Lord of the Flies

In the novel “ Lord of the Flies” by William Golding, the author wants to describe and analyze the good and evil behavior and patterns in human society. People’s behaviors are dictated by their struggle for power and status. Some individuals will resort to any means, including violence and destruction to achieve their goals while others will maintain their ethical standards and respect the rules. The novel emphasizes the fact that in the life of the island-stranded boys there is a constant struggle and conflict between good and evil much like in real life. Good and evil create many struggles within society and within people themselves.Three of the main symbols in the novel that represent and convey the constant conflict between good and evil are the conch, the signal fire, and the ocean.

The first symbol is the conch and it initially creates a lot of good and order for the boys; it functions like a compass for good behavior, obedience and good organized living. Later it takes on an evil side as a boy chooses poor behavior and rejects good ethics. The conch eventually gets destroyed and chaos reigns. The conch is originally found on the beach by Ralph and Piggy immediately after they land and become stranded on the island. It quickly becomes their tool for a peaceful and orderly society and the boys use it to establish order and authority on the island. The boys decide that “We can use this to call the others. Have a

Brown 2 meeting. They will come when they hear us” (16). Only the boy holding the conch is able to speak. It represents the good as it brings everyone to order commanding respect toward the person holding it. To keep order they “can’t have everybody talking at once…” (33). The conch i...

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...ve. There are people making good choices and living by moral values as they

Brown 6 are surrounded by people less honest and thirsty for power. There are people in government, businesses, families and schools who are like Jack and Roger and who will stop following the rules to obtain power and status. There are people like Simon, who are good and try to maintain their integrity through their dealings with others in their daily life. There are people who believe in having rules like Ralph and Piggy and sometimes are surprised to find out the others do not follow them.When evil prevails it creates chaos and violence in society much like it did in the novel and many people get hurt or die in the process like Piggy and Simon died in the novel.