Lord Of The Flies Essays

The theme of Lord of the Flies is implied through external conflict. The external conflict in the book expresses the theme by causing disagreements between the boys on what is important to survive on the island. The external conflict is that the boys are stuck on the island and two of the boys, Jack and Ralph, are fighting for power. Jack is a choir boy with a cocky personality, which is causing many conflicts and Ralph has a strong and appealing appearance and personality. Jack thinks hunting is the most important thing on the island right now, and Ralph thinks shelter and a signal fire is more important. Ralph is currently chief right now and has more power causing Jack to fight with him to gain power. Ralph and Jack are bickering on the importance of the signal fire and Ralph states “I was talking about smoke! Don’t you want to be rescued? All you can talk about is pig, pig, pig!” (Golding 54). This quote is an example of the differences between Ralph and Jack. Ralph has more logic about what is important to get rescued instead of Jack because Jack only cares about killing a pig before even thinking about getting rescued which he says in the novel that he would like to kill a pig before being rescued.

To further illustrate, in “Lord of the Flies” the character, Ralph, is a round and dynamic character. Ralph can be classified as this type of character because of the changes he undergoes as the story unfolds. To explain, at the beginning of the story, Ralph is confident and optimistic when himself and multiple boys crash on an island. He takes control and earns the trust if the group. Ralph conducts assemblies and his words are determined and civilized, “All at once he found he could talk fluently and explain what he had to say… ‘we want to be rescued; and of course, we shall be rescued…we must make a fire”’ (Golding 32-38). Ralph’s words and actions show his boldness to take control and his strong belief in being rescued. However, as the story continues, the system and trust Ralph establish begins to diminish, resulting in two separate groups. The one group contains Ralph and very few civilized boys, and the second group is made up Jack and the savages. Although the groups are at peace at first, multiple fights and Piggy’s stolen glasses causes Ralph to partially change. This change is revealed to the readers when Ralph and Piggy go to the saves to retrieve the glasses, “Truculently they squared up to each other but kept just out of fighting distance… ‘Ralph-remember what we came for. The fire. My specs”’ (Golding 177). During this mission, the once civilized Ralph begins to fight with the savages and he acted barbaric himself. Ralph’s and actions and Piggy’s words show the reader how Ralph transformed the course of the book from being civilized and confident with his word; however, Ralph is now becoming a savage and loses his optimistic attitude. Piggy’s words to Ralph, shows how Ralph is forgetting the idea of being civilized because Piggy must constantly remind Ralph of their mission, but Ralph seems to just want to fight. Ralph’s shift in personality shows the reader that he is a dynamic and round character. Therefore, Ralph’s character undergoes development; however, Brutus in “Julius Ceaser” changes in an equivalent way.

Being a leader is hard work and the boys on the island defiantly need a leader because, so many people decided to not listen to Ralph nor Piggy, all everyone does is fight about little things. At this point in the novel, Ralph is the best choice for leader. For example, “Jack stood up scowling in the gloom, and held out his hands. “But you’ve talked!” “I’ve got the conch.” Jack sat down, grumbling.” (Page 81-82). This example shows that no one listens to the simple rules that Ralph established for the conch and no one can follow them. It’s hard to get everybody to follow rules, it’s hard being a

As the boys gathered around reunited together, There was a stillness about Ralph as he sat that marked him out: there was his size and attractive appearance, and most obscurely, yet most powerfully, there was the conch” (22). The conch is being seen as an item sent from god. It has all the traits in it to be a powerful symbol and it is. As the boys get reacquainted with one another, they make rules and agree, “He can hold it when he is speaking. And won’t be interupted” (33). The conch is now shown as a symbol for order and once again power. It is shown as power because the person who is speaking has the power to speak. The conch represents order because it allows people from interrupting one another, creating chaos. As Piggy is getting bullied by the others, “Then Piggy was standing, cradling the great white shell” (33). Piggy treats the conch like it is his son or his most valuable possession. As long as the conch is in his hands, the island will be in good hands due to his intelligence and common

In every book, one necessity is a hero, and in this case, that’s Ralph. When the plane crashed it was Ralph who found the conch and used it to call they boys together. He was voted in chief over Jack. Immediately, this shows that Ralph represents leadership. He became the one to step forward and take charge and others followed.

Children are traditionally portrayed as innocent and pure. However, in the novel Lord of the Flies, the boys stranded on the island turn from a group of proper, English school boys to uncivilized savages. Adults place a nonexistent innocence on children; all humans are born with evil tendencies. Throughout the novel, William Golding reveals that not even children are purely innocent. William Golding reveals this through the controllability and power that fear has over humans, the lust for violence that humans are born with and the natural desire for power that humans have.

At once half the boys were on their feet … the conch forgotten.” (Golding 38) The fire which sparked interest in the boys, wreaked havoc upon the jungle. Ralph thought of the correct idea of fire for rescue, but the boys rashness caused them to act without thinking and let the fire reap the jungle. Also, the conch which was an item that represented unity was ignored.

At once half the boys were on their feet … the conch forgotten.” (Golding 38) The fire which sparked interest in the boys, wreaked havoc upon the jungle. Ralph thought of the correct idea of fire for rescue, but the boys rashness caused them to act without thinking and let the fire reap the jungle. Also, the conch which was an item that represented unity was ignored.

Lord of the Flies: Social Commentary Everyone is different and yet parallel at the same time. In the novel Lord of the Flies, Golding uses the characters Ralph and Jack to show how individuals act when on their own, because of what they have learned from society. Although they both have different views on survival, they both react the same in common situations in society. The fight for power and survival is found in both Ralph and Jack. Being separated from society for so long changes how they both see the value of life.

He takes charge over the boys and creates a plan in order to achieve the goal of being rescued, or until then, survival. He approaches things from an organized, logical, and practical manner and thinks about being rescued first. Most of the boys want the same things as Ralph which is why they select him as leader in the first part of the novel Lord of the Flies. Ralph establishes his power and reveals himself as a natural leader by respecting, and gaining respect from the other boys while also keeping order amongst one another. He has directness in his manner which the narrator describes as “genuine leadership”(27). Ralph understands and knows the importance of the situation of the boys. Ralph displays these important qualities of a leader by working towards the well being of the boys. He understands that the boys need stability and order if they are to survive on the island. That is why he creates rules and government to achieve this order. “Were having a meeting, come and join in.” (20). Ralph steps up as leader by gathering the boys with the conch and by conducting a meeting discussing the situation that the boys were facing. On the other hand, Jack does not treat the boys with dignity. Either way the boys still vote for Ralph as their leader at the begging of the novel Lord of the Flies, although this soon changes because the boys begin to alter what they think good qualities of a leader have; to something more savage,

The shell was discovered by Piggy, he has seen the shell earlier and suggested to Ralph to blow it, it made a lower sound, which got everyone together. On the meeting place, boys are allowed to talk only when they have the shell conch in their hands. Suggesting that the conch shell became more than a symbol, it was a rule as in democracy and legitimacy powers. The

From the very beginning Ralph was chief, he was the one that most everyone wanted. Ralph was reasonable, understanding, realistic and had a plan for recuse. The first big thing that he did was decide that the fire would always be burning invade sailors saw the smoke. This was a big deal that no one else seemed to think of. Ralph had good ideas, like building the huts for the sense of home and safety. He used the conch as a way to show democracy. Ralph wanted everyone to work together as a group, like a proper civilization. Even when everyone seem to be scared or worried, Ralph seemed to have a level head and could make the decisions that no one else could. Besides Piggy and Sameric, Ralph stayed away from the untamed, savage tribe like lifestyle

Ralph repeatedly tries to establish order and law through the conch shell found on the island. The conch is initially used to call the boys to assemblies and meetings on the island. During these meetings, the person who possessed the conch shell at meetings was the only person allowed to speak: “I'll give the conch to the next person to speak. He can hold it when he's speaking." (Golding 25) The conch shell was respected by the majority of the group, until Jack starts his own tribe of savages and turns them against the idea of a fair society, ultimately crushing the shell to bits “ the conch exploded into a thousand white fragments and ceased to exist” (Golding 141). This act the savages took against the boys, particularly Ralph and Piggy, symbolizes the destruction of civilization through the conch and killing Piggy.

“I don’t know the words,” he spoke. The words rolled off his tongue like tiny little pebbles down a mountainside. The class was silent. Mrs. Ray looked at Philip in a perplexed manor, she stumbled to pick up words.

One of the first symbols in Lord of the Flies is the conch. Ralph and Piggy, find said conch and use its sound to gather the rest of the boys on the island (Golding 17-20). This turns the conch into a symbol of assembly, order, and civilization. Once all the boys are gathered, they establish some rules for any further meetings (21), one rule being that whoever holds the conch may speak while the others must listen. The conch then represents power to whoever holds it. At the end of the story when the conch is destroyed (181), the ideas of civilization and power on the island are also destroyed with it. This makes more room for evil to dwell. Another symbol of order in the book is Ralph himself. All the other boys elect him as their