Conch Lord Of The Flies Essay

Lola Antonelli

English Hon 10

Mr. Ferguson

26/05/2023

In William Golding’s Lord of The Flies, the conch is used as a formidable symbol of law, order, and democracy. As the boys struggle to establish a functioning society on the stranded island, the conch becomes a valuable tool for maintaining order and resolving conflicts. However, as the story progresses, the conch loses its power and the boys become increasingly savage and violent. Through the use of vivid imagery, Golding creates a powerful and haunting portrait of a society that has descended into chaos and violence. By exploring the dangers of an over-reliance of law and order in democracy, Golding offers a powerful political allegory that speaks to the flaws of humanity. In the Lord

To illustrate, in the beginning of the novel, the imagery showing the conch shell’s beauty and rarity, as well as the powerful sound it produces makes it a valuable tool for establishing order and democracy on the island. The conch shell’s ability to draw up a community represents a strong symbol of democracy. Ralph's voice sounding like a "whisper after the harsh sound of the conch" illustrates the conch's power to silence and command attention (Golding 17). Utilizing the word “whisper” Golding can communicate that as a symbol of democracy, the conch can have a powerful impact on the voice of an individual (Golding 17). The vivid imagery symbolizes the power of law and order amongst a community. The conch's power is derived from the boys' collective agreement to respect and obey its rules. It is shown that the boys obey the summon of the conch because “by the time Ralph finished blowing the conch the platform was crowded” (Golding 32). This highlights the powerful symbolism of the conch as an instrument of democracy and order on the island. The conch is a representation of the boys' collective will, and the image of the crowded platform emphasizes its ability to bring them together. The conch's power is further

The fact that Ralph has to wave it "once more" suggests that the boys are becoming less responsive to its authority, indicating a decline in their societal structure (Golding 80). Moreover, as the boy’s time on the island progresses, the conch becomes impractical and the boys become disloyal to one another. The boys become more interested in asserting their own power and control over others, rather than working together for the common good. This is illustrated through the way in which the boys begin to ignore the conch's summons and instead focus on their own interests and desires. In stark contrast to the boys excitement to enforce order in the beginning, the boys now refuse to obey the rules and the symbols of the conch is now diminishing. The conch can now symbolize the primal instincts that can overcome even the most civilized of people, when “[Ralph] put the conch to his lips and began to blow[, s]avages appeared, painted out of recognition” (Golding 175). The image of Ralph blowing the conch is a powerful symbol of democracy and order, which has been the foundation of the boys' society until this point. However, the appearance of the