Lord of the Flies, Piggy

The book is filled with dark, gruesome moments. Moments that leave the reader with a destroyed faith in humanity. At surface value this is all true, but after looking deeper into the book many values are present. These value pertain to societal change and conformity. In the book, Piggy is the stereotypical fat boy with the glasses. The book portrays Piggy to be the victim of the society the boys have established on their small island. Despite what he has been through, Piggy makes an effort to contribute to the society the boys have built. The book says, “Piggy was … so full of pride in his contribution to the good of society … that he helped to fetch wood.” (Golding 186). The book also contains values of conformity for the better. The book tells of Jack who became upset with the tribe. He decides that he will break away from the tribe and invites everyone but Ralph to join him. One by one all the boys follow Jack to restart their society; leaving Ralph behind. The boys in the new tribe began to succeed more while Ralph begins to struggle. If Jack did not break away, then that success would have been

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.

At the beginning of the book, Piggy’s glasses are a symbol of his physical weakness which set him apart from the other boys. The boys in school made fun of his “intelligence” and underestimated what he was actually capable of. “Piggy wiped his glasses and adjusted them on his button nose. The frame had made a deep, pink V on the bridge”(Golding 5). This quote informs the reader that Piggy’s glasses are an important part of his identity. Another weakness is that Piggy would be blind and a burden to the group if it wasn’t for his glasses. “Mind out! Give ‘em back! I can hardly see” (Golding 40)!

From the beginning of the book, Piggy is represented as a realist and pragmatic character. The boys are stranded on the island with no adults, yet throughout the book, Piggy acts as an adult. Everything Piggy does is well thought out, and logical. He is the ‘brains behind the operation’. We see this throughout the book. clearly, Piggy is a static character. Piggy continues to have faith in technology and uses his brains to help everyone, and that’s how he is from beginning to end.

Readers are invited to see Piggy as a victim through Piggy's altered appearance. Piggy is unable to partake in essential activities around the island such as swimming, running and climbing the mountain. Piggy’s physical appearance is different to the other boys and he is therefore shown as an outsider. Piggy is described as the ‘fat boy’, having asthma, glasses and no hair. 'He was the only boy on the island whose hair never seemed to grow. The rest were shock-headed, but Piggy’s hair still lay in wisps over his head as though baldness were his natural state.' - (Pg67). In this quote it is evident that Golding uses Piggy's physical differences to cast Piggy in the light of an outsider. As well as using Piggy’s physical appearance to make Piggy an outsider, Golding has used Piggy’s location and surroundings. Piggy is restricted from doing everyday activities for reasons such as asthma.

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.

Piggy’s physical appearance contributes to his position as an outsider within the society of boys. When Piggy and Ralph first meet, Ralph remarks on Piggy’s shortness of breath to which Piggy responds, ¨ That’s right. Can’t catch my breath. I was the only boy in our school what had asthma, said the fat boy with a touch of pride, ‘And I’ve been wearing specs since I was three¨ (Golding 9). This quote describes Piggy as a fat boy with asthma and glasses, while the other boys are skinny and do not share any of the same characteristics as him. In addition, the author contributes to the outcasting Piggy by never revealing his real name and only describing Piggy as the “fat boy.” This proves that in this society, Piggy is not worth getting to

Most people try, fail, and never try again, but not because of their capabilities but because of their personality. Piggy has great capabilities as well as a great personality, but throughout the novel, he has never really gotten the chance to reveal his great potential. Piggy is more logical and innovative than most of the boys stranded on that island. Unlike the other school boys, Piggy thinks practically about their situation and tries to reason with it as well as resolving it. On page 34, Piggy points out that no one knows where the boys are nor that a crash had happened by saying “Who knows we’re here?

To be a great leader you have to be intelligent and that is Piggy’s strongest quality. Piggy demonstrates his intelligence in various times throughout the novel. One of the events is with moving the fire. Everyone was terrified of “the beast” that was on the top of the mountain near the fire. The boys gave up but piggy stayed determined he suggest they move the fire by the campsite. He also recognizes that the conch can be used to form unity and organization. Piggy knows

Piggy in The Lord of the Flies was a very smart, yet unheard, voice. He was a friend to Ralph, and if listened, to he probably would have changed the outcome of the book. In Lord of the Flies, Piggy can be seen as an outcast in three different ways. The first way was that he was never able to talk. He was never given attention, and had to demand attention even with the conch. The next way was how he was excluded from physical activities because of his “ass-mar”. The final way is how unimportant he was as a person compared to how important his belongings and ideas are.

The agony that Piggy is put through due to his looks acts as a vulnerability. Though that maybe his weakness, his strength, on the other hand, is his mind. His ability to come up with ideas keeps the society together and running. “‘Ralph!’ Ralph looked up. ‘We can use this to call the others. Have a

The approach of how Piggy died, resembles how a society could crash into pieces even though you know the right person is taking charge, such as the conch. Piggy’s effort to help stop the madness on the island and bring all of the island into a uniformed community, shows how the world can fight to bring itself together, yet at the end just come back down crashing. the quote “look

In Lord of the Flies, by William Golding, the most important symbols that help understand Piggy are the pigs on the island and his glasses. His glasses represent his intelligence and his ability to come up with creative ideas about how to survive. Piggy is the one who finds the conch and teaches Ralph how to use it. The pigs on the other hand share a very similar behavior as Piggy who is shy but crucial to the survival of the boys. Without the pigs, at the boys would starve out and without Piggy they wouldn’t even be together in one spot.

Piggy is one of the smartest boys on the island, however the other boys bully him and don’t take him seriously (or as a joke), this is due to his physical appearance He is fat, wears spectacles, has "ass-mar", is against fun and hunting, and almost irritatingly worthy. He's also a social outcast

Piggy was a stout boy who was different from all the other boys on the island because he had asthma and wore glasses. The glasses throughout the story were used to start a fire, but also