Quote Analysis of Lord of the Flies

     In Lord of the Flies, William Golding sets up a miniature replica of society with children on a deserted island. Many symbolism and allusion are used throughout the story and three quotes in particular are very effective in articulating the novel’s moral theme. In the beginning of the novel, the boys gather for the first time and decide that they need to have a chief to make decision. And one of the boys, Roger, proposes that they should “have a vote” (P18). This is perhaps the fist allusion to government and civilization in the novel. The children, despite their lack of maturity, attempt to build a government similar to that back home on the island. They try to mimic the procedure of a government by voting a leader, having meetings to make decisions and enforcing rules. The children are so influenced by the rules enforced on them back in England, that even when the people that enforce these rules are gone, the children are still on alarm. The imposed morals give the children a natural inclination towards civilization, which they view as “morally right”. However, as the story progress, this inclination is disappearing among the children and is replaced by their savage instincts. The lessening of the restrictions of morality appears in Chapter 4 where Roger throws rocks at Henry, a boy younger than him. Yet there is “a space around Henry…into which [Roger] dares not throw” because he is still restricted by “parents and school and policemen and the law” and “conditioned by a civilization…in ruins” (P64-65). Roger does not have a reason for throwing rocks at Henry, but his act is rather an instinctive thirst for freedom and wilderness. The quote shows that comparing to morality, which is enforced upon rather than inherited, savagery is more instinctive and inborn in mankind. The last part of the quote also hints that a war is going on in England and civilization is degenerating both on the island and back home. The degeneration shows that civilization, which takes a long time to establish, can be destroyed and turned into savagery as simply as picking up a rock to throw or staring a war. Similarly, the chant that the boys sing after killing a pig signifies a further step into savagery. As the boys carry the dead pig back from the forest, they sing “Kill the pig. Cut her throat. Spill her blood.” (P72) At this point the boys are completely immersed in joy from their first taste of savagery. Ironically, while they hunt, they let out the signal fire on the mountain and a ship passes by without noticing them. The signal fire is the boys’ only hope for rescue and only connection with the outer world. The extinguished fire shows the boys’ disconnection with civilization and their degeneration into savagery. The hunters seem rather indifferent about the fact that the rescue ship is gone, and is rejoicing over their kill. They now, instead of longing for home, desire to enjoy the freedom they have on the island. The fact that their prey is a pig relates to a character nicknamed named Piggy. Piggy is discriminated against by other boys because of his unattractive appearance. His real name is never know, which shows that he is seen not as who he truly is but who he appears to be. He is regarded as fat and useless even though he is actually very intelligent and knows what is right and wrong for the boys. Piggy is symbolic for intelligence in civilization, yet pigs are hunted down and slaughtered by the other boys. This signifies the boys’ desire to distinguish civilization on the island and degrade into complete savagery. The step by step degradation of civilization implied in the story is shown through the book’s heavy use of symbolism. Significant characters and events in the novel all have their part in the allusion to human nature and the society. The above quote are the most effective in comparing mankind’s civilizing instinct and savage instinct, and their part played in degeneration.