William Golding uses much symbolism in his novel, The Lord of the Flies, to help readers gain a greater understanding of his message. He uses symbolism in three important areas: objects that have symbolicvalue as references to ideas, characters that symbolize important historical and religious people, and thesetting which frames the conflicts on the island in comparison to the whole world. Objects are the firstpart of the story that are symbolic.Many objects in The Lord of the Flies have important symbolic value. The conch shell representspower and authority, and Ralph uses it to call for the boys to come to meetings. Whoever has the shellhas the power to talk. The conch shows how people use objects to give power, like a crown, sceptre,or other thins that show who has power. We also learn that objects dont really give power whenpeople choose not to obey it, like Ralphs conch. The pigs head, or Lord of the Flies, is an importantobject. To Jack it is a sacrifice for the beast. This object shows that people will make religions andrituals to control their world, even when what they think is not true. The Lord of the Flies is also asymbol of Satan, or the Devil. When Simon talked with the Lord of the Flies, he learned what the realevil was, which is the evil in peoples hearts. The Lord of the Flies is a symbol of the things we makeup to be the cause for evil, when those things arent the real reason. The fire is a symbol of hope andrescue. When the fire was burning bright, it was because the boys were working hard to get rescued.When the fire burnt out, it was because many boys, like Jack, didnt care anymore about beingrescued. In the end, the fire that got them rescued was not meant for rescue. It was there becauseJack was burning down the island to kill Ralph. This shows us that we get things from luck instead ofhard work. The objects in the story are used by characters that also have symbolism.The many different characters on the island ...
