Pig's Head Symbol in Lord of the Flies Essay Sample

Peace can be perceived in multiple ways. One example is a dove. An angel can also be an example of peace and purity. Chaos and evil can also be represented in different ways. Darkness is a common way to convey evil. Another example is the devil. Throughout the novel Lord of the Flies, William Golding uses the lord of the flies- a sow head on a stick- as a recurring symbol. The main purpose of this symbol is to show that societies rely on peace, and are bound for destruction if chaos resides within the community.

What is the beast? The beast is a nonliving manifestation that the boys’ have created in their minds. It is based on their fears of harm and death while on the island.  This fear of horrible outcomes contributes to the chaos, ultimately resulting in destruction of their island society. In the novel, Simon is one of the boys on the island. For the duration of the time spent on the island, he starts hallucinating due to his home sickness. He comes across a sow head that is mounted on a stick that Jack and his hunters created. The purpose of creating the lord of the flies was to serve as an offer to the beast. Simon was there when Jack’s tribe was creating the lord of the flies. He was hiding in a bush, that way no one would notice him. The quote reads, “Simon stayed where he was, a small brown image, concealed by the leaves… [Simon sees the sow head], Even if he shut his eyes the sow’s head still remained like an after-image” (Golding 137). This quote shows how Simon was deeply affected when he saw the pig’s head. By William Golding using the term “after-image,” it reveals that seeing the sow head was a traumatic experience for Simon. Though the beast can be represented in the book in many forms, early on in the book, the beast was thought to be a creature falling from the sky. William Golding writes, “There was a sudden bright explosion and corkscrew trail across the sky; then darkness again and the stars. There was a speck above the island, a figure dropping swiftly beneath a parachute, a figure that hung with dangling limbs” (Golding 95).  This quote expresses how William Golding wants to convey the beast as not just being a singular symbol. The goal is to show that however the boys’ perceive a threat, that is how the beast is perceived as well.

As previously stated, the lord of the flies is supposed to act as an offer for the beast. “Jack held up the head and jammed the soft throat down on the pointed end of the stick which pierced through the mouth. He stood back and the head hung there, a little blood dribbling down the stick” (Golding 137). This quote portrays the lord of the flies as an intimidating creature. On the other hand, a moment in the book where , “[Simon] opened his eyes quickly and there was the head grinning amusingly in the strange daylight, ignoring the Flies, the spilled guts, even ignoring the indignity of being spiked on a stick” (Golding 137). This symbolizes the devil because the characteristics stated have a negative connotation, as well as the representation of evil. 

So how does the beast, the lord of the flies and peace all play apart in the story? The main reason the beast was “created”, is because of the boy's fears. And the lord of the flies is also conjured up because of the beast. Both of these symbols in the book came to be because of the absence of peace. So what does this show? It proves how the boys’ need peace in order to have an organized island. A scene where peace is shown to be helping the boys on the island is when Golding writes, “Signs of life were visible now on the beach” (Golding 18). The beach is a symbol of peace and when William golding says “signs of life” he is possibly foreshadowing Simon’s death. This shows how the boys function better with peace. However when peace is destroyed, civilization turns into pure chaos. A quote that shows this is “‘Kill the beast! Cut his throat! Spill his blood! Do him in!’... Softly, surrounded by a fringe of inquisitive bright creatures… Simon’s dead body moved out towards the open sea” (Golding 152-154).  The reason the boys’ killed Simon is because they thought he was the beast. This shows that the beast is so powerful and has control over the boys’ action because of their fears, resulting in the worst outcome. 

Ultimately, these symbols connect to the idea that societies rely on peace, and are bound to destruction if there is chaos within the community. In the book, the symbol of the beast beast begins as a  “snake thing”. But by the end of the novel it has become “the Lord of the Flies''. Similar to the evolving representation of the beast, chaos can evolve into more than what it starts as.  In the book, the boys’ fear of the beast grows, so does the beast itself until it has manifested into the devil – the ultimate and most powerful evil. The boys’ belief in the beast leads them to behave more like savages as they act upon their fears and begin to lose hold of the rules, led by Jack, thus demonstrating the theme of savagery and chaos.

Work Cited

Golding, William. Lord of the Flies. New York, Penguin Books, 1954.