Conch Allegory

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The allegory, The Lord of the Flies by William Golding, represents the impulses in every human. The want to follow the civilized life, and the purest form of salvage hidden inside the human mind and body. In this novel, order is represented by a cream colored conch. When Ralph and Piggy, two main characters, found the conch, they used it to summon all the boys on the island. At that moment, the conch begins to become a symbol of civilization and order. During meetings, the conch gives the holder the right to speak and express their ideas in an orderly fashion. Although some of the speakers such as Piggy were not very supported, the group of boys still sometimes listened to him. This shows how much they have been influenced by civilized life, and were grasping at the last of the order on the Island. In addition, the conch also gives Ralph the power to become chief and make decisions. The first few chapters of the novel symbolizes the civilized life the boys are not yet willing to let go.
“‘We can’t have everybody talking at once. We’ll have to have a ‘Hands up’ like at school...Then I’ll give him the conch’”(33).
“Ralph felt the conch lifted …show more content…
Throughout the book, there is an underlying truth, which William Golding refers to as mankind’s essential illness. The illness is fear and the actions it causes. As time passes, many of the boys start to believe that there is a beast on the island. This fear starts to drive them apart and into two tribes: Ralph’s group, and Jack’s hunting group. When Simon, one of the boys in Ralph’s group, stumbles to a pig feast covered in blood, the fear drives Jack’s boys to surround and kill him. Even Ralph joined in because this demented society seemed to provide some sort of comfort and protection. The scene of Simon’s death proves and represents the evil actions that can be caused by fear of the unknown and

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