Lord of the Flies Piggy Essay Example

Ever since humans began to learn how to record information and history, it has made us more intelligent and allowed us to retain information. One of the most famous recordings of history that is familiar to many is The Great Library of Alexandria. In Lord of the Flies, a novel made by WIlliam Golding, a group of young boys are stranded on an island. They begin to create a system of government and rules, but they split due to disagreements. One of the main characters in the story is Piggy and can be compared to the Library of Alexandria. Admittedly, Piggy is not a 2300 year old Egyptian library, but he is the one who is the most rational and knowledgeable on the island. Piggy, a round character, is civilized, rational, and intelligent.

Piggy’s civilized nature can be seen from how he believes the island should be run. Piggy, along with Ralph, are the main advocates of a democratic type of government on the island. This can be seen from how Piggy clings on to the conch: “You let me carry the conch, Ralph. I’ll show him the one thing he hasn’t got”(Golding 246). The conch represents civilization, and him clinging on to it shows his devotion to Ralph’s democratic form of government. It is also important because the first rule made on the island was that the person with the conch is the only one speaking. This shows that Piggy still believes that Jack, who has made his own tribe, will still abide by their rules and be reasonable. Piggy, unlike Jack and his tribe, believes in order and law. This shows that Piggy has a civilized nature.

Piggy’s rationality can be seen through his priorities on the island. Piggy wished to prioritize shelter before lighting the fire: “The first thing we ought to have made was shelters down there by the beach. It wasn’t half cold down there in the night. But the first time Ralph says ’fire’ you goes howling and screaming up this here mountain. Like a pack of kids”(Golding 62). Although Piggy was not against the fire, he believed that building shelters should have been the main priority. This is because without shelters, they would not be able to survive long enough for rescue to arrive. Ralph agrees with this and makes it a priority to build sturdy shelters. This shows that Piggy thinks rationally and believes that everyone should have their priorities straight in order to survive. Piggy’s speech and rationality ultimately leads to Ralph and the others making shelters.