Lord of the Flies is an allegorical novel, and many of its characters signify important ideas or themes. Ralph may represent democracy as he is chosen to be the leader by a democratic vote, and he wishes to please the majority. He can also be a representation of the ego. Most of the boys except Piggy leave Ralph’s group for Jack’s, and Ralph is left alone to be hunted by Jack’s tribe. Ralph’s commitment to civilization and morality is strong, and his main wish is to be rescued and returned to the society of adults. In a sense, this strength gives Ralph a moral victory at the end of the novel, when he casts the Lord of Flies to the ground and takes up the stake it is impaled on to defend himself against Jack’s hunters.
Piggy represents rational thinking as he is logical, but unpopular; eventually Ralph realizes how much he depended on him and his logic, admitting "I can't think. Not like Piggy." He is no doubt the most rational boy in the group, and as such his glasses may represent intuition and intelligence. The state of the glasses may also represent the state of the social order on the island, as their condition deteriorates, so does the order and organization of the boys. Piggy's fatness and asthma, which mark him as an outcast, can also be viewed as emblematic of how the superego and, civilized thinking, are ill-suited for this environment and are rejected as useless. Piggy identifies the conch, and he and the conch end their existence together. In addition, like Piggy, the Sow (‘Pig.' 'Piggy!’) is a sort of mother figure; when she dies, so does most of the power of the conch. The pig is pink and rosy; Piggy is a rosy white; and the conch is also rosy and white. Being physically weak, he is also a symbol of civilized man, in that the others must take care of him. As soon as the others abandon him, they are rejecting civilized society. The conch shell becomes a powerful symbol of civilization and order in the novel. Piggy tries desperately to protect it and when he dies, it is also destroyed. As the island civilization erodes and the boys descend into savagery, the conch loses its power and influence among them. The boulder that Roger rolls onto Piggy also crushes the conch, signifying the end of the civilized instinct among almost all the boys on the island.
Jack is the tallest and strongest of the boys, may represent totalitarism as he does not appreciate the results of the election, eventually using his strength, his aggressiveness, making himself chief and the other boys his tribe. He is a good example that absolute power corrupts everything.
Simon represents natural human goodness, because he is the only character on the island that continues being good even when the other boys forget about the rules of society. Some see similarities between him and Jesus. Simon is the only one who can get the fruit for the little ones. Through him they get the fruit, much like through Christ, Christians receive salvation they cannot achieve on their own. Also, Simon freeing the parachutist can symbolize Jesus freeing mankind or man.
Simon has a sense of many things which he cannot communicate to the others, and he is in touch with the darker side of humanity. Unlike all the other boys on the island, Simon acts morally not out of guilt or shame but because he believes in the inherent value of morality. He behaves kindly toward the younger children, and he is the first to realize the problem posed by the beast and the Lord of the Flies—that is, that the monster on the island is not a real, physical beast but rather a savagery that lurks within each human being. The sow’s head on the stake symbolizes this idea, as we see in Simon’s vision of the head speaking to him. Ultimately, this idea of the inherent evil within each human being stands as the moral conclusion and central problem of the novel. However, his brutal murder at the hands of the other boys indicates the scarcity of that good amid an overwhelming abundance of evil.
Sam and Eric are referred to in the first half as "Sam 'n' Eric" and the second half of the novel as "Samneric". Physically, Golding describes them as "barely having enough skin" to cover both: they are "stretched". They also are a representation of unity, due to the fact that every activity they participate in, they do together. The pig's head (The Lord of the Flies) may represent Satan, while the flies may represent devils and iniquitous and nefarious human beings. The flies which represent mortal evil choose the pig over Simon. This represents the way a number of humans choose to be evil instead of good and how doing evil bears more satisfactory fruit than doing good.resent the Temptation of Jesus.
The names of Ralph, Piggy, Simon and Jack all have symbolic meaning. Ralph’s name is derived from the Old English word for "wolf council," symbolizing Ralph's role as a leader who forms meetings and councils on the island. Piggy's real name is unknown, but the name Piggy is meant to symbolise how he is vulnerable, just as the pigs on the island are. Piggy's name is also a reference to the Lord of the Flies, which is a pig's head. The pig's head holds its brain, therefore its intelligence. It is ironic all of the brilliant ideas such as fire-making, shelters, and looking after the littluns, originated from him. The derogative nickname also shows the hostility towards him from the other boys. Jack's name is derived from the Hebrew name Jacob or Yakov, which literally means "supplanter" or "one who takes over", just as Jack took the role of leadership by force from Ralph. Simon's name, derived from the Hebrew name Shim'on means "one who listens" or "one who observes", symbolizing Simon's quiet, attentive behaviour. Simon is also the original name of Peter, one of the Apostles in the Bible.
The signal fire becomes a measure of the boys’ connection to civilization. „Your only hope is to keep a signal fire going as long as there's light to see.” In the early parts of the novel, the fact that the boys maintain the fire is perhaps a sign that they want to be rescued and return to society. When the fire burns low or goes out, it seems that the boys have lost sight of their desire to be rescued and have accepted their savage lives on the island.
Many people have interpreted Lord of the Flies as a work on moral philosophy. The environment of the island, a paradise with food, water, and other natural resources, is a metaphor for the Garden of Eden. One of the major themes of the book, on the nature of evil, is brought to a head in a scene in which Simon converses with the head of the pig, which is known as the "Lord of the Flies" (a literal translation of the Hebrew name of Ba'alzevuv, or Beelzebub) which is a powerful demon in hell, sometimes believed to be the devil himself. The conversation held also points to Simon as the character representing religion and good will in the novel, which is reminiscent of the temptation of Jesus in the wilderness. ”Lord of the Flies" reveals that evil and the terror of the beast is not an external threat, but an inborn evil within the boys themselves.
Others have looked at the novel as a work on political philosophy. The stranding of the boys, without any adult supervision, represents a clean slate upon which they have the power to build a small society without reference to any past authorities (past governments, religion, etc.). The abundance of resources for sustaining life sets the stage for a utopia, or a perfect society. Democratic ideals represented by Ralph and Piggy versus Jack’s authoritarian systems.
The novel illustrates a kind of involution, the way how people experience several states: from innocence to its loss, from brotherhood to man-slaugther and the way how they manage to survive by letting the good feelings to be erased and replaced by their opposites. In this the novel Golding does a magnificent job of symbolism. Through all of these symbols Golding brings emotion thought and symbolism together in Lord of the Flies. The symbols throughout the novel change with the boys and show how they feel about a rage of issues.
Bibliography
1. 24.May.2007
2. Ciugureanu, Adina, Post-War Anxities, Constanta: Ex-Ponto,2006
3. Dick,Bernard F., William Golding, revised edition, Twayne, 1987
4. Golding, William. Lord of the Flies, London: Faber and Faber,1987
5. Tiger,Virginia. William Golding: The Dark Fields of Discovery, Calder & Boyars, 1974.
6.Time, June 22, 1962, p. 64.
7. http://encarta.msn.com/dictionary_1861716882/summons 24.May.2007
8. Lord of the Flies.Symbolism
9. Lord of the Flies.Analysis
10. http://www.answers.com/topic/lord-of-the-flies
Bernard F. Dick, William Golding, revised edition, Twayne, 1987.
Virginia Tiger, William Golding: The Dark Fields of Discovery, Calder & Boyars, 1974.
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/10675a.htm
William Golding, Lord of the Flies, London, Boston: Faber and Faber,1987
