Lord of the Flies is a work of ingenuity and experiment.
Throughout the text Golding
explores the issues of civilization and savagery. From The beginning to the end
Golding hides some powerful messages in an unlikely manner. To make his ideas
more poignant, Golding has masterfully used symbols. Symbols are used in the
novel in various guises, in various forms to do various performances.
The first symbol that becomes evident in The Lord of the Flies is the conch shell.
Ralph and Piggy discover the conch shell on the beach at the beginning of the novel
and use it to summon the boys together and who holds the conch shell holds the
right to speak and everyone listen to him. Used in this capacity, the conch becomes
a powerful symbol of civilization and order in the novel. The conchs power, though,
is completely dependent on the recognition by the boys. But when the power shifts
over to Jack, the conch slowly loses its influences. At the end of the novel, the
democratic power system is symbolically terminated by the destruction of the
conch: the conch exploded into a thousand white fragments and ceased to exist.
With the conch gone, the dictatorial system prevails: the shattered conch
symbolizes the end of reason and a once known civilization with all its structure and
ideas pertaining to it. In correlation to the view of the author, after authority is
destroyed on the island, the boys succumb to savagery. In this case, the conch is
the last thing that is holding the democracy together; with the conch shattered, all
that Ralph and Piggy have fought for is destroyed and gone forever on the island.
The shelters the boys made is of another symbolic importance. Not only the shelters
provide safety from wind and weather for all the children, but they also act as a sort
of team building everyone finds worth participating in. It is a way to maintain
civilization on the island. Having something that the boys can call a home also help
them overcome their fears. The very first step to make a civilization for settlers was
to settle themselves down by building homes. This is exactly what Ralph wants to
do too. The map is another thing that helps the boys to feel even safe. The map
would show where it is safe and what things are important to know. The shelters
and map are symbols for the making of a democracy because in a democracy,
every one should have the right to live free and without fear.
Piggy is the most intelligent, rational boy in the group and his glasses represent the
power of science and intellectual endeavour in society. This symbolic significance is
clear from the start of the novel, when the boys use the lenses from Piggys glasses
to focus the sunlight and start a fire. When Jacks hunters raid Ralphs camp and
steal the glasses, the savages effectively take the power to make fire, leaving
Ralphs group helpless. Being able to see and being blind had always been
important themes in literature. In Piggys case, his glasses imply that he sees or
know more than most of the other boys. He is more concerned with maintaining a
civilized and orderly life on the island. He sees what will happen if they arent able
to do this.
Piggys glasses can also be seen as the window that views and recognizes good and
evil. This interpretation comes from the fact that Piggy uses his glasses not only to
see, but also to discern what is right, wrong, safe and harmful. When Piggy loses his
spectacle, he also loses his clear vision and power of discernment.
The signal fire created by Piggys glasses is very important symbol. This fire can be
viewed as a sign of hope the hope the boys have to return to society. When the
flames dance brightly, it shows the enthusiasm they hold for the idea of being
rescued. However, as the fire grows dim it reflects the attitude of the boys and their
loss of morale. The signal fire can be also viewed as the boys link to the civilized
world. As long as the fire continues to burning, it suggests not only that the boys
want to return to society but also that they are still using their intellectualism. But
when the fire burns low or goes out, we realize that the boys have lost sight of their
desire to be rescued and have accepted their savage lives on the island. The signal
fire thus functions as a kind of measurement of the strength of the civilized instinct
remaining on the island. Ironically it is the wild fire, not the signal fire that results in
the rescue of the remaining children. This outcome partially leads to another
understanding of the signal fire: the first fire was a warning of death and disaster
whereas the second fire was a sign of rescue.
There isnt anyone to help you. Only me. And Im the beast Fancy thinking the
beast was something you could hunt and kill! You knew, didnt you? Im part of
you.(ch-8). The imaginary beast that frightens all the boys stands for the primal
instinct of savagery that exists within all human beings. The boys are afraid of the
beast, but Simon reaches the realization that they fear the beast because it exists
within each of them. As the boys grow more savage, their belief in the beast grows
stronger. By the end of the novel, the boys are living it sacrifices and treating it as a
totemic god. The boys behavior is what brings the beast into existence, so the
more savagely the boys act the more real the beast seems to become.
Lord of the Flies is the bloody, severed sows head that Jake impales on a stake in
the florest glade as an offering to the beast. This complicated symbol becomes the
most important image in the novel when Simon confronts the sows head in the
glade and it seems to speak to him, telling him that evil lies within every human
heart and promising to have some fun with him. In this way, Lord of the Flies
becomes both a physical manifestation of the beast. A symbol of the power of the
evil, and a kind of Satan figure who evokes the beast within each human being.
Looking at the novel in the context of Biblical parallels, lord of the Flies recalls the
devils, just as Simon recalls Jesus. In fact, the name lord of the Flies is a literal
translation of the name of Biblical name Beelzebub, a powerful demon in hell
sometime thought to be Satan himself.
