How Does Simon Lose Innocence In Lord Of The Flies

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“Innocence, once lost can never be regained. Darkness once gazed upon can never be lost,” John Milton; indeed our innocence only lasts so long, the confusion that humans are good by nature is a topic of argument, as in this society we can see the loss of innocence due to the presence of darkness. In Lord of the Flies, William Golding uses the physical appearance, personality, and morals of Simon to show the rarity, and depletion of innocence, at the expense of savagery. One way William Golding stimulated the idea of losing innocence due to evil was through the physical characteristics of Simon. In chapter one of Lord of the Flies, Simon was introduced in a rather peculiar way; he had embarrassed Jack and made the choir …show more content…
This quote represents the shyness of Simon, and how he is the black sheep of the group. He’s small, which is in reminisce of a young child, yet vivid; full of ideas and deep inquiry, the shyness reflects a childlike fear, and made him a very timid character, but overall his appearance displays how much he stands out, with his dark hair, bright eyes, and frailty, it makes him appear weak, and naive. Throughout the book Simon’s appearance doesn’t hinder very much, he continues to have faint spells and always stands out; however, during his last chapter in the book, he encounters the lord of the flies- a symbol of facing evil, and a shocking event changes how Simon appeared at the time of his last breath, after he’d tried on the pig's head. “Simon was inside the mouth [...] his eyes looking dull before him” (145), and “now the tide had touched the first of the stains that left the broken body” (154). I believe Simons physical appearance played a large role in the symbolism of innocence, at the beginning of the book he resembled a shy child that perhaps stood out from the rest, but, by chapter 8 simon had come face to face with the “beastie”- in terms he came face to face with the realization that the “beastie” was in fact
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