'Lord of the Flies': Simon Essay.

'Lord of the Flies': Simon Essay In this essay I will examine the character of Simon and his role in Lord of the Flies. Lord of the flies is the story of a group of public school boy that have been stranded on a desert island. This takes place in the backdrop of the cold war. The island is a microcosm within the macrocosm of the world beyond. At first it appears to mirror the outer world in some respect, but then the boys turn into savages. As the island represented the larger world, and as the island gets destroyed at the end of the story, it could be viewed that the book is suggesting possible world destruction. Simon's first appearance in Lord of the Flies is him fainting, probably from the heat. Because of this Simon appears to be a week character, who is not robust. For example " he smiled palidly" he is almost dazed after he faints. In the first chapter Simon is largely over looked and described as a weak boy; "He was a small, skinny boy, his chin pointed, and his eyes so bright they had deceived Ralph into thinking him delightfully gay and wicked.", this description as well as him fainting in his introduction makes him appear weak. Another thing that makes Simon look physically weak, at first impression is what Jack says when Simon faints; " He's always throwing a faint", this gives the impression that as well as physically weak, he is mentally weak, 'throwing' gives

  • Word count: 1786
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
Access this essay

The Character of Simon in Lord of the Flies

Explore the ways a minor character is presented in Lord of The Flies Golding creates all his character to help him portray his idea of human nature and the character of Simon is no exception to this. Although a minor character he is still crucial in William Goldings’ story of ‘Lord of The Flies’. Simon is used to represent the truth to human nature and to act as extrasensory character into human natures raw state and some even say the character Simon portrays many characteristics similar to those demonstrated by Jesus Christ. Simon first appears in the first chapter as the “choir boy who had fainted” and Golding has presented him like this to illustrate to the reader that Simon is very different from the other boys in the novel. He has a physical frailty, which allows the reader to understand from the offset that Simon is not going to be able to go along with the other boys in the activities, so already the reader gets a sense that Simon is quite a solitary character, which is something that becomes clearer later on. Simon faints due to the heat of the island and by having Simon affected so quickly the reader can see that it is clear Simon will probably be one of the most affected by the island. Simon is different from the other boys not only due to his physical frailty, manifested in his fainting spells, but also in his “consistently expressed concern” for

  • Word count: 966
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
Access this essay

Discuss the role of Simon in Lord of the Flies

Discuss the role of Simon in 'Lord of the Flies' The basic principle of Lord of the Flies is that humans naturally live in savagery and ignorance, without any idea of how to live together. It is the story of boys stranded on an island who must develop a government to survive. Throughout Lord of the Flies, Simon has the control of many roles. All of these roles act as mediations between nature, characters and logical thinking. At the beginning of the novel Simon is described as a "skinny, vivid little boy" with "black, coarse hair" and as a member of the choir. The first time the boys are all together, Simon faints. These factors give us the impression that he is physically weak and won't play a powerful role in the novel. He is later chosen by Ralph to go with him on an expedition of the island. Because he is so "vivid", he is chosen by Ralph and he also has something about him, which attracts attention which may be a reason for Ralph choosing him out of all of the boys there. Though his role at the beginning of the play seems irrelevant, Simon, within The Lord of the Flies, shows to be a visionary, foretelling future events indirectly. He is the mediator between all the characters on the island, showing signs of leadership, equality and kindness. The Role of a prophet changes from the society and cultures from which they live in. In Modern times, a prophet is a visionary,

  • Word count: 848
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
Access this essay

What is the importance of Simon in Lord of the Flies

WHAT IS THE IMPORTANCE OF SIMON IN LORD OF THE FLIES The character of Simon is featured heavily in the novel, but his personality is quite a mystery to the reader. This essay aims to explore and explain the importance and significance of Simon in the novel, and various viewpoints and connections with him and other characters. Firstly Simon's importance will be considered in relation to the plot of Lord of the Flies. Generally Simon is on the outskirts of the goings on in the novel, such as meetings or when the three boys climb the mountain to find the beast, but occasionally he speaks out, to the sound of much ridicule from the rest of the children. One such occurrence is on page 159 where, after much prompting he manages to say: ' "I think we ought to climb the mountain" ' then a few lines later he whispers: ' "What else is there to do?" '. These apparently irrational ideas are in fact those of a much more intelligent mind and in truth are not as unusual as the boys imply, but on the island he is generally regarded as weird. Up until his death, Simon is often ignored and left to himself in the novel, with only Ralph and Piggy really taking any notice, such as on page 64 only the Ralph and Simon are working on the shelters when Jack appears, and Simon suddenly enters the conversation: ' "They're hopeless. The older ones aren't much better. D'you see? All day I've

  • Ranking:
  • Word count: 999
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
Access this essay

What Is The Importance Of Simon In The Lord of the Flies?

First Coursework Assignment: Year 10 Term 2 A written response to one major author with a well-established reputation whose work was published after 1914. (Chosen author: William Golding, 'Lord of the Flies'.) What Is The Importance Of Simon In The Story? In the novel 'Lord of the Flies' by William Golding, Simon plays a very important part. He is constantly shown to be the Christ-like figure among the boys and he performs acts in the story that could be compared to acts from the bible. He is all goodness and proves this in good deeds, which are performed, at times, in the face of adversity from the other boys. It has been suggested by some that Lord of the Flies is just an adventure story. However, it could be argued, through the representation of Simon's character, that it is a story that depicts a battle between good and evil. This theme is one that was influenced by Golding's own experiences of atrocities in World War II. When Simon is first introduced to the story he is marching in the choir. He makes a significant entrance when he faints as the choir arrives at the assembly platform. Jack, the head chorister, describes him as 'always throwing a faint'. He then carries on explaining the places the choir have sung in, where Simon has fainted; 'Gib, Addis and at Matins over the precentor'. Through the story Simon shows to have an illness because he faints or

  • Word count: 2230
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
Access this essay

The importance of Simon being in the 'Lord Of The Flies'.

Katie Glindon English- Mrs Benjamin 1Abb 'Lord Of the flies' Simon The importance of Simon being in the 'Lord Of The Flies' is to make a balance between good and evil. In the first chapter of the novel Ralph, Jack and Simon go off walking in the bushes in the island. Simon discovers some Candle bud bushes and could not resist them, as he desires nature very deeply. Simon expresses his feelings with anxiety and says, "Like candles, Candle buds." Jack's reaction to this was to cut the candle buds off. Jack is agitated as he has been unable to make a successful hunt. Jack has not had the satisfaction of killing. This is one of the examples were jack is descending into savagery. Our first proper description of Simon is as 'a skinny vivid little boy' which may give the impression that he may not be aggressive and a very quiet boy. Simon is a member of the choir, but fails to associate with the hunters as the rest of the group has. Simon's habits are more caring, kind and sincere. Simon is deeply devoted to nature and enjoys his surroundings and the company of nature. Simon shows his Jesus-like spirit on numerous occasions in the novel. He usually shows this by helping the littluns or sticking up for Piggy. '"Simon found the fruit for them that they could not reach"' Another indication that

  • Word count: 558
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
Access this essay

What is the importance of Simon in Lord of the Flies?

What is the importance of Simon in Lord of the Flies? Using the reason that the purpose of Lord of the Flies is to help us understand why humans fight wars we see that he shows what can happen when bullies such as Jack and Roger, showing that it people like Simon suffer, just like the Jews in WWII. Simon is also used to show how dreadful Jack is with his bullying of the others, especially with Piggy. Simon is also used to show the others the way out of the bullying and fighting and shows that in conflict in the real world we usually ignore people like Simon. Throughout this book Simon has acted sensible and didn't believe in the beast and when he realises that the airman isn't a beast the others kill him just like mankind crucified Christ. Simon is very different from the other boys; his name is the only one that comes from the bible and this is portrayed throughout the story from acting as a Christ-like figure. Simon is loyal and stands by Ralph and Piggy to the very end, he always tries to encourage them to stay on and to fight Jack to keep control of the group even when Ralph wants to give up being chief. Simon is never horrible to anyone, he is always kind and nice to the others and helps the littluns, and he also helps Ralph when making the huts when everyone else has gone off to do what they want. Simon represents Christ in the novel and is the opposite of Jack

  • Word count: 575
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
Access this essay

Lord of the flies, character essay- Simon.

Lord of the flies, character essay- Simon "When I first explored the island with Jack and Ralph I imagined that all of us could survive and live together. The island was a beautiful place, "roughly boat shaped", but the plane had already marked the start of its destruction, "there was a gash visible in the trees". We could feel a sense of "domination" and were friends, I didn't ever think that Jack could be so full of life and passionate about anything, "We'll get food, Hunt. Catch things..." As we explored the island even more I realised that surviving wouldn't be as easy as I had first thought. The realisation that life was going to be difficult first came to me when we saw the little, piglet. We were unable to do what was needed of us to survive, to stab the pig, kill it, see the blood...it was all too much to handle. The fact that there were no adults to depend on and that we were alone became more and more obvious and we knew that our survival solely depended on us. "Life wasn't so bad at the beginning, the assemblies, the fire and the hunting, Ralph was a good leader and he had organised everything with the help of Piggy. The conch represented authority and a symbol of respect. I knew that Piggy was probably the one who had thought of it, he was very wise and knowledgeable, he understood our situation, "Nobody knows where we are", but no one cared, or valued his input,

  • Word count: 1022
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
Access this essay

Lord of the Flies: Simon and Piggy

Lord of the Flies: Simon and Piggy The second character to be introduced in the book; Piggy immediately grabs the pity of the reader. Piggy is short, fat, has glasses, and is an orphan. He has a far different social standing than the "fair haired boy". This is shown by the fact that since first seeing him, Piggy develops a following of Ralph. As Piggy is doubtlessly used to however, Ralph shows very little interest in him. Piggy asks Ralph his name, which is an obvious introductory act, designed to let Piggy get to know Ralph. The reader sees Piggy's hopes that Ralph will ask him the same question, and the reader feels Piggy's disappointment when he does not. The reader understands that Piggy is not a popular boy at school, and so is used to having his expectations let down, but Piggy might have thought Ralph was different, he would have been hoping for a new start. When he finds out that Ralph is no different, and he will be treated no differently on this island than he would be at home, Piggy must feel upset. Instantly Piggy falls into his following role; lagging behind Ralph as he strides toward to beach and asking irritating yet easily-ignored questions. As a final, last-ditch attempt at friendship with Ralph, Piggy tells him his darkest secret: his school nickname which he so detests: "They used to call me 'Piggy'." Piggy thinks of this as sign of his truth in Ralph,

  • Word count: 1599
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
Access this essay

What is the importance of Simon in Lord of the flies

What is the importance of Simon in Lord of the Flies? Write about * the importance of the part Simon plays in the plot * how Simon is different from the other boys * what Simon might represent * the ways the writer user Simon to convey his ideas Simon appears only in very few occasions, when compared with other main characters such as Ralph, Piggy and Jack. All those incidents are very significant to the plot. In the first chapter, Simon is introduced as a boy who is weak and "is always throwing a faint." As the chapter progresses Golding moves on to describe Simon by his physical appearance- "a skinny, vivid boy, with a glance coming up from under a hut of straight hair that hung down, black and coarse." Simon plays a very important role when Jack is introduced. Jack's harshness and choir's attitudes towards Jack are well revealed at this point- "Wearily obedient, the choir huddled into line and stood there swaying in the sun...Then one of the boys flopped on his face in the sand..." Simon is presented as the peacemaker. When Jack passes remarks on Piggy, (saying that he didn't do anything), Simon resolves the conflict saying "We used his specs, he helped that way." This shows that Simon tries to hold things together. He is the person who keeps all the boys together and happy. This is also well depicted in chapter 4 when "Simon sitting between the twins and Piggy,

  • Word count: 1367
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
Access this essay