The story begins with two boys, Ralph and Piggy, coming out onto the beach from the dense jungle where they have met. The reader realizes from their conversation that they are on an island although they are yet to confirm it. They belong to a group of boys who were being flown to some unknown destination, but their plane has crashed. The pilot of the plane is missing, and there seems to be no grown-ups on the island. Ralph and Piggy wonder where the other boys could be. They find a conch shell and blow on it, sending out a loud and blaring sound. All of the other children soon start to appear. First to enter is a party of boys marching in step in two parallel lines. They are all dressed in strange, but similar, clothing. They are choirboys, and their leader is Jack Merridew. He is authoritative and very rude to Piggy; after a few short questions, he seems to size up the situation. Jack wishes to be the chief, especially since he is already head of the choirboys. The boys, however, decide to have a vote; everyone except the choir votes for Ralph as their leader. Realizing Jack's anger at being defeated, Ralph offers him the position of Head of the Hunters. Ralph, Jack and Simon decide to explore the island while the others are asked to wait on the beach. Jack rudely puts down piggy when he wishes to join them. All three boys start off briskly, happy to be in each other's company. They reach the end of the island, which has jagged rocks stretching towards the mountains. They have to move in and out of the jungle to reach the rocky paths leading upward. They move towards the summit, pushing a huge rock over the edge of the cliff on the way, an event that clearly foreshadows the boulder that pushes Piggy over the cliff to his death on the rocks below. The view from the square mountaintop is breathtaking. It confirms that they are on an uninhabited island. Ralph proudly keeps proclaiming their ownership of the land. On their way back down...
