William Golding's Lord Of The Flies Essay

In the beginning of the story, the fire represents hope for the chance of being saved. For instance, as the boys are conversing about the idea of being rescued, Ralph exclaims, “There’s another thing. We can help them to find us. If a ship comes near the island they may not notice us. So we must make smoke on top of the mountain”{35}. The fire on the island is a sign of hope for the boys. They are optimistic that the fire will signal a nearby ship to come over and rescue them from the island. In contrast, towards the end of the story, Jack’s main priority is to find where Ralph is hiding. In order to do this, Jack uses the fire to burn down the forest which represents destruction. As Jack is searching for Ralph, Golding states, “The fire was a big one and the drum-roll that he had thought was left so far behind was nearer”{180}. Jack’s main intention is to hunt and kill Ralph. Since searching the whole island would take too much time, he decides to burn down the forest so that Ralph will be forced to come out and show himself sooner or later. The fire now represents destruction on the island instead of hope of being rescued like it once was. Though the fire was very vital, Golding uses Piggy’s specs as one of the most iconic symbols in the

Both Jack and Ralph were struggling for power. At first, Jack and Ralph had similar goals for what they should do on the island. They quickly retreated when Jack became obsessed with hunting for pigs on the island. Ralph thought that they should keep the signal fire going at all times. Jack started to see that he did not want to leave the island he like that there were no rules. Ralph on the other hand felt that they could not be here forever. Ralph wanted to be rescued from the island. They're very different opinion forces Jack to leave Ralph's group and start his own. Jack toke most of the other boys with him leaving Ralph with very few people. From all of this Ralph started to realize that leading a group of people was not easy. There would always be people like Jack that would disagree. Jack left feeling insulted from Ralph insulting his hunting he felt that Ralph had undermined him as a result Jack turned mean and

Both Ralph and Montag’s journey starts off with a specific reason they are going on their quest, and both of them have fire involved as a main reason. “The fire’s the most important thing. Without the fire we can’t be rescued. I’d like to put on war-paint and be a savage. But we must keep the fire burning” (Golding 142). For Ralph, he determines that keeping the fire going is the only way that the boys will get rescued from the island. In his case, fire is connotated as a positive symbol, because it represents hope and safety. Despite this, fire becomes destructive when Jack Merridew uses fire and smokes out Ralph. Montag on the other hand deals with fire because it’s his job. “With the brass nozzle in his fists, with this great python spitting its venomous kerosene upon the world, the blood pounded in his head, and his hands were the hands of some amazing conductor playing all the symphonies of blazing and burning to bring down the tatters

Jack and his tribe “had smoked him out and set the island on fire”(Golding 197).Jack and his tribe who had taken upon evil used the fire to try and kill Ralph and smoke him out. The fire that was once used as a rescue was now in the hands of evil and being used to kill someone and was now dangerous. “The fire has a dual purpose: in good hands, it provides heat, food, and hope of rescue but in evil hands its vicious power is released and sets the forest on fire to smoke out ralph”(76). The fire originally served as a good purpose but eventually fell into evil hands and was used to try and kill Ralph. The power and authority of the fire held a place in Jack's mind, fueling his rage and urge to kill Ralph.

The signal fire stands for survival. Ralph uses the fire as a smoke signal so that when a ship passes by, someone on the boat can see the smoke and come to the rescue. The fire is also used by Jack to cook the meat. When the hunters let the fire go out the first time, a ship passed by and didn’t see them on the island. From there on, Ralph made sure there was always a fire going. The fires were started by using Piggy’s glasses in the sun. They boys could only find that one way to start a fire so Ralph’s main concern was to keep the fire ablaze. The fire eventually had the boys recsued when the island caught on fire for the seconf time. The signal fire was an important symbol because it represented their will to

Ralph made sure all the older kids on the island had a key job role to ensure safety and survival by setting things straight. Ralph orders the hunters to keep the fire going because it produced smoke which could signal the ships nearby securing their rescue. Ralph spotted ships and knew there shouldn’t be any fooling around because it is up to them if the fire stays lit or not. He, himself, was focused on providing everyone with shelter and was determined to do it by himself if he had to, whether the hunters did their job or not. Unlike Ralph, who is doing his job, the Jack’s choir ignores the fire and goes out hunting. When the fire goes out, the hunters aren’t really upset with the fire going out while Ralph saw that the situation could’ve been their rescue saying, “There was a ship. Out there. You said you’d keep the fire going and you let it out” (70)! If he had the same attitude as the other boys nothing would likely get done and he would remain the same as before and not care about the aftermath, but he continues to act mature and not this incident stop him from trying to seek rescue. This shows his change because of how he sees the priority of being rescued and keeping the fire lit expressing his maturity and showing his understanding of life not just about having fun like most adults

It is intended as a hope for rescue from the outside world. “We must make smoke on top of the mountain. We must make a fire” (38). This evidence highlights how Ralph was desperate to be rescued and he could have been foreshadowing the plot. Therefore, the fire becomes a symbol of hope and determination. At two points of the story, the fire goes out of control, one accidently, and the other was intentionally. This event changes the view of the fire to a more destructive symbol. The first time was in Chapter 2, when Piggy said “You got your small fire all right” sarcastically. Piggy was describing the big fire that went out of control and ruined most of the forest. At the end of the novel, Jack tries to lure Ralph out of the woods to kill him deliberately. “He saw a shelter burst into flames and the fire flapped at his right shoulder” (200). At this point in the story, the fire was used for evil and savagery intentions by Jack and the savages. Golding clearly emphasizes how the fire was first a sign of hope which gradually turned to represent destruction and devastation like the civilized

He did not know what to do. If Ralph is stressed out, so is the rest of the group. The boys are struggling to move forward; therefore, the boys are losing hope, things are becoming more violent so it begins to go downhill from here due to the lack of safety on the island. The boys are not discussing the Fire as much and it is starting to lose its

After the plane crashed Ralph and Piggy agreed that in order to be saved they needed to have a fire, “There’s another thing. We can help them to find us. If a ship comes near the island they may not notice us. So we must make smoke on top of the mountain. We must make a fire” (Golding 38). Later on the boys started to lose hope and instead used the fire to cook all the food. The hunters even let he fire go out because they lost all hope in trying to be rescued. As the novel progresses the meaning of the fire changes from hope to destruction. The boys have lost all sanity and embraced savagery. Instead of looking at fire as hope they then looked at fire as power and destruction. The boys set the forest on fire and Ralph was trying to get away he said, "Smoke!" He wormed his way through the thicket toward the forest, keeping as far as possible beneath the smoke" (Golding,195). Fire represent two different things in the novel. It meant hope for Ralph but for Jack it represent destruction and

Ralph is ambitious and prioritises getting off of the island which is how he re good leadership skills. Other than escaping the island his main priority on the island is the fire, and serving the greater good unlike Jack, who only cares about and is fixated on getting is the meat. Ralph keeps his focus on finding a way off the island and insists on keeping the fire burning as a conspicuous signal. When the ship passed by and didn’t see the boys because the fire had gone out due to Jack's objective on hunting, Ralph gets enraged.

Fire has always been the symbol of civilization since it has been found. Ralph thinks that fire is essential to get rescued and he says, “If a ship comes near the island they may not notice us… We must make a fire” (37). To move on, they start the fire with the hope to be seen by the rescuers. Under Ralph’s leadership the distribution of duties are planned on the island, which is another sign of a civilized society. Jack and the hunters are given the duty to keep the fire on, but instead they go for a hunt and let the fire out.

If a ship comes near the island they may not notice us. So we must make smoke on top of the mountain. We must make a fire”’(38). Ralph portrays his trustworthiness and reliability through this quote when he says that it would be a better idea to make a signal fire instead of going hunting. Ralph shows his ego when he stands up to Jack, and does the responsible and realistic thing.

Now that Jack is the new leader, he became increasingly greedy and mean and exiled Ralph and Piggy from the rest of the group and left them with nothing, except the symbolic origin of fire, Piggy’s glasses. But instead of using fire to divide the group they really needed everyone to come together to create a controlled fire so they can get off the island. While Ralph and Piggy were away Jack tried to create a signal fire, but instead he created a bonfire that ended up burning a quarter of the island down. Piggy walks up to Jack and told him (because he was mad): “‘You got your small fire all right.’ ...the boys were falling still and silent, feeling the beginnings of awe at the power set free below them” (55). Jack knew they needed a fire, but in reality Jack did not understand how destructive a fire can be, and ended up killing one of the members of the group with the fire he started. With the group divided and life in danger, the symbolic meaning of fire is displayed in this quote because it demonstrates the order and or chaos that is on the island and how nearly all of the social structure on the island could be lost as quickly as the time it takes to snap Piggy’s glasses in half.

Ralph tends to focus on one thing, and that one this is to be rescued, but ¨They let the bloody fire go out¨ (Golding 68). Keeping a fire going is a weakness on Jack´s part and using the fire's smoke to get a signal is Ralph´s top priority. The island plays as a distraction for the boys, preventing them from completing their duties and focusing on the unnecessary. The savage side of the group has an obsession with hunting pigs in a brutish way, but on the other hand Ralph is fed up with this nonsense, ¨Don't you want to be rescued? All you can think about is pig, pig, pig!¨ (Golding 54). All Ralph wishes is to be rescued, free from the island, away from its games. During this period of the story, hope is beginning to be lost by all and society was shrinking. The island changes them, influences them into a human that they are not use

When the fire is maintained, the boys want to be rescued. However, when the fire burns low or goes out it symbolizes how the boys have lost sight of their desire to be saved, and how they have accepted savagery into their lives. The signal fire also symbolizes the measurement of the strength of the civilized instinct and hope remaining on the island.