Lord of the Flies Topic 5- Symbols That Show Savagery vs. Civilization

1 Lord of the Flies Topic 5- Symbols That Show Savagery vs. Civilization Savagery lives in every living thing, but what separates humans from animals is the ability to hide the cruelty and violence through civilization and control over emotional turmoil. The urge for power over others and possession of what they have exists in the way people and animals act. In Lord of the Flies, William Golding uses symbolism to create a thought-provoking representation of human instinct. With only the need for survival remaining, the well-mannered English boys whose plane crashed onto an island turn into vicious monsters who only care about protecting themselves. Golding explores the major differences between good, evil, and the grey area in the middle where people tend to dwell by using characters, nature, and every day objects to exemplify the development into savagery. While trapped on the islands, the boys need plans and brains in order to survive and accomplish the awful tasks they need to perform. Piggy, the smartest on the island, uses his skill and intellect to provide as much civilization as he can. Because of his bad eyesight, Piggy needs glasses to give him clarity. Golding shows the importance of a clear state of mind and the strength of intelligence through Piggy’s glasses. Immediately, Piggy’s entrance into the story separates him as the only boy with glasses because it gives his character a special emphasis about his intelligence and scientific impact on the island. Piggy’s clear state of mind allows him to focus on every duty he has and make sure that others are able to do their own duties. Without the glasses, the necessary possession of fire would not exist, and hope for survival would be lost. Jack says to the frantic group, “His specs--use them as burning glasses!” (Golding 40). While physically Piggy was 2 unable to contribute anything, his glasses allow him to supply the group with necessary tools like the fire and organization in their new, mini society. Golding uses many inanimate objects to symbolize order, like the conch. The conch brings together the group of lost boys, so they are able to understand what is happening on the island and keeps the boys from being alone. Ralph tells Piggy, “We can use this to call the others. Have a meeting. They’ll come when they hear this” (14). The conch becomes a force that enables the boys to be united and Ralph to be the leader. The stability the conch provides temporarily gives the boys a way to keep order at meetings because only the person with it can speak, but soon the conch only symbolizes destruction. When the group splits up, the conch also shows loyalty to the original leader, Ralph, because he blows the conch first, and those who do not listen to the rules of the conch no longer care about the order it provides. Jack, the one who cares the least about civilization, yells at Ralph, “There isn’t a tribe for you anymore. The conch is gone … I’m chief!” (181). With the destruction of the conch, comes the destruction of civilization and the creation of total chaos. The only civilized boy left ends up being Ralph, but he also becomes the only one left to be hunted. Every other boy, even Sam and Eric who seem so loyal to Ralph, develops into a savage beast who only cares about the kill. The stranded boys create their own beasts that ruin their humanity. The beast enters into the lives of the boys through the fears of the youngest children. Believing that every tree and shadow holds the killer beast, every boy slowly becomes more and more fearful of the unknown around him. With each kill and savage act the boys create, the beast becomes less of the imaginary figure everyone thinks they see and more of a terrifying god who needs sacrifices in order to not bring pain to the 3 boys and the island. Jack’s savagery and fear causes him to murder and decapitate a sow, later referred to as the Lord of the Flies, and put its head through a stake. Simon, a very young and intuitive boy, converses with the severed head because of mental instability from the shock of the traumatic crash. When the fear of the hidden beast becomes truly widespread throughout the boys, Simon says after Ralph asks about Simon’s beliefs in the beast, “What I mean is … maybe it’s only us” (89). Golding explores the idea that evil’s presence in the human mind cannot be destroyed. The Lord of the Flies tells Simon that throughout the boys’ time on the island, the only beast has been the Lord of the Flies, and he cannot be escaped because he resides within each boy. Without the growing savagery of Jack’s tribe, the beasts would be unable to cause harm to anyone. Natural Earthly elements like fire and water normally represent good like survival and rescue, but with the hope for salvation fading fast, the trapped boys fall to the evils of the elements. Piggy’s cleverness and glasses allows for the development of the fire that saves Ralph and the survivors when the officer sees the smoke. Ralph explains to the others at a meeting, “We can help them to find us. If a ship comes near the island they may not notice us. So we must make smoke on top of the mountain. We must make a fire" (38). The fire becomes the connection to the outside world for the island. Keeping the fire alive preserves the hope of going home. If the boys let the fire burn out, they admit that they have lost all hope of returning home. The water surrounding the island acts as a necessary means for survival and a possibility of rescue. Water is cleansing and the boys need it to live, and Golding uses the water to symbolize the chance that a passing ship could recue the boys. When the naval officer saves the boys, the water and fire act as their protection from living alone on the island for any longer. However, 4 Golding also uses fire and water to signify death and the possibility for good to become evil. Fire burns undeserving people, and water takes away the bodies of the kind-hearted in a final farewell to innocence. Golding uses unique characters to display the great differences between civilization or humanity and savagery or evil. Through a huge amount of detail and profound figurative language, Golding develops his characters into categories of human tendencies: intelligence, order, innocence, savagery, and evil. Roger and Jack share the tendencies toward savagery and evil. Roger exemplifies the rapid change from civilization to brutal savagery. The narrator explains the final loss of civilization in Roger when, “There was a space round Henry … into which he dare not throw. Here, invisible yet strong, was the taboo of the old life … the protection of parents and school and policemen and the law” (62). The only thing keeping Henry safe from Roger’s throws, the fear of punishment and old life, gets lost completely when Roger takes Piggy’s life. Good loses to evil when civilization is taken away, and survival for one’s self becomes the only important concept. Piggy, the victim of Roger’s bloodlust and Jack’s anger, shows the importance of scientific methods and intellectuals in a community. Without the plans Piggy establishes, Ralph would not be the original leader and all of the boys would die because of their lack of concern for important survival techniques. Jack’s character develops from a power-hungry follower to a crazy savage with too much control. His savagery partially causes the deaths of Piggy and Simon. Golding gives a special emphasis to intelligence and innocence. Simon, like Piggy, shows high intelligence by examining the new life he and the other boys have to live in a way that challenges common thought and pushes on the boundaries created from a lack of experience and 5 education. Simon also symbolizes innocence and the persistence of a truly good person. Even when facing awful situations, Simon holds on to the morals he had before the crash and the loss of civilization among the boys on the island. Ralph adapts into a symbol for order. Although his intellectual ability is much lower than Piggy’s, Ralph understands that togetherness and plans for survival and rescue need to be a main priority. In the small replication of a community that the island represents, Ralph gives every inhabitant a specific role that, when all done together and correctly, will allow for the survival of every boy in their community. When savagery prevails over civilization, those who care the most about others lose because they do not protect themselves from the evil beasts the humans turn into without civilization and order. Human nature’s many flaws leave room for savagery and immorality to take over someone’s brain when the safety of civilization gets taken away. Golding’s use of distinct personalities and thorough descriptions allows the theme of the mysterious barrier between civilization and savagery to be explored. Defining characteristics like intelligence, innocence, and morals mean very little in extreme circumstances because the primitive instincts of a killer inside every person no longer can be hidden by the security civilization provides. Every main character in Lord of the Flies fights for power over others in the ways they can supply it: Piggy with intelligence, Ralph with leadership skills, and Jack with general toughness that others do not possess. The need for power and the savagery within everyone forces the boys to do unforgiving things and lose all belief in civilization and humanity over evil.