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Essay On The Conch In Lord Of The Flies

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Essay On The Conch In Lord Of The Flies
Civilization is a fundamental to society to ensure the safety and happiness of citizens. Without a refined society, the world would be chaos. In Lord of the Flies, the conch is used to maintain order, since it represents civilization. In William Golding’s Lord of the Flies, there are many symbols and the conch is one of them. Throughout the novel Golding uses the conch to symbolize civilization, therefore it’s destruction represents the end of civilization. In Chapter Eleven, the conch is destroyed which on the island ruins the little civilization the boys have since the savages only listen to conch besides Jack, Jack orders the savages to be violent, and Jack becomes more vicious.
Since Chapter One, the conch has been the only method that keeps the boys civilized. While Jack and Ralph were engaged in a fist-fight, Piggy wants to get …show more content…
While Jack and Ralph were engaging in a verbal argument, Jack increased the intensity. “He [hurls] a spear at Ralph” (182). Nearly immediately after the conch was ruined Jack tried to kill Ralph. Later in the chapter, Samneric want to be released from their restrains, which makes Jack angry. “The chief…[pokes] Sam in the ribs” (182). Jack is hurting Sam solely because he want to be released from his restrains, which is a standard reaction. Since Ralph does not have a tribe anymore, Jack now has the freedom to wound Samneric.
Golding uses the conch to represent humanity’s need for civilization, hence why the ruined conch represents a loss of civilization. The conch was the only way to keep order on the island. Now that the conch no longer exists, Jack orders the savages to act worse, especially so to Samneric. Jack has become more violent to the boys, mainly toward Ralph’s former tribe. If the ship did not notice the boys, the savagery would only increase. There would have been no order, pure anarchy. The fire saves the boys, but the conch allows them to
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