How To Kill Simon In Lord Of The Flies

601 Words3 Pages
The brutal murder of Simon in Lord of the Flies by William Golding brought different reactions from Jack’s tribe and Ralph’s group. In some ways they were very similar, and in some ways they were very different. Ralph’s group had acknowledged that the kids did in fact kill Simon, but they do not want to admit to themselves that they were somehow involved, or that it was their fault. Piggy is insisting that it was all an accident. When discussing the situation with Ralph, Piggy insists, “’It was an accident’ said Piggy suddenly, ‘that’s what it was. An accident.’… ‘Coming in the dark- he hadn’t no business crawling like that out of the dark. He was batty. He asked for it.’ He gesticulated widely again. ‘It was an accident.’” (157). Piggy is trying to find some excuse for what…show more content…
They all got caught up in the frenzy of the dance and were not thinking clearly. Ralph’s group is scared by what they have done. They do not want to admit to what they have done because it frightens them to think that they have become so savage as to kill one of their own friends. Ralph confides in Piggy, “’I’m frightened. Of us. I want to go home. Oh God, I want to go home.’” (157). Ralph wants to get off of the island and go home because he sees what the island is doing to them. It scares him to see what they are capable of. These are things that they never would have even imagined they could do before they became stranded on the island. They have become uncivilized savages. On the other hand, Jack’s tribe has not admitted that Simon is dead at all. Jack says that the “beast” escaped, and they did not kill him. Jack denies it when a boy asks if they slayed the beast. Stanley asks, “’But didn’t we, didn’t we--?’ He squirmed and looked down. ‘No!’ In the silence that followed, each savage flinched away from his individual memory. ‘No! How could we- kill- it?’”
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