Lord of the Flies: February 2009

Tuesday, February 24, 2009

Discussion of Piggy

Ewen: So isn't Piggy such an adult figure in William Golding's 'Lord of the Flies'?

Will: yeah he really shows himself as an intellectual person and really helps Ralph and the others in restoring order to the island.

Ewen: yeah, i reckon without piggy many things would of gone wrong.

Will: especially when Piggy tries to get jack to help with making huts instead of hunting and to use the signal fire to help get the rest of the community saved.

Ewen: Also at the very beginning Piggy was the one who has found the conch (shell). Without this the island society could never had been formed.

Will: He's also the one that will oppose the things that aren't fair and just.

Ewen: hey i found this awesome quote: Pg 50 it says "Like kids!" he said scornfully. "acting like a crowd of kids!" i believe this shows that Piggy is much more grown up then the rest of them and shows his maturity.

Will: nice, i found another quote on pg 53 it says : "Mind out! Give'em back! i can hardly see! You'll break the conch!". This shows that piggy notices the importance of the conch in their community and that it has a strong ability to restore order and justice.

Ewen: would you like to be piggy and keep the order in this instance?

Will: kinda, i wouldn't wanna die though that would bad.

Ewen: yeah they were really cruel in the book but i reckon it helped to show them what should be right and wrong. setting an example is a very important act.

Will: Yeah, i get you now, Piggy was a very distinguished and unique character throughout the book. I would like to be like him and help people.

Ewen: Hopefully you wont die

Will: lol, hopefully

Ewen:Ok, nice talking to you

Will:Cya

Context of Lord of the Flies

The context of the Lord of the Flies is set in a deserted island in during WWII.

A plane evacuating a party of English boys from a air raid in Britain is shot down over a deserted tropical island. Stranded, the boys decide to elect a leader and to find a way to be rescued. They choose Ralph because he has a certain charisma and with the aid of Piggy, impressed them by using a conch shell to call the first assembly. They regroup and form a close community that is later threatened by savagery and anarchy.

Eventaully, all order falls apart and things break loose, as the boy's moral integrity is diminished. Free from the rules and structures of civilization and society, the boys on the island in Lord of the Flies descend into savagery, and factions begin to form.

This portraits of the fundamental human struggle between the civilizing instinct; the impulse to obey rules and the savage instinct; the impulse to seek brute power over others.