First is the conch. The conch symbolizes authority and leadership. In the beginning of the novel, Ralph and Piggy find a large conch shell by the beach and use it to summon the other stranded boys on the island. After that, Ralph decides that whoever has the conch will get to speak and it will also be used to call meetings when it is neccessary to do so. The conch is used throughout the story as a powerful symbol that brings order to the boys and prevents them from becoming savages.
110683 John Abney English 10CP 9 October, 2010 I.C.E. Many people are not good writers, but many people are great readers. William Golding uses a character named Ralph, because he wants to show how much of an ego he is in the book. Golding does this by three ways, through Ralphs’ actions, traits, and motivations. In the novel, “Lord of the Flies”, by William Golding he proves that Ralph is an ego in the book by keeping everyone together.
The Conch’s Hidden Significance A conch is commonly known as a spiral shell of a gastropod, it’s often used as a horn. In The Lord of the Flies they use the conch as a horn. The conch is very significant and is one of the many symbols used. It is present throughout most of the novel and has a very important role. In the beginning of the story the conch represented order then later on authority but throughout the story the meaning changed to chaos.
The sow’s head and the conch shell do wield their own certain type of power over the boys , but their powers are two different types of power. The conch shell is the first of the two symbols to be introduced to the reader. The conch shell represents various civilized circumstances such as order, reason, civilization, law, and just the overall principle of good. That is why the author of this novel makes ralph and piggy find the conch. Ralph and Piggy both represent the greater good inside of people and humanity.
From the very beginning the conch is shown to us as an example of civilisation. We can relate it back to the gavel in a courtroom. Like the conch, the gavel is used to gain silence and create order amongst on people. When Ralph “…held up the conch for silence,” silence actually fell. The fact that the boys were so in awe of the conch (as a link to what they had left behind) and that they were willing to stop talking and listen proves that the conch, to them, represented home and civilisation with order and rules.
The boys aren’t mature enough to realize that they are stuck on an island, nobody knows where they are, and they are probably going to die there. All the boys other than Ralph, Piggy, and Simon are completely oblivious to the fact that they need to be rescued, or they will die. All the others care about is having fun, hunting, and acting like a little tribe of savages. Hunting is what’s most important to most of the boys. If Jack and his hunters would have been taking care of all of their responsibilities instead of just hunting all day, if they would have just been watching the fire they could have gotten off the island before anybody could get hurt, before it was a game of life and death.
As Jack begins to rise to power Ralph no longer has a drive to even speak to the boys. This can be seen when Ralph picks up the conch to call a meeting and puts it down. He puts it down because he fears that no one will listen to him, that all his requests would be ignored. Losing all his confidence as a leader and the order on the island would diminish. After taking into account all of these things it’s wise to say that Ralph failed in his attempt to persuade the boys.
When piggy dies they don’t take inconsideration his death, because that is when civilization on the island is lost and they become even more savage and thoughtless. All in all the symbols that have changed people throughout time, has also changed the boys and the island as well, but in an uncivilized and savage way. That paradise looking island was once peaceful, but the chaos that the boys have bestowed upon it has changed the island forever and its
Victor should have taken the monsters advice and made him a companion to just live out his life with. The monster was so enraged that Victor would not make this companion for him, that he vowed revenge on Victor. Revenge is something that even an animal cannot do; sometimes a child does not completely understand this term either. So how can a monster that no one gave the time of day to understand this concept? The only explanation is that he has more intellect that anyone thought or gave him credit for.
He was furious when he wasn’t elected to be the leader of the group so instead he tries to get the other boys to follow his lead. He has no desire to help Ralph or even get off of the island. When Jack is assigned to hunt, he comes in contact with is first pig. He fails at hunting it down but he soon becomes obsessed with hunting and less worried about anything else. When they’re signal fire goes out, that’s when Jack makes his move of becoming the new leader.