Lord Of The Flies Symbolism Paper

1 Pages 277 Words

In Lord of The Flies, written by William Golding, many examples of symbolism are shown
to prove the authors point of “man is evil.” Symbolism can be anything, a person, place or
thing, used to portray something beyond itself. It is used to represent or foreshadow the
conclusion of the story, and Golding shows this in the novel.
From the very beginning of the story, the boys inwardly strip themselves of the
civilized world. This is shown when the boys take off their clothes and school sweaters.
Their hair becomes long and entangled with small sticks.
Ralph is one of the older boys on the island and is the leader throughout part of the
story. He is a pure, English man. He has fair hair and still wears his school sweater, which
symbolizes many things. By keeping his sweater on, it symbolizes the want to keep a
decent civilization and the want to get off the island.
Jack is also one of the older boys. Unlike Ralph who stands for common sense and
a desire for normal civilized life, all Jack cares about is hunting. After all the hunting Jack
does he becomes more and more savage and a killer. He eventually leaves the main group
and starts his own tribe. Jack has everyone with painted faces and long hair, which
symbolizes savage and uncivilized behavior or evilness.
Piggy is the main target for mockery and is a fat and ugly boy. Piggy watches over
the signal fire closely and for secure shelters on the island. This symbolizes the want to get
off the island and while waiting to be saved, to have a civilized and safe environment.
With the facts giving, there are many different types of symbolism used in this novel....