A study of the symbols in Lord of the Flies

彭宝英

Abstract：In Lord of the Flies， William Golding exposed human nature is evil and violence by using a large number of symbols vividly. Especially， the transformation of fire just reflects the evolution of human nature from rational to non rational.

Key words：fire symbols evil human nature

中图分类号：I561.074     文献标识码：A        文章编号：1005-5312（2016）29-0084-01

Lord of the Flies presenting a group of youths without adult supervision established a seemingly civilized regime， but finally the regime was replaced by brutality and savagery. There are many symbols in the novel， such as the inhabited island symbolizes absolute freedom， the conch shell symbolizes the democracy， the mask or painted face symbolizes the darkness in human nature and so on. But what impress me a lot are three different symbols of fire.

一、Fire for hope

At the beginning， that group of British children arrived on the original island after the crash， the democratically elected leader Ralph proposed make a fire at the top of the hill. At that time the fire was the results of unity and cooperation in the small group of children， was the hope to every child， was the link between the children and civilized society. Through the fire， the children could send a signal to the outside world for help and return to the civilized society. As a result， it was a reflection of the childrens attachment to the civilized society and the desire to return to civilization. Fire became a symbol of civilization and hope， and it was an important symbol of the existence of civilization on the island. It was a bridge from the society of a desert island to a civilized society. It was the fire of civilization， to dispel the darkness， to bring the children hope.

二、Fire for destruction

When children first lit bonfires， they just wanted to set a fire as a signal on the top of the mountain， however， fire quickly spread with the wind， the island soon became a sea of terrible fire. Then， after the Jack gang hunted a wild pore， they set a bonfire and sang and danced around it; they are totally blinded by the slaughter so they killed Simon in the light of blood red fire. At the end of the novel， Jack set fire in order to kill Ralph; the island on fire will fling caution to the winds. The whole Island suddenly became a sea of fire. Where the big fire burned， leaving only the burning desolate tree trunk. The devastating fire at this time exposed the evil in human nature incisively and vividly. The civilization established by the children at the beginning is subsequently reduced to ashes. Ralph could not help crying for the disappearance of morality and the darkness in human nature.

三、Fire for power

The first thought of the children was to establish order after they came to the island. To establish order， it was necessary to establish authority. At the same time， the fire soon became one of the symbols of authority. Therefore， around the use and importance of fire， Ralph and Jack hold different opinions and then developed into a fierce conflict. On the surface， arguments and conflicts were caused by the fire， but in essence， it is the fight for power struggle. Anyone who gained the ownership of fire would become the leader. So， the Jack gang grabbed Piggys glasses for his gang to set fire at a dark night. What he robbed from Ralph and Piggy was not a pair of glasses， but the dominion in the island.

In Lord of the Flies， the big fire at the end represents the power of violence and evil gradually swallowed up the organized system and became the rule on the whole island; civilization failed in the contest between civilization and savage. The transformation of three symbols of fire fully reflected the gradual process of the exposure of evil human nature.

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