The Lord of the Flies - Themes and Symbols

Ralph is symbolic of...

• Leadership and Athleticism

• Civilisation and Democracy

• Peace and Purity

• Logic and Reason

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Jack represents

• Fear

• Leadership and strength

• Society's dictators and monarchs

• Unbridled savagery and the desire for power

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Simon represents...

• Weakness

• Peace and Quiet

• Purity and Innocence

• Obedience

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Simon's death represents

• The boys' loss of innocence.

• The victory of savagery over civilisation.

• The fragility of flesh.

• The danger of darkness

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The Beast that frightens all the boys is not real, but is actually...

• Made up by Jack to control the littluns

• The boys' unacknowledged fear

• The dead pilot

• the primal instinct of savagery that exists within all human beings

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The eponymous "Lord of the Flies" - a severed pig's head on a pike - is symbolic of...

• The power of evil lurking within us.

• The shame the boys feel for their actions

• The boys' victory over the perils of the island.

• Jack's victory over Ralph.

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Piggy is the embodiment of...

• Physical weakness

• Nerd Culture

• Logic and Reason

• Intellect and Rationalism

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The conch is a symbol of...

• Peace and Leadership

• The ability to listen to others

• Unity, order and authority

• Dictatorship

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Golding asserts that...

• The capacity for violence exists within all humans

• Without law and order, society would descend into chaos.

• Society's success depends on our ability to suppress our savage instincts

• We should always obey our leaders.

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