Does the author use any symbolism that is important through out the course of the novel? What are they and how do they affect the plot?
There are many symbols throughout The Lord of the Flies that eventually lead to the theme based on what it/he did in the novel. Some of these include the conch, the sow's head, and the beast.
The conch shell represents civilization in a society, so when Piggy dies along with the conch, all heck breaks loose. Samneric get captured, and a man-hunt is prepared with a "double-pointed spear", which shows that they plan on beheading Ralph and sticking his head on a stick, just like what was done with a sow just days before. It doesn't just show civilization, but it is the actual thing used for a form of politics and democracy. Whoever had the conch could talk in an assembly, which would be called by the conch as well. In the book it describes it as "being shattered into a million pieces out of existence", just like their society's civilization. It CANNOT be rebuilt.
Next, Piggy's glasses represent who has the power on the island. Whereas the conch represents the political power, the glasses hold as a symbol of having power over the other people. When Jack's tribe had the specs, Ralph could not do what he thought must be done, the signal fire. And vice versa; Jack could not cook his meat without the glasses.
The signal fire was more a hope of the kids than it was a symbol, but it is still important. It is their only hope of being connected with the world off the island. When Jack gave the fire up, it shows that maybe he wants to be on the island, where there are no rules, and most of the other biguns just wanted to have fun. But some still had hope of being rescued, and still held the signal fire as a ruthless connection with anything past the ocean that held the island on which they then stood.
The Beast is more itself than a symbol, but still, it symbolizes the savagery that the boys have within. The longer they're on the island, the more they believe in the Beast, but only because they resort to savagery, do they see the Beast, for the Beast is within them all, deep in there, seen only if it's taken out.
Another thing that represents savagery is the boys' hair. The longer it is, the messier it is, the more filled with twigs it is, the more savage they are. Ralph suggested at one point, to get a haircut, to be more civilized, and at another time to put it up nicely and wash it, to look like civilized people.
There are many symbols throughout The Lord of the Flies that eventually lead to the theme based on what it/he did in the novel. Some of these include the conch, the sow's head, and the beast.
The conch shell represents civilization in a society, so when Piggy dies along with the conch, all heck breaks loose. Samneric get captured, and a man-hunt is prepared with a "double-pointed spear", which shows that they plan on beheading Ralph and sticking his head on a stick, just like what was done with a sow just days before. It doesn't just show civilization, but it is the actual thing used for a form of politics and democracy. Whoever had the conch could talk in an assembly, which would be called by the conch as well. In the book it describes it as "being shattered into a million pieces out of existence", just like their society's civilization. It CANNOT be rebuilt.
Next, Piggy's glasses represent who has the power on the island. Whereas the conch represents the political power, the glasses hold as a symbol of having power over the other people. When Jack's tribe had the specs, Ralph could not do what he thought must be done, the signal fire. And vice versa; Jack could not cook his meat without the glasses.
The signal fire was more a hope of the kids than it was a symbol, but it is still important. It is their only hope of being connected with the world off the island. When Jack gave the fire up, it shows that maybe he wants to be on the island, where there are no rules, and most of the other biguns just wanted to have fun. But some still had hope of being rescued, and still held the signal fire as a ruthless connection with anything past the ocean that held the island on which they then stood.
The Beast is more itself than a symbol, but still, it symbolizes the savagery that the boys have within. The longer they're on the island, the more they believe in the Beast, but only because they resort to savagery, do they see the Beast, for the Beast is within them all, deep in there, seen only if it's taken out.
Another thing that represents savagery is the boys' hair. The longer it is, the messier it is, the more filled with twigs it is, the more savage they are. Ralph suggested at one point, to get a haircut, to be more civilized, and at another time to put it up nicely and wash it, to look like civilized people.
Another HUGE symbol in this novel is the Lord of the Flies itself. "Lord of the Flies" in Hebrew is Ba'alzevuv. Does that sound familiar? That same work in Greek is Beelzebub, meaning the Devil. The Lord of the Flies in this novel acts the same way as Satan, even exists the same way. It lives in everyone. That growing evil that tries to convince you to stray away from the right thing. It can sometimes be seen in other forms, but in reality is deep inside of you, waiting to strike. It is the symbol of evil.Lastly, we have a few of the boys on the island. Ralph, Piggy, Jack, Roger, and last but DEFINITELY not least, Simon. Ralph represents order, law, and civilization, which everyone eventually turn against, except those too young to understand why this would not be appealing. It's boring. Second, Piggy represents the intellectuality of civilization, and in order to bring down the civilization, this must first be removed, just like what happened in the book. Jack, then, represents, obviously, desire for power, leading humanity to savagery by attempting to take out civilization. Roger is a symbol of brutality, evil, and extreme blood lust. Because of this, Roger becomes the torturer of Jack's tribe. All these are struggles against each other in society, leading to my theme of an impossible utopian society, for not all sides of the struggle can get what they want. Simon, however, is a symbol for much much more than just an aspect of society. He is a Christ figure. Just as in the desert, Jesus struggled with temptation against Satan, just as Simon struggled persuasion by the Lord of the Flies, a symbol for Satan. When Jesus came to save the world, many people saw him as crazy, just as people saw Simon with insomnia. Any relations yet? Another BIG one. Jesus came to save everyone, but was rejected and killed. Did not the same happen to Simon?
-Tanner-
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