Literary Analysis: Lord Of The Flies

In Lord of the Flies by John Steinback a group of young boys are stranded on an island. To survive the boys decided to vote who should be their leader, Ralph or Jack. Piggy is a smart, fat boy who is not respected by the boys. Ralph is the face of leadership but not the best for the job compared to Piggy. Piggy is the brains behind Ralph who gives the essential idea to further progress the island.

Symbols are often used in literature to drive plot, give clues to events in the story, and develop key characters. They have more than one meaning, and in the novel Lord of the Flies by William Golding there are three key symbols used: the conch, Piggy’s eyeglasses and the impaled pigs head. These three symbols will be discussed by using specific references to the text as well as examining how they negatively impact the characters in the story.

Lord of the Flies is often claimed to be an allegory of modern society. While this is true, Golding’s intentions in writing this novel are much deeper. William Golding’s Lord of the Flies provides an enlightening insight into the true nature of human beings; along with why people refrain from acting upon the evil that resides within them. He presents these ideas through symbolism within the novel and it proves effective in many ways. Through symbolism, Golding can unfold the excellent plot of his novel, while subsequently sharing his ideas on the relationship of mankind and society. Golding uses the beast, the conch shell, and Piggy’s glasses to symbolize the human impulse towards ‘savagery’ and the social constructs put in place to prevent it.

Singer-songwriter Eric Burdon once said, “Inside each of us, there is the seed of both good and evil. It’s a constant struggle as to which one will win. And one cannot exist without the other.” In William Golding’s, Lord of the Flies, symbols are used to represent a deeper meaning to the novel. Three symbols he used are the conch, the Lord of the Flies, and the island. There are numerous amounts of symbols in the novel, one of them being the conch that Ralph and Piggy found.

Humans develop in societies with rules, order and government, but humans are not perfect, they have many deficiencies so do the societies they live in. When a group of schoolboys land on a tropical island, Ralph takes on the role of leader by bringing all of the boys together and organizing them. He first explains “There aren’t any grownups. We shall have to look after ourselves.”(p.33), this brings up the question if the boys will have prosperity or will they succumb to the evil on the island. At first the young boys start being successful and civilized, but chaos soon overruns them and evil starts to lurk over the island.The fictional story of the group of British schoolboys stranded on an island and the decisions they make, relates back

In the novel Lord of the flies, William Golding uses different sorts of symbols to express different ideas about human life and it’s struggles. Symbols are used in the literature, when one thing represents another thing to give it a totally different meaning that is much deeper than the original meaning. The novel Lord of the flies is about a group of british young boys who survived from a plane crush and landed on an island, they were alone on the island without adult’s supervision. William Golding uses a lot of different elements of symbolism to help give the readers a better understanding of the whole concept of the novel. Even the book itself is named after an important symbol, The Lord of the Flies “the pig’s head on the stick” which represents evil. The most significant symbols that William Golding uses in his novel are the conch shell, piggy’s glasses, and the fire.

Throughout Lord of the Flies it is clear that the author, William Golding, incorporated lots of symbolism into the text. Three of the main components in the story that symbolized something else were the conch the “beast” and the island. Each of these components developed throughout the text and gave the reader an idea of the main theme in the story.

Symbolism is a very important factor in many books. The use of symbolism in William Golding’s novel The Lord of the Flies is the most essential aspect to the function of the story. At first glance you may not think the symbols are very important, but with some in-depth thought you can see how it is necessary to explain the microcosm of an island.

The Lord of the Flies is a thought-provoking book with many symbols and significances. Truly, the sows head and conch shell mean diverse things. Lord of the Flies is about power along with the symbols having power too. Ultimately, the power of a person can use a symbol to control a group. The novel and symbols have different meanings that are stimulating.

Phaedrus once said, “Things are not always as they seem; the first appearance deceives many.” In the novel, The Lord of the Flies, William Golding uses different objects to represent more than what they truly are. The symbolic nature that Golding interprets throughout the story shows us that there is a more in depth meaning to these representations than what meets the eye. Thoroughly studying the novel, it reveals the recognition of other symbolic representations as well as the most obvious ones. The most acknowledgeable symbols in this book happen to be the conch shell, the beast and the body paint.

"The whole world has gone back to something we are genetically engineered to do- communication through symbols” - James Woods. This intricate piece of literature called ‘Lord of the Flies’ has broadcasted it’s perplexed topics through a network of symbols. Through the use of symbols such as the conch, the pig's head, and the characters themselves, Golding demonstrates that humans, when isolated from society's rules and restraints, allow their natural capacity for evil to dominate their existence. The allegorical novel, Lord of the Flies' moral about power is expressed through symbols. The conch, the Lord of the Flies, and the characters are all symbols that sustain the idea of power throughout this novel.

Lord of the Flies was wrote by William Golding. This book was about a group of boys stranded on an island. It is obvious throughout the novel that some sort of order is trying to be held up, but every attempt ends in failure. However, the conch shell, from the beginning to end, is the only thing that almost succeeds in the attempt to remain civilized. Not only that, but the conch itself holds symbolism. The symbolisms of the conch is both metaphorical and literal. For example, the power that the conch had over the boys is metaphoric because there is no physical power over them, it is a mind trick that the island has put on them. Other symbolism would involve the unity the boys have which is literal because the conch does bring them together. The overall symbolism is the way the conch

Symbolism in Fiction and Reality Though Golding’s work emerged as an allegory for a specific context, the essential issues of the novel continue to influence our understanding of modern society. In William Golding’s novel, The Lord of the Flies, the conch, Piggy’s glasses, and the island help us understand current human issues. One important symbol Golding explores emerges through the conch which symbolizes democracy, equality, unity, and order. To present this, Golding uses the conch representing unity, equality, and democracy throughout the beginning of the novel, then as the novel progresses the conch shatters.

In William Golding’s novel, “Lord of the Flies”, the use of symbolism enhances the idea that a lack of rigid rules allows the ability for savagery to surface. At first, the conch is the boys’ sense of civilization, so when the conch is destroyed, civilization is as well, creating a new society based on savagery. Likewise, the fire is the only source of rescue; the resource is manipulated by the tribe to create havoc and dismay. Additionally, Jack’s mask is used as camouflage for hunting, but progresses in a way of emancipating into atrocity. The symbols: the conch, the fire, and Jack’s mask are beneficial concepts that lead to sadistic behavior and thoughts, which strengthen the theme of the story.

In real life, common objects that are used everyday are often taken for granted and even unusual sights, as well as ideas, are often unrecognized. However, this is seldom the case with similar objects and ideas that literary characters encounter. Many authors use seemingly ordinary, trivial objects in addition to unique elements to symbolize ideas or concepts that help to reveal the theme of their works. In William Golding's Lord of the Flies, the boys who are stranded on the island without supervision come in contact with many such elements. Through the use of symbols such as the beast, the pig's head, and even Piggy's specs, Golding demonstrates that humans, when liberated from society's rules and taboos,