In What Ways Is Simon a Significant Character in Lord of the Flies?

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The author portrays Simon as a very important character in the novel and he is shown to be like this by using techniques and sections of the book are focused on him. Even thought the boys do not realise he is a key person on their development and from the very beginning of the novel is made out to be an outsider and not one of the main pack. In chapter one, Golding says,’ He’s always throwing a faint’ which portrays him as being weak and also, ‘He was a skinny, vivid little boy’ so these descriptions make him seem bodily unimpressive and he is made different because of his fainting, already a cast out. When the boys have had the first meeting and are about to go on the expedition of the island, they decide to take Simon, this in the next chapters of the book will be quite a significant move and will be noticed in why they do this later on. Then when Ralph says, ‘If Simon walks in the middle of us, then we can talk over his head,’ this shows that they are viewing him as unimportant already and he doesn’t seem to be allowed a view on the situation, also he is made out to be quire brave for a skinny little boy and he follows Jack and Ralph wherever they go. So even thought he is considered to be an outsider he still plays a big role in the boys planning and then eventually their tasks/problems/issues. Near the end of their expedition in to the jungle, Simon quotes about a flower they find, ‘Candles, candle bushes, candle buds,’ and the reaction compared of the three boys, Simon, Jack and Ralph is startlingly different. Jack reacts by slashing into one of them and examining the insides and then finally concluding to the rest of them that they cannot be eaten and therefore are useless, then Ralph automatically finds out that they cannot be used as candles, so are useless as well but Simon just stays quiet and admires the beauty of the plant, he is sensitive and in tune

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