the only element of order apparent on the island.
The symbol of order and civilization continued to lose its value as Jack mocked its importance. “The sound of the inexpertly blown conch interrupted them. As though he were serenading the rising sun, Jack went on blowing till the shelters were astir,” (125).
The Essay on The Second Amendment And Its Importance To American Society
"Americans have the right and advantage of being armed - unlike the citizens of other countries whose governments are afraid to trust the people with arms." - James Madison, The Federalist Papers James Madison speaks directly to the issue of why the second amendment is so important in American Society. The ownership of firearms dissuades both criminal and government alike from usurping the rights ...
This furthermore shows the lack of respect for rules and civilization.
Finally, when “the conch exploded into a thousand white fragments and ceased to exist,” (193) it symbolized the end of moral civilization and authority. All of the strict rules, values, and morals of their previous lives were lost along with the destruction of the conch; thus, giving birth to a society of total anarchy and immorality. A substantially important symbol is Piggy’s glasses, which symbolize the boys’ disregard to knowledge and hope. From the beginning of the novel Piggy is shown as a reasonable thinker. Despite being described as short and fat, Piggy is the most determined to survive and escape from the island in a civilized manner. In fact, he is the only who believes that they will be saved.
All of Piggy’s hope to be saved can be traced back to his glasses. For example, once Piggy is robbed of his glasses by Jack, he and the boys are robbed of everything those glasses stood for. Another important symbol in Lord of The Flies is the symbol of the fire, which represented the boys’ will to be rescued from immorality and returned to the cultured world of civilization. In the beginning, maintaining the fire was the first priority amongst the boys. However, as time marched on, the desire to return to the regular world died, and the boys adapted to a savage lifestyle. It comes to the point where even Ralph begins to doubt his hope in being rescued when he says, “‘we can’t keep one fire going.
And they don’t care. And what’s more, I don’t sometimes'” (139).
The importance of the signal fire changes a great deal in the novel when the boys’ attitude changes from longing to be rescued to accepting the beats within and not caring at all. One of the most vital topics of the novel remains the issue of the beast, which frightened the boys who viewed it as a real object. But, in all actuality the beast was something internal; a residing evil present in every individual awaiting for its chance to act upon man’s true bloodthirsty nature.
its goal with the use of face paint, which allowed the boys to mask their identities and excused them from their uncivilized actions. .”.. the mask was a thing on its own, behind which Jack hid, liberated from shame and self-consciousness” (64).
The Essay on Fire the Most Important Symbol in Lord of the Flies
Fire, the Most Important Symbol in Lord of the Flies One of Golding's predominant techniques for exhibiting his dramatic conflict involves the usage of symbols. Using the quote, the whole book is symbolic in nature; William Golding tries to prove his point by using different symbols that denote something that is unsteady on the island. Lord of the Flies is a considerably emblematic novel in which ...
This thin layer of paint gave the boys’ confidence and justification to commit atrocious acts of violence; ultimately causing them to do things they would never in their rights mind do. After a while, Ralph could no longer see the humanity within the boys.
” He gazed at the green and black mask before him, trying to remember what Jack looked like,” (178).
The fact that Ralph could no longer identify the boys concludes that when civilization is destroyed man reverts to his most primitive nature, thus causing his identity to disintegrates as well. Throughout the novel, Golding develops such symbols as the conch, fire, and paint to depict his solemn views of humanity. Contrary to the belief that man is innocent and society is evil, Golding points out that man is the one who makes up society, and thus man is the one who is inherently evil.
Therefore, laws and rules of civilization are needed in order to suppress the darker side of human nature. However, like the boys in the novel, if one is no longer under the enforcement and influence of civilized structure and morality it is quite easy to give into the savage desire of the Beast within.
