British Socialization And British Moralization

The conch a significance a powerful symbol of civilization.The shell governs the boys meetings and the respect they have with each other.For example as the novel progress the conch, “we can use this to call the others. Have a meeting, they'll come when they hear this.”(Golding 22)Piggy tells ralph that blowing the conch anyone else on the island will come when they hear it. It symbolizes the forces that brought the boys together.Later the conch becomes disrespected and cannot hold everyone together anymore. The boys become savages and lose every resource they have to survive in the island.Jack and Ralph feud “I’m chief and i've got the conch ralph says, Jack responds you don’t have it with you and the conch doesn't count at this end of the

Piggy lectured them by asking how they could "…expect to be rescued if [they] don't put first things first and act proper?" (45), which is something they did not want to hear, this was proven time and time again when the boys not let him speak without interruption even when he had the conch shell. Piggy's greatest asset was also his weakest point; the only way he could relate to the other boys was at an intellectual level, whereas the other boys could only relate on an emotional level. Ironically, in spite of his intelligence and logic, rational thought, from the beginning of the novel, Piggy was a social outcast.

In the first chapter of the novel Piggy finds the conch and comes up with the idea to use it to contact the other boys on the island. "'We can use this to call the others. Have a meeting. They'll come when they hear us”(Golding 16). Immediately we see Piggy coming up with ideas to benefit the boys. Throughout the book they use the conch to communicate with each other in a controlled way. He is using his brain to benefit the others and that's what he’s all about. Other boys in the story are selfish and don't really think about everyone, but Piggy automatically thinks about other’s first. Piggy is the voice of reason as he knows that building the shelters is crucial to the boys survival.

As the boys remained on the island, the conch shell represented a symbol of unity and democracy for themselves. When Ralph and Piggy first encounter on the island, they agree that they should figure out if there are any other survivors, after their plane crashed due to an atomic bomb from the outside war. After Ralph

He also tells Ralph how to use the conch from when he saw it before. Piggy initially discovers the conch. The conch was at the bottom of the lagoon. Piggy suggests that Ralph uses it to call the boys. Throughout the novel piggy was very smart but was overlooked. Throughout the novel he represented a meritocracy.

The Lord of the Flies tells the story of a group of English schoolboys marooned on a tropical island after their plane is shot down during a war. Though the novel is fictional, its exploration of the idea of human evil is at least partly based on Golding’s experience with the real-life violence and brutality of World War II. Free from the rules and structures of civilization and society, the boys on the island in Lord of the Flies descend into savagery. Golding’s experience in World War II had a profound effect on his view of humanity and the evils of which it was capable. Although Golding’s story is confined to the microcosm of a group of boys, it resounds with implications far beyond the bounds of the small island and explores problems

The conch shell is first recognized as a positive symbol when Piggy says that it reminds him of something he has seen at home, saying, “It’s a shell! I seen one like that before” (231 Kindle). This shows that the shell is a reminder of civilization. The conch shell is the thing on the island that shows the boys that they are not alone and that they are a community. Ralph blows the conch shell and soon after, Piggy shouts, ““There’s one!”

He made the conch a symbol of order. The conch brings the boys together for meetings where they can talk and have order. Piggy also makes it so you cannot speak unless you have the conch. Piggy and the conch become very close, as if Piggy feels it as the only thing that has order, from being humiliated by all the other boys. An example of this is after all the boys run up the mountain to make a fire: “'Like kids!' he said scornfully, 'Acting like a crowd of kids!' Ralph looked at him doubtfully and laid the conch on a tree trunk...'What do they think they're going to do on that mountain?' He caressed the shell respectively, then stopped and looked up. 'Ralph! Hey! Where are you going?'” (37). This shows that the conch is a symbol of order because Ralph puts it down once order is lost and chaos begins when all the boys run up the mountain, but Piggy picks it up and starts caressing it, mourning the loss of order. Finally, he stops caressing it when Ralph decides to join the chaos and runs up the mountain after the other boys. Piggy is killed when Roger pushes a rock on Piggy which shatters the conch and sends Piggy flying out to sea to his death: “The rock struck Piggy a glancing blow from chin to knee; the conch exploded into a thousand white fragments and ceased to exist.”(200). This shows that with the death of Piggy, the conch, a symbol of order on the island, also dies. Note how Golding describes it as “ceased to exist”. It shows that order ceased to exist with the death of the conch and Piggy, the only two things on the island that build or represent order, and how chaos ensues after they are gone. That is why Piggy's death on the island helps develop a theme of order versus

Firstly, Piggy acts inappropriately at times throughout the book. “ [Piggy] took off his glasses and made as if to put down the conch; but the sudden motion toward it most of the older boys changed his mind.” (Golding 45.)This statement shows that Piggy keeps the conch, which gives permission to speak to its holder, just to keep the other boys from speaking. Then, in the same chapter, Piggy is tasked with collecting the names of all of the younger boys on the island so they could be counted. When he fails to do so and a boy goes missing, Ralph confronts him; “‘I told you to get a list of names!’

In William Golding’s novel Lord of the Flies the faults of society are followed back to the faults of human nature. He uses children to depict human behavior at its most pure and innocent form. The story begins when a plane filled with English schoolboys crashes into a deserted island and the boys are left to fend for themselves. Golding uses the lack of adult authority figures to make the boys set up their own form of order and civilization. Throught the frightening unveiling of the boys’ ingrained savagery and the hidden perversion of the human mind, Golding included the inescapable demise of order and civility.

Sometimes in society, the people with the most outreach and knowledge get shoved to the side and ignored. Piggy often values his conch shell, gets ignored, and silently leads the group. When a situation gets tough or controversial, Piggy usually takes to talking about the conch and what it represents for him. In his eyes, the conch is a “white, magic shell” and is important to the well being of the boys (11.200). Piggy values the conch so much because it gives the boys a little bit of order, and Piggy himself represents knowledge and order through his actions. Even though Piggy represents all these things, he still gets ignored by the group based on his appearance and the way he talks. As an assertive member of the group early in the book,

The conch signifies law and civilization. Piggy tells Ralph, “We can use this to call the others. Have a meeting. They’ll come when they hear us” (16). As seen in this quote, the conch was used to bring all the boys together, and this shows civilization. The conch brought together the boys which are soon established into their own little civilization. A few chapters into the book, the conch is seen being handed around to those who wanted to speak. This is supported by the quote, “That’s what this shell’s called. I’ll give the conch to the next person to speak” (33).

When Ralph finds the conch shell in the coral reef bordering the island, Piggy identifies it and explains to Ralph how to use it. When Ralph examines the item at first he does not know what it is, he has no idea how to use it, or if he can use it to his benefit. Piggy then tells him it is a conch shell and to blow in it to make a loud noise. He did this in attempts to attract other boys that might be on the island with them. Piggy also uses his intelligence to bring the boys’ attention to the fact that “ Nobody knows where [they] are ” (Goulding 34). Piggy is using his knowledge to make the boys realize that they will have to survive on their own. Because of Piggy's intellect, he is able to give the boys a sort of reality check which is a good trait for a

Piggy has always been the character that holds reason and peace, even if it made him differentiate from the others due to his beliefs or actions. Piggy always had his priorities in order, he was someone to look up to for the littluns and someone to trust for the older boys. Though, he was never put to use for a good purpose; his ideas of savior for the boys on the island and their society. When Piggy dies, the society and all reason follows him. The conch shell is represented in the same way, the shell unified the group and it was always the symbol of a society holding on.

From personal experience, Piggy knew that the loud sound of the conch would attract other people and because of this, the blowing of the conch helped create the island society. Piggy’s suggestion was a catalyst in forming civilization on the island through the establishment of a symbol of authority- the conch. Throughout the majority of the novel, the conch represents the law and order of their “society.” Piggy, who gave value to the conch, is directly responsible for the establishment of rules on the island.