Essay on What Does Piggy's Death Symbolize

Piggy

In William Golding’s novel The Lord of the Flies, Golding utilizes Piggy to portray how rationalization and order can be underspoken by savagery. Throughout the novel, Piggy is the only character who consistently exhibits thoughtfulness and logic even though the other boys gradually lose their civility. In a group meeting in which the boys discuss the organization of the island, Piggy attempts to offer his opinion, but “They looked at him with eyes that lacked interest in what they saw, and cocked ears at the drum-roll of the fire. Piggy glanced nervously into hell and cradled the conch” (Golding 44). The conch, which signifies power, grants the boy holding it the ability to speak. Conversely, when Piggy holds the conch, the boys do not pay attention even when Piggy states logical opinions and suggestions. Moreover, Piggy, who “cradled the conch”, grasps the order that the conch provides. Nevertheless, with the boys starting to show disinterest, order and rationalization start to diminish. Piggy looking “into hell” foreshadows an absence of logical thinking and further oppression against him. Eventually, as the boys delve deeper into savagery, they become physically violent toward Piggy, overpowering his ability to speak. During a fight between Ralph and Jack, Piggy attempts to speak up, but Roger pushes a massive rock off the mountainside, which “ struck Piggy a glancing blow from chin to knee; the conch exploded into a thousand white fragments and ceased to exist” (181). Roger, one of the savages, ends the life of Piggy, the sensible intellect, showing how savagery overpowers intellection. The death of Piggy and the conch symbolizes the end of reasoning and the start of the reign of terror. In conclusion, the continuous mistreatments of Piggy signify how savagery can overwhelm rationalization.

Specs

Piggy’s specs represent how intellectual facets of humanity are a necessity for a society to function. The specs are originally used to start the signal fire, which is the boys’ hope of escaping the island and returning to civilization. When Piggy yells at Jack for letting the signal fire go out, 'Ralph makes a step forward and Jack smacks Piggy's head. Piggy's glasses flew off and tinkled on the rocks (71). The specs begin clean, which symbolizes hope for order in the boys’ civilization. Nonetheless, Jack, who represents evil, breaks Piggy’s glasses. The broken specs are heavily detrimental for Ralph since the task of starting a fire becomes significantly harder. Furthermore, without the specs, the boys’ chances of returning to civilization decrease significantly. Without a sign for rescue, the boys will remain on the island where they will further descend into savagery, which ultimately prevents society from functioning civilly. The savagery undermines the rules and procedures placed by society.

Loss of Innocence

Over time, as the boys become dependent on their skills and methods to survive, they experience a loss of innocence, which leads to the indulgence of immorality. When the boys first arrive on the island, they prioritize the maintenance of rule and order. However, as the boys begin to search for food, they resort to hunting pigs. In Jack and the hunters’ initial attempt to kill a pig stuck in vines, Jack hesitates from the “enormity the downward stroke would be … because of the enormity of the knife descending and cutting into the flesh; because of the unbearable blood” (31). Coming from a society with civility, Jack realizes the severity of the consequence that follows: the death of an animal. Golding specifically repeats the word “enormity” to stress the moral price of death. Furthermore, the “unbearable blood” represents the boys’ innocence, for they are not prepared for the guilt of the death of the pig. However, the boys eventually start to kill pigs as a means of survival, which portrays the loss of innocence and kindling of their descent into savagery. After the hunters kill the first pig, the boys chant, “‘Kill the pig. Cut her throat. Spill her blood’” (69). Unlike their initial encounter with a pig, the boys are now chanting for more death, signaling their willingness to initiate the killing. They yearn for the gruesome details of the process, affirming their loss of innocence. Because innocence is not retainable, the boys grow numb to the killing and progress deeper into the immoral act until it becomes habitual. They now mercilessly and gruesomely kill pigs for their enjoyment. In summary, the boys lose their innocence from the immoral acts they commit that originate from their need to survive.

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Fear

Golding utilizes the boys’ mob mentality to convey how fear is a destructive emotion because it impedes one’s ability to deliberate logically and coerces man to demonstrate animalistic tendencies. Throughout the story, the boys have encounters with what they think is the beast. Over time, their fear continues to grow, which leads them to mistake Simon for the beast, so “At once the crowd surged after it, poured down the rock, leaped on to the beast, screamed, struck, bit tore. There were no words, and no movements but the tearing of teeth and claws” (153). Golding uses specific word choices to highlight the boys are manifested by fear. By using words like “At once”, “surged”, “poured”, and “leaped” all display the angst the boys feel. They mistakenly kill Simon with urgency from their built-up fear of the beast, displaying irrationality and rash judgment. Furthermore, Golding specifically uses the words “screamed”, “struck”, and “bit” to characterize how as the boys kill, their actions are similar to that of an animal. Moreover, “there were no words”, which shows how the mob mentality influenced by fear unites the boys to perform the group attack. All in all, fear provokes animalistic traits, for it obstructs one’s ability to reason.

Jack

Through Jack’s progression on the island, he exhibits man’s susceptibility to evil and savagery without the binding of rules. Initially, although Jack did not get chosen to be the leader of the boys, he does not display much dissent. However, with the realization of his independence from society, Jack highlights savagery in a conversation with Ralph when he says, “‘Rescue? Yes, of course! All the same, I'd like to catch a pig first-’ He snatched up his spear and dashed it into the ground. The opaque, mad look came into his eyes again” (53). Jack’s true intentions on the island are explained when he says “‘Rescue?’”. The use of punctuation reveals how Jack does not prioritize and intends to help out with Ralph’s plan. Ralph prioritizes the preservation of the signal fire, for his focus is on the opportunity to be rescued from the island. Contrary to Ralph, Jack would “‘like to catch a pig first’”, which implies his desire to stay on the island, for he is away from the rules of society. Jack does not have to worry about the consequences of his actions, which allows him to tap into his inner savagery. His savagery is highlighted when he “snatched up his spear and dashed it into the ground”. Jack is unable to control his emotional excitement and uses a physical representation to express himself. Furthermore, Golding demonstrates Jack’s intentions to kill pigs are not for food but rather for pleasure; he specifically uses the word “opaque” to display how Jack is blinded by his savagery. In essence, Jack’s progressive fall into savagery from the lack of constraining rules of society represents the tendency for man to fall into evil.

Facepaint

The use of face paint among the boys symbolizes the autonomy of civilization and the transition to savagery. The facepaint is initially used for camouflage for the boys to hunt more efficiently. However, as Jack continues to hunt pigs with the facepaint, “He looked in astonishment, no longer at himself but at an awesome stranger … He began to dance and his laughter became a bloodthirsty snarling” (63-64). With the facepaint, Jack is nearly unrecognizable even to himself, which symbolizes his transition from civilization to savagery. He enjoys the change of seeing the “awesome stranger” because he is free from the judgment and pressures of society. Jack realizes that with the mask, no consequences will follow his actions. He displays physical acts of savagery as he “began to dance and his laughter became a bloodthirsty snarling”. His actions are also unrecognizable as he acts like a savage rather than a human. In conclusion, the facepaint signifies how one can be free from the roots of civilization and indulge in savagery.