Discuss how Golding uses symbols to represent the major themes in Lord of the Flies

Lord of the Flies deals with changes that the boys undergo as they gradually adapted to the isolation from society. Throughout the novel there are major themes represented through symbols. By using different characters the author was able to portray various types of people found in our society. Their true selves were revealed in the freedom from the laws, rules and punishment of a world with adults. Their true selves were represented in the novel by many different symbols.

In the beginning of the novel, Ralph and Piggy meet and find the conch shell, this shell is a major symbol in the story, and it represents the order of rules and authority. Ralph immediately gains status from his possession of the conch shell, which gives him the authority to speak when the boys come together.

He tries to install a sense of order into the boys, he realises, like all the other boys that a world without adults means that they cant do as they like but have to live with rules and obey them, but unlike the others he immediately realises the need for rules and organisation and the need to keep the fire going in order to be rescued.

Ralph's rules keep the boys attached to some sense of society, but the boys gradually lose the respect of the conch and rules that come with it. In the beginning of the story the conch is described as, "In colour the shell was deep cream, touched here and there with fading pink", but later on in the story the conch is now "fragile and white". This is because here is where the breakdown of order takes place, here the group break into two groups, Jacks and Ralph's and rules and organisation are no longer. Near the end of the story where Piggy dies, the conch smashes, I think this is to represent the loss of rules and the breakdown of these kids innocence, also the loss of the conchs colour represents the loss of innocence.

Another symbol in the story that represents something major is all the colours that are in the text to describe such things as the weather and the cliffs. At the beginning of the story, many things have descriptions of being pink and white; I think this is to show the innocence of the boys. At the beginning of the novel, the boys still have morals from society but near to the end of the story the boys become savages and things are now described of being blue and dark, this is to represent the loss of the boys innocence when they start killing and become savages. Images using colour are used carefully throughout the novel.

The beast is another major theme in the story, the beast represents the evil inside the boys which allows them to kill but still think that they are doing well. Golding uses the boys' imagination, daydreams and nightmares to show the reader their fears and desires. They show us the boys' needs for security. The snakes/beastie is only in the boys' imaginations but Golding is trying to make the point that evil comes within, and he does this well by using a snake which is symbolic of evil.

The fire is the most important theme in the story and is carried on right through to the end of the novel. The boys know at the beginning of the story that without fire there is no smoke and therefore no rescue, fire is an important aspect of order and security and this is why Ralph and Piggy hold on to the need for a fire right through to the end of the story but the rest of the boys don't except this and don't want to be limited to what they can do, they therefore resent the idea of the need for a fire and decide that to hunt and kill is far more important. At the end of the story when there is a huge fire, someone sees there smoke and rescues them, making them all realise that fire was the most important thing on the island.

Zoe Koulakis

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