The painted faces of the children in the book represents how they changed altogether, how the children turned into a mob rather than individual people and turned into savages. It changes their consciousness into nothing. The painted faces of the children takes away their morality.
The beast is in different forms in this book, it comes from the children’s fear that there might actually be something out there, which might try to attack them. The first notion of hostility forms the beast. There is no beast on the island just themselves. The beast is first formed by the little children’s minds in the form of a liana tree ‘ He says in the morning it turned into them things ropes in the trees and hung in the branches.’ Pg 47 This liana tree had looked like a beast and the little children were scared. Ralph tries to terminate this ongoing conception of beast ‘But there isn’t a beastie’ on many occasions when it is said. But Jack does the wrong thing and could make the children think that there could be a beast on the island ‘Ralph’s right of course. There isn’t a snake-thing. But if there was a snake we’d hunt and kill it.’ Although he tries to make them feel safe it makes them feel uncertain of what could be out there. Also the notion of the beast is reinforced by the fire ‘Snakes! Snakes! Look at the snakes!’ Pg 60. Some of the creepers were alight and it looked like they were alive.
Piggy sees the beast is nothing ‘I know there is no beast’ and ‘I know there isn’t no fear, either’ Pg 105. He is saying that there is no beast and there is no fear because there is no beast. ‘Unless we get frightened of people’ I think that this means that all we have to fear is ourselves and the beast could be within us and we could be the beast. Phil, the one who saw the beast first was talking about another encounter of the beast in his dream. ‘Last night I had a dream, a horrid dream, fighting with things. I was outside the shelter by myself, fighting with things, those twisty things in the trees’ This could mean that the fear remains within the littluns but they were safe inside the shelter because he was fight the things outside the shelter and not inside.
The next form of the beast is from the water. It is first suggested from Percival Wemys Madison who comes up witth the idea of a beast coming out of the water. ‘Daddy said that they haven’t found all the animals in the sea yet’ Pg 109. The idea of a beast coming out of the sea was more plausible because the sea is everywhere and all around the island. This beast could be amphibious so that it would be able to creep out of the water and strike the children when they were asleep. This is also why shelters are built for the island to protect the little’uns from danger and the beast. Maurice also speaks of a beast which lives in the sea ‘ink-squids- that are hundreds of yards long and eat whales whole’ Pg 110. This thought is scary to the children because it sounds big and it could eat them although a squid, which is hundreds of yards long, is an exaggeration.
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Simon is the first one who thinks that the beast is just them. ‘Maybe there is a beast’ then ‘What I mean is maybe its just us’ Pg 111 He thinks that perhaps there is a beast but it could just be them who are creating the beast and there is nothing to fear, ‘it is all in us’ he thinks but the children interpret what he says in different ways and the just go back to talking about the beast again.
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When the children were asleep on the next chapter, the beginning of beast from the air, there is an explosion and there was a parachute ‘a figure dropping swiftly beneath a parachute, a figure that hung with dangling limbs’ Pg 118. Meaning that the parachutist was probably dead because of dangling limbs, but this parachute had landed on the island. ‘The figure fell and crumpled along the blue flowers of the mountain-side’ Pg 119. The first people to see the parachute are Sam and Eric. ‘They became motionless’ Pg 122. They were afraid because they thought that is was the beast. They told Ralph what they had seen. ‘We’ve seen beast with our own eyes’ Pg 125. Ralph, Jack and all of the other bigguns went on to search for the beast at the only part, which hadn’t been seen, while Piggy with one eye stayed back to watch the littleuns. Nothing here was found because it was cut short by finding a fort, which they could use, so they went back.
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The next chapter has a hunt, this hunt has Ralph in it, Ralph enjoys the hunt as he hits the pig and strives for attention for hitting it. ‘I hit him all right. The spear stuck in. I wounded him!’ Pg 140. Jack was disappointed at the failed hunt and they pretend to have a real hunt, as a game. The victim of this game was Robert as Jack told them to make a ring round him. ‘The circle moved in and round. Robert squealed in mock terror, then in real pain’ The game is getting out of hand and becoming real instead of a game. Even Ralph gets over excited and grabs a spear and begins to jab him with it. The mob began to shout ‘Kill him! Kill Him!’ Pg 142. They began to chant ‘Kill the pig! Cut his throat! Kill the pig! Bash him in!’ Ralph wants to hurt Robert and so does everyone else, but the game ends when ‘Jack’s arm came down’ and Robert is left to snivel in peace. Jack makes a joke when Robert says ‘You want a real pig, because you’ve got to kill him’ and Jack jokes ‘Use a littlun’ in which everyone laughed even though they might do it if they don’t catch a pig.
Pigs are associated with piggy because the boys joke about Piggy being a pig but whenever they kill a pig successfully; Piggy loses more and more control as an advocate of order. This is such as the breaking of the glasses, Piggy who doesn’t like the hunting in the first place as being worthwhile. And also Piggy dies as well.
They go on the search for the beast again, Ralph, Roger and Jack. They crept around so not to awaken or disturb the beast. ‘Maybe its asleep’ Pg 151. They found what they thought might be the beast. ‘A creature that bulged’. They moved in to see what it was. ‘Something like a great ape was sitting asleep with its head between its knees’ the creature lifted its head and the three children ran away terrified at what they had seen. The suspending strings that held up the parachutist must have tilted its head up, and the body could have been mangled by the explosion beforehand. Ralph told Piggy of what he had seen. ‘I told you a dozen times now, we saw it’ Pg 154. Piggy was struggling to believe this. Ralph told how it looked and Jack talked about sending his hunters but Ralph thought it would be a bad idea because they were ‘Boys armed with sticks’. Jack called an assembly and began to overthrow Ralph again but it failed even with propaganda and he also said ‘The beast is a hunter’ which could mean that they might be hunted.
After this Jack had finally had enough of Ralph and decided to leave him and the rest to make a fire and shelters while he was to hunt alone, he tried to tempt the
children into coming, and they came slowly.
Again they were to hunt. ‘Each of them wore the remains of a black cap and ages ago they stood in two demure rows and their voices had been the song of angels’ Pg 165. Meaning that they used to be good inside but since their stay at the island that have changed from angelic to devilish and they had turned into savages of the island. But they were not going to hunt for the beast ‘Forget the beast’ because he had another thing in mind, sacrifice. ‘And about the beast. When we kill we’ll leave some of the kill for it.’ Jack has turned into a tribal leader, an ancient one that used to worship a god by giving it a
sacrifice.
They killed a sow with piglets ‘She was black and pink; and the great bladder of her belly was fringed with a row of piglets’ Pg 166 If they had kept the sow alive than they would have had plenty of food for the future but because they wanted a kill they completely ignored the piglets and killed the sow. ‘Jack was on top of the sow, stabbing downward with his knife’ Pg 167. She was most probably dead by now but they carried on attacking her until it eventually stopped, feeling now remorse for the piglets they were cold, heartless beings, a pack of animals all moving together to kill and let nothing stand in their killing ritual.
Jack said ‘Sharpen a stick at both ends’ Pg 169. This means that he is going to shove one end into the ground and the other will go the head of their kill. It is to happen again. ‘Jack held up the head and jammed the soft throat down on the pointed end of the stick which pierced through into the mouth. He stood back and the head hung there, a little blood dribbling down the stick’. This is the sacrifice to the beast, to leave the children alone so that they were able to go and hunt without worry.
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‘He was safe from shame or self-consciousness behind the mask of his paint’ Pg 174. Meaning that Jack wore this mask to protect himself from what people thought of him, with his mask on he was different and he was more of a leader with this paint on. With this paint on he is more of a savage and is more like an animal than a human being, skulking in the trees, trying to find his prey. He wears it all of the time now, and is always more savage than he once was at the first time they were on the island.
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Simon never predicts his own return in the book when he is up the mountain, he says to Ralph that he will be safe but Simon never says that he will be safe and he dies.
Meanwhile Simon is talking to the head of the pig (The lord of the Flies). His believes are conjured up as he talks to the Lord of the Flies, that the beast is really inside them instead of a being that can be hunted. ‘Fancy thinking the Beast was something that you could hunt and kill, you knew didn’t you? I’m part of you.’ Pg 177. His thoughts were true and he knew that the beast was something that could be stopped, something that is harmless and can do nothing to them, but it is themselves who are the beast and it themselves who kill each other. The lord of the flies says ‘You know perfectly well you’ll only meet me down there – so don’t try to escape!’ Pg 187. The Beast is in the children and Simon will not be able to escape it. His confrontation with The lord of the Flies symbolizes mans constant struggle to overcome the forces of evil
‘The usual brightness was gone from his eyes and he walked with a sort of glum determination like an old man’ Pg 180. Simon has lost his innocence, he is no longer pure hearted, for within him lies the Beast like the other children. ‘The life-like movement would scare them off for a moment so that they made a dark cloud round the head’ Pg 181, The dead body flying in the parachute represents the end of adult supervision on the island but now it was replaced with the chaos of the Beast. Simon releases the dead body, which floats of the hill and out into the sea. The religious significance of this is that it is a sacrifice on the hill such as the sacrifice of Christ on the hill. Simon wants to get down and bring the good news that the Beast is harmless so he does although he gets killed in the process of telling them. Before then Ralph and Piggy go to where Jack and the other children are staying. Ralph wants some meat but Piggy just wants to make sure that nothing happens.
‘Jack, painted and garlanded, sat there like an idol’ Pg 183. Jack has turned from a second-in-command to a leader, to a god. The children now do as he wishes. As he inflicts his power upon Sameneric, who later on in the book obey what Jack says. ‘Authority sat on his shoulder and chattered in his ear like an ape’ Pg 185. This is like there is a beast in his mind apes are big and can be destructive, as can Jack, he also has the authority to do whatever he liked and to instruct whoever he liked without argument except Piggy, Ralph, Simon and the Littluns.
Ralph is tempted to have meat, they want this meat, a symbol of savagery and co-operation. Ralph and Piggy go there. An argument ensued between Jack and Ralph. ‘Who is going to join my tribe’ Jack Pg 185. They began to argue about the importance of shelters and meat and the fire. Rain fell and Jack began the tribal dance and they began to chant ‘Kill the pig! Cut his throat! Kill the pig! Bash him in!’ Pg 187. They began to make a ring, the Bigguns made a horseshoe shape, this is significant because this is where the death of Simon is. They began to chant again. Simon was in the horseshoe and began to be savaged as he tried to tell the children what he had seen but they did not listen. They chanted ‘Kill the pig! Cut his throat! Kill the pig! Bash him in!’. Simon was also known as the beast when he was being attacked ‘The beast was on his knees’. In the frenzy Simon died and fell in the water. This is just like Jesus in the bible, he brought good to the land and good news but the people wouldn’t except this and killed him on the hill. Simon also died like this. Like Jesus ascended into heaven, it was like Simon’s soul was being sent to heaven as well. ‘Softly, surrounded by a fringe of inquisitive bright creatures, itself a silver shape beneath the constellations, Simon’s dead body moved out towards the open sea.’ This is the strongest notion of Simon being a Christ-like figure.
Ralph still has guilt within him, he isn’t like the other children who are weak minded, and he is stronger and knows what is right and wrong. ‘That was murder’ Pg 193. Ralph is trying to consol to Piggy and convince him that what they had done was wrong, not an accident. ‘We was scared’ Piggy is trying to stop Ralph from thinking these things and pretend it was an accident. They didn’t want to tell Samaneric. Neither did they want to say that they were there either, in the dance. They just said that they left early.
‘‘He got angry and made us tie Wilfred up. He’s been’ he giggled excitedly ‘tied up for hours, waiting’’ Pg 196. Jack perhaps is getting restless and bored and just ties up Wilfred for the fun of it and because he can do what he likes, than there is nothing that can stop him from doing so. He might also like to blame other people for the mistakes that he made and also be another possibility why Jack tied up Wilfred.
(Check on the above)
‘The beast might try to come in’ Pg 197. He is using the boys fear of the beast to control them, Jack reassures them that hunting will help the process but he still wants them to guard the gate to their fort. ‘You remember how he crawled’ ‘He came disguised’. He is saying that Simon was not the one who was murdered but he was in actual fact the beast, he is trying to convince them that anyone of the other children may be a disguised beast as well.
‘They understood only too well the liberation into savagery that the concealing paint brought.’ Pg 202. They were freed of their goodness when the paint was on, it led to savagery and murder. They knew that they were different when they had the paint on and they knew that they were hunters with it on.
Jack and some of the other hunters have taken Piggy’s glasses, now he can’t see; the person who sees the possibilities of co-operation and being rescued is blind. Ralph, Piggy, Sam and Eric all go to Castle rock together. An argument ensues with Ralph and Jack again, but its very serious this time, now that Jack is chief, he has no time for such foolishness. Sam and Eric are tied up as captives. Piggy holds up the conch and begins to speak ‘Which is better- to have rules and agree, or to hunt and kill?’ Pg 222. Piggy’s attempts fail with his imminent death. Roger is the first person to kill but thinks nothing of it; he kills Piggy purposely with a boulder. ‘Roger, with the sense of delirious abandonment’ says that he does it on purpose, and also ‘leaned all his weight on the lever’. ‘The conch exploded into a thousand white fragments and ceased to exist’. All that the conch symbolised was destroyed, the morality of the children, the authority, everything. It was all gone. Jack had no care for Piggy dieing and had no care for Ralph being killed either, as they hurled spears at Ralph. ‘and the anonymous devil’s faces swarmed across the neck’. All of the children were evil, they all had ‘devil’s faces’.
Jack tries to get the twins to join his tribe at the end of the chapter. Jack tries to get that way by jabbing them with a stick, this does not work. ‘That’s not the way’ Pg 224. Apparently Roger saying this, ‘Only just avoiding pushing him with his shoulder.’ This means that it would have been a bad thing to touch him because it may have provoked him with anger. ‘Roger advanced upon them as one wielding a nameless authority.’ He is the official torturer who has no limits and the possibilities are infinite. Samneric fear this.
Jack convinces the two twins to join there side, when they are speaking to Ralph in the bushes, Ralph tells them that he is going to hide close to castle rock when they tell him that Jack is going to have a hunt to kill him. Sam and Eric betray the trust of Ralph, as he finds himself being smoked out the next day. ‘You know Roger. He’s a terror.’ Telling Ralph that they had been tortured. ‘Only Roger’ they say after saying the both of them (The chief).
‘Roger sharpened a stick at both ends.’ This means that he is going to shove one end in the ground and the other with the head of the kill. Ralph. ‘Ralph tried to attach a meaning to this nut could not’. Ralph did not know what was to be in store for him. ‘The cry swept by him across the narrow end of the island from sea to lagoon, like the cry of a flying bird.’ Pg 235. This is like the cry, which is heard at the start of the book, it could signify the end like it did with the start, or another danger.
Ralph was being at attacked from the word go. The bird cry was heard again while they are looking for Ralph. They were hunting for Ralph and they were going to put his head on a stick, the savagery at the worst. Smoke was coming out, they were destroying there island. It was burning. Ralph was trying to think ‘There was no Piggy to talk sence. ‘There was no solemn assembly for debate nor dignity of the conch.’ Pg 241. Piggy was the one who helped Ralph concentrate and the conch was the one thing that was order, and they were gone, it was all up to him. Samneric betrayed Ralph’s trust in them as they told Jack were they were. No-one was left to help him. The fire had engulfed the whole island and all of the animals were forced out of their homes. He had realised what a stick sharpened at both ends was and he longed to scream, a savage came closer and Ralph struck him in fear of the stick. He was telling himself ‘Don’t Scream’. The hunters wanted to kill so badly ‘They were running, all crying out madly.’ Pg 245. Ralph ran and ran, he noticed a pair of legs which were the legs of the navel officer. The savages stopped at once as they saw the officer and the boat. The Officer and the boat signify the war on the island reaching global significance. The officer seemed calm about this. When he asked if any were killed and Ralph nodded he knew ‘when people were telling the truth’. Percival didn’t know what to say, all that had been there in his mind, which knew what to say was gone, they were savages now although not savage enough to attack an adult. If there were an adult on the island, none of these things would have happened because there would have been real live authority, which would be different from the conch. ‘I should have thought that a pack of British boys’ ‘Would have put up a better show than that’ Pg 248. He thought that they would have been able to do a lot better than they seemed to be. Ralph told him that they were organised at first but things changed as they went along.
‘Ralph wept for the end of innocence, the darkness of man’s heart, and the fall through the air of the true, wise friend called Piggy.’ Pg 248. Ralph was upset that man lived to destroy and that he could not stop the darkness which lay in it, and that he could not bring back his true friend Piggy, who had been there for him since the start of the time they were on the island.
