Conch And The Beast In Lord Of The Flies

Improved Essays
The conch alongside the beast have a crucial impact to Piggy and Jack, and to the events that occur throughout the entire span of this allegory novel; without them, the story will not be as effective with the representation of the main theme: civilization vs savagery. These two symbolic objects show us the conflict between the two competing forces that exist within all human beings. The beast provokes fear to erupt onto the island which later foreshadows to several animalistic behaviors, channeling the savagery. While the conch helps establish civil laws and morals for the boys, representing the civilization on the island. The conch and the beast depict the way Piggy and Jack choose to live on this island. Golding expresses the importance …show more content…
As the boy's belief of the beast increases so does their level of savagery. The beast is at first a snake-like creature, but later the identity of it changes to that of a dead parachutist. Showing us that the fear is meaningless; representing it by a harmless figure. From this point on, the beasts importance only strengthens. The Jesus figure, Simon, is the only person who truly discovers the nature of the beast. We see him slowly beginning to understand that, “Maybe there is a beast. “ Simon is catching on to the truth we have known all this time. Being misheard he tries and clarifies himself by saying, “What I mean is . . . maybe it’s only us”(Golding, 126) Simon's words are central to Golding's point as he is clearly identifying humans evil ways. He is the first to discover that the beast is not an external object or creature but a component of human nature that no matter how hard we try and bury its presence will remain. Paranoid, the little kids are certain they see a beast lurking in the forest. The dancing tribe of savages,“. . .leapt onto the beast, screamed, struck, bit, tore.”(Golding, 219) With this imagery, Golding is presenting the savages as animal-like. Jack's tribe kills Simon, the only pure figure in this story, only …show more content…
The conch is the only way Piggy can live on the island, remaining by his moral ethics and not abandoning them. Piggy always reinstates that when holding the conch he should have the right to speak. A reflection of his orderly behavior. Unlike others, Piggy obeys the conch even when fear erupts. Using the fear of the beast, Jack controls and manipulates the boys. They see it as a threat and Jack promises to keep them safe and secure. This scare tactic is similar to dictatorial leaders who make people afraid to gain their attention and control them. We begin to see that the beast is so important to Jack because, in reality, it is something inside of him all along. When Piggy demands his glasses back from Jack, the beast and the conch come into play. Piggy heads toward Castle Rock clutching onto the conch stronger than ever, still believing that the conch contains power. He proclaims that, “I got the conch” (Golding, 259). Silence arose afterward, but that silence diminishes because the boy's tribe realizes that they do not live by the orders of the conch. This results to Piggy dying and the conch shattering, symbolizing that with no conch present, Piggy cannot function on the island since he, unlike the remainder of the boys. Besides reinforcing the theme of ‘civilization vs savagery’ the roles of the beast and

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