How Does Golding Use The Conch In Lord Of The Flies

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In the novel, Lord of the Flies, written by William Golding, the author uses symbolism in many ways but I feel the most important use of symbolism is used to show the inevitable collapse of the tribe’s society and civilization. The conch, Piggy’s glasses, and the beast are all important symbols that contribute to the crash of organization and civilization on the island.

Golding foreshadows the destruction of society and order on the island in many ways throughout the novel both obviously and subtly. The most important item used is the conch. The conch is first introduced as a tool that brings a sense of organization, honour and society to the tribe. When first blown, the boys are immediately attracted to it and the authority it holds. The …show more content…
In chapter one, Ralph blows the conch for the first time to gather the boys all across the island. Golding writes “Ralph found his breath and blew a series of short blasts. Piggy exclaimed: “There’s one!” A child had appeared among the palms” (17). This demonstrates he power that the conch held over the children. This simple conch shell found by Ralph and Piggy, was an object that had a powerful importance since the beginning of the story. The conch was used to bring authority and order to their meetings. The boys created a rule deciding that no one can speak unless they are holding the conch. “I’ll give the conch to the next person to speak. He can hold it when he is speaking” (33), says Ralph. Golding represents the destruction of the island civilization by having a character destroy the prize item that brought the tribe society together in the first place. In chapter 11 of Lord of the Flies, the author writes “the conch exploded into a thousand white fragments and ceased to …show more content…
as a piece Piggy’s glasses were a sign of hope for the tribe. The children used them to create a signal fire that they hoped would help them get rescued. The boys use the lenses from Piggy’s glasses to focus the sunlight and start a fire on the top of the mountain. The glasses held much hope and inspiration for the boys and showed their ingenuity as they tried to be rescued. The glasses seemed to bring organization and optimism just like the conch did. The signal flame was maintained and watched over by Jack’s group of hunters. They were to make sure that any passing ship would be able to see the signal of fire and smoke on the top of the mountain. In chapter 4, the author writes “The fire was out , smokeless and dead; the watchers were gone…Ralph ran stumbling along the rocks, saved himself on the edge of the cliff, and screamed at the passing ship.” (68). This was the beginning of the downfall of civilization on the island. Jack was so blood thirsty that he was too involved with killing a pig, he irresponsibly ignores one of the most important jobs on the island. The boys began to lose hope of getting rescued after this moment and the tribe’s civilization on the island only went downhill from this point. The example of Jack not maintaining the signal fire is the first indication there will be problems on the island. The events which led piggy’s glasses to being broken is another symbol of how their
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