Symbol of the Conch in Lord of the Flies Essay

The biggest, and one of the most influential symbols in the book, the conch, plays a major role in showing the boys decline into savagery. When Lord of the Flies begins the first characters we see are Ralph and Piggy, Piggy being the first to discover a conch shell, that he gives to Ralph who says, “Seems to me we need to have a chief to decide things” (22). This marks the first

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

Ralph is a character whose actions make him represent democracy. In chapter 2, Ralph establishes a rule that whoever holds the conch may speak at the assembly. “That’s what this shell's called. I’ll give the conch to the next person to speak. He can hold it when he’s speaking”(31). By establishing this rule, Ralph planted the foundation of democracy for the boys. Later in the story, even though Jack draws most of the boys into savagery, Ralph still held onto the belief

The Lord of the Flies, written by William Golding, is thought-provoking, profound, and symbolic. Many symbols in this novel are extremely important to the plot; for instance, the conch shell. On the one hand, the conch shell in this novel is just that, a shell. On the other hand, it holds a great deal of importance for the boys in this novel and the readers of this story.

Ralph begins to lose faith for his tribe as no one is following the rules and is keeping up with the civilization. In the excerpt ““When the meeting was over they’d work for five minutes, then wander off or go hunting.”” ( Golding 70) Ralph notices that the conch isn't really being treated well as no one is being involved in the civilization that everyone agreed. Since this is where everyone is starting to follow Jack, I think the kids have been doing their own thing as Jack has previously mentioned that he doesn't think that the conch is nothing to him. In Ralph’s speech, he says ““If I blow the conch and they don’t come back; then we’ve had it. We shan’t keep the fire going. We’ll be like animals. We’ll never be rescued.”” (130) The conch symbolizes as an object at this point as he realizes that the conch has no power at this point. From this, we can say that Ralph’s dynamic about the conch as he sees the conch differently throughout the

“‘I’ll give the conch to the next person to speak. He can hold it when he’s speaking’” (33). With the conch Ralph is able to set down basic rules, like having the conch when wanting to speak. Because of this the boys are orderly, and can stay

In the book, Lord of the Flies by William Golding, the conch is a motif for the boys stuck on the island. It plays the role or power and civilization. The conch shell goes from being the most important thing on the island to nothing. As the book progresses the conch loses its power.

"A conch he called it. He used to blow it and his mum would come. It's ever so valuable" – Piggy, Lord of the Flies. The conch is a sea creature, its shell is revered in many cultures such as Hinduism and Buddhism for its beauty and the sound it makes. The conch is also that shell in Lord of the Flies which is blown into to gather the boys. The author, William Golding, uses the conch to show that democracy will succumb to rule by force in the face of serious trouble or need. In the book, it is a symbol of democratic power but it is not without its enemies who eventually overrule it.

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

In The Lord of the Flies, Golding used several symbolic items in the story. The three most symbolic items was the conch shell, Piggy’s glasses, and the fire. These symbols play an important role is surviving and a “united” civilization on this island. The conch helped them signal the boys on to the island and helped kept order to the meetings. Piggy’s glasses provided fire, and the fire was the main essential of keeping alive.

The conch shell is a very important symbol in the book Lord of the Flies. The shell symbolizes order, civilization, and power. The conch shell was an attempt at keeping everything in order and making a civilized program to run the island. The rule of the conch was that when they had meetings, whoever was holding the shell was the only one that could speak. This makes whoever was holding the conch powerful. The conch was well respected by everyone and worked for a while. Soon as time past all the boys became far too savage to be controlled by a conch shell. All the civilization that they ever had was gone. Another symbol in the Lord of the Flies was the face paint. It was first brought up when Jack wanted to hunt for pigs but they could see his pink face in-between the trees. He had a good idea of painting his face so he could camouflage. Once he puts on the paint he doesn’t just look different, he begins to act different. It’s almost as if the face paint brought out his inner savage.

The conch, although we see it as an object it has much power. It is used to summon the boys for meetings and whoever holds it has the power to speak. The conch symbolizes power and Ralph who is leader mostly has possession of it. “Immediately the thing sounded. A deep, harsh note boomed under the palms, spread through the intricacies of the forest…”(pg.17). That was the moment Ralph blew the conch and brought all the boys together, making him leader of all the boys. It was a very important part of the story, but there are much more things to discuss.

1. The conch symbolizes respect and order in the Lord of the Flies. Whoever holds the conch is to be heard and respected. The fire, however, is a symbol of hope. If you keep the fire going, you have your opportunity to be rescued.

Some actions made my individuals not only has an effect on the people around them, but the objects close by as well. This important object or sign, can all be based upon the people using it, and also be in relation to its environment and surroundings. In the novel, The Lord of the Flies, the author, William Golding uses a conch shell to represent different meanings throughout his novel. The message in each of the different meanings of the conch, show how a group of young, British boys are changing their behavior and personality deeper into the novel. The conch in the Lord of the Flies, begins as a sign of authority, becomes a symbol of disorganization, and concludes to transform into a weapon of death.

In William Golding’s novel, The Lord of the Flies, the conch symbolizes a form of government, but as this symbol’s physical appearance fades, so does the humanity of the characters inhabited on the island. The conch is first found by Ralph and Piggy who are swimming and see it in the clear water. The boys fish out the conch and marvel at its’ beauty. Later on, they figure out how to blow the conch to make a trumpet-like sound. While doing this, all the other schoolboys stranded on the island hear it and come running. The conch is what brought all the boys together and unified them. Also, the conch is introduced and talked about as an item of value. All the boys honor and respect the conch. The conch shows a sense of government because