In the story Lord of Flies, by William Golding, there are many conflicts between the characters and the island, but some of the more important come between Piggy and the group. Piggy is seen to the group as the outsider, the member who doesn’t fit in. Although they treat him as an outcast, Piggy’s smart wits and his ideas are used by the group in reluctance, but end up playing a big part in the story. For example, it was Piggy's idea to use his glasses to start the fire. Jack, the leader of the choirboys, right from the start, reveals a deep dislike for Piggy. During the very first meeting when Piggy is asking the boys for their names Jack says, "Shut up fatty you talk too much." But when the fire is allowed to go out and they miss the possible chance of getting rescued Piggy says to Jack, "You didn't ought to have let that fire out, you said you'd keep the smoke going...." And Jack punches him in the stomach. Perhaps Piggy was right when he later told Ralph that Jack hated Ralph but he knew that Ralph would hit him back so he vented his anger on Piggy, who couldn't fight back.
Piggy’s outer appearance serves as a vessel for the boys to make fun of him. Little do they know that his thoughts and ideas would help better the group and create a better chance of arriving back home. At the beginning of the story, we see Piggy following Ralph everywhere he goes, babbling off ideas and thoughts in his head. After his encounters with Jack and the group members, he begins to tone down his thoughts and ideas soon after realizing they don’t care. Piggy’s death near the end of the book is very symbolic to his cause. When piggy dies, the conch is smashed, signifying all the order and control and civilization in the story. Also, it marks the end of rational thinking and the beginning of savagery. Piggy was the rational, smart, and calm, one of the calmest in the group, but his death marks the end of civilized calm thinking and rationalization, with the marking of savagery. Piggy helps reveal the theme that we are all naturally wicked and evil, to an extent. Piggy’s role in the story, other than to be made fun of, was to be the protection line between evil and good, and when he the boundary was broken, all the evil pored through to the boys. Whether Piggy or any of the members knew, he was the saving point of the group.
You May Also Find These Documents Helpful
-
Piggy is one of the main characters in the book Lord of the Flies and despite his physical health and inability to swim, he is an important character that greatly affects Ralph and Jack's decisions due to his intelligence. Near the beginning of the book, you quickly learn that Piggy is a plump boy that has asthma and has been wearing specs since he was three. You can also tell that Piggy is a friendly person because…
- 450 Words
- 2 Pages
Good Essays -
The next morning, the boys gather on the beach to discuss what the hunters saw. Ralph tells Piggy about the creature on the mountain, which he describes as a beast with teeth and big black eyes. Piggy does not believe him. Jack tells the group that his hunters can defeat the beast, but Ralph intercut to say Jack's group has nothing but sticks as weapons. Jack tells the other boys that the beast is a hunter, also telling them that Ralph thinks that the boys are weak. He continues his rant, claiming that Ralph is not a good leader. Jack asks the boys if they want a new leader. When nobody agrees with him, Jack runs off in tears. He says he does not want to be in the group anymore. After Jack runs off, Piggy tells the group they can do without…
- 613 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
The Lord of the Flies is a unique novel demonstrating the failure of anarchy in a society comprised of children. The characters often rebel against one another or sometimes against themselves and some show a sense of eventual change over time. One of the characters, Piggy, is introduced as an asthmatic, overweight boy who wears glasses. Piggy remains static from his first step on the island till his untimely death by briefly symbolizing intellectualism throughout the novel.…
- 666 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
I met Ralph today. He seemed like a nice person so I told him my nickname was Piggy when I was back home. We went down to the beach together and found a shell on the beach. We used it to make a trumpet which called the rest of the boys down from the woods to the beach. This is where things went bad, Ralph apparently doesn't keep secrets too well. Ralph told everyone that my nickname was Piggy. They haven't let up on the name either everybody thinks that it's so funny to call me that. It doesn’t trouble me too much but I’d rather them not call me by that name.…
- 376 Words
- 1 Page
Good Essays -
The power someone has over others can affect one's life, hopes and dreams. Power is still power whether it is power of authority or power by manipulating people. In the novel Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck some characters, when given the opportunity exercise their power over others to manipulate them. The characters that use their power to manipulate other characters is Crooks, Carlson and Curley’s wife.…
- 1133 Words
- 5 Pages
Good Essays -
In William Golding’s book Lord of The Flies Piggy would be a nerd. Typically a person that wears glasses is thought of as a nerd. In the book Golding says “And then looked up through thick spectacles.” (Golding, 7) Piggy is in the nerd clique. He has thick glasses which means he has horrible vision, which is typically associated with a nerd. A person who is a nerd will often pay attention to things most wont. “That little ‘un--gasped piggy--him with the mark on his face, i don’t see him--where is he now?” (Godling, 46) Piggy is the only character or boy in the book that noticed one of the smaller children was missing, and later declared dead. Generally a nerd is someone who gets picked on. “My specs! Howled Piggy. Give me my specs!” (Golding,…
- 182 Words
- 1 Page
Good Essays -
At this point in the novel, the group of boys has lived on the island for some time, and their society increasingly resembles a political state. Although the issue of power and control is central to the boys’ lives from the moment they elect a leader in the first chapter, the dynamics of the society they form take time to develop. By this chapter, the boys’ community mirrors a political society, with the faceless and frightened littluns resembling the masses of common people and the various older boys filling positions of power and importance with regard to these underlings. Some of the older boys, including Ralph and especially Simon, are kind to the littluns; others, including Roger and Jack, are cruel to them. In short, two conceptions of power emerge on the island, corresponding to the novel’s philosophical poles—civilization and savagery. Simon, Ralph, and Piggy represent the idea that power should be used for the good of the group and the protection of the littluns—a stance representing the instinct toward civilization, order, and morality. Roger and Jack represent the idea that power should enable those who hold it to gratify their own desires and act on their impulses, treating the littluns as servants or objects for their own amusement—a stance representing the instinct toward savagery.…
- 576 Words
- 2 Pages
Good Essays -
Piggy, along with being the brains of the island, is also a very complex and misunderstood boy. “Piggy is a much more complex character, than the simplistic interpretations so regularly adduced will allow”. (Reilly. online). This states that Piggy was an extremely complicated character, and is often overlooked by not only characters in the book, such as Jack and Ralph, but also by readers. He is also described as a brainiac by Golding himself, “Piggy, for all his ludicrous body, had brains”. (Golding 71). This emphasizes to the reader that Piggy’s brain is being discounted due to his stature, and this causes readers to discount his intelligence, however, it brings the reader’s attention to them being naive. This last quote also reinforces the concept that his body is causing his smarts to be overlooked “Piggy lacks the looks but has the know-how. The trouble is that he knows but cannot do and is relegated”. (Reilly. Online).…
- 1240 Words
- 5 Pages
Better Essays -
When Ralph approaches Jack’s tribe and blows the conch to call an assembly, we learn that the conch has lost its power among the boys. The conch represents order, and without it there is nothing to keep the boys in line. Even in his final moments, Piggy is still trying to get the boys to see reason. As Ralph is getting heated with Jack, Piggy attempts to get his attention and says “Ralph – remember what we came for. The fire. My specs.” After Piggy’s death, Jack orders Roger to torture Samneric into joining the tribe and makes the decision to hunt Ralph down and kill him. Piggy dying meant the absolute end of trying to reason with Jack’s tribe and any hope of peaceful civilization on the island. He is the parent figure and the reminder of moral among the boys, and once he is out of the way nothing held them back…
- 738 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
One of the first events that is foreshadowed in the novel is Piggy’s death. Piggy is the weakest character on the island. He has health problems including: his weight, bad eyesight, and “ass-mar”. He is “the voice of reason” on the island, yet no one listens to him, except Ralph. One scene that foreshadows Piggy’s death is when Roger is throwing the stones at Henry. “Roger stooped, picked up a stone, aimed and threw it at Henry-threw it to miss.”(62) Roger missing shows that he is still has some civility inside him.…
- 505 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
2. Piggy is brutally picked on because of his asthma, and his weight. Piggy is also smarter than the rest of the group and has more common sense which intimidates the rest of the group.…
- 1696 Words
- 7 Pages
Good Essays -
The character Piggy in William Golding’s Lord of the Flies helps to develop foundations of truth and understanding in the story. Throughout the story, Piggy is associated with intellect, logic, and often an adult voice on a child’s island. Piggy offers direct and to the point advice as to how to go about doing daily chores and running the government of the island. Piggy functions not only as a character in the novel but also as an important element to develop symbolism and theme.…
- 833 Words
- 4 Pages
Good Essays -
Piggy is one of the main characters as well as one of the first characters we, the readers, meet. He is characterized by his glasses, asthma, and a level of decorum that direct decorum that any stereotypical Brit could envy. Within their community, he is seen as the voice of reason(see: direct). This makes his character particularly important as he is surrounded by other boys who would rather treat their crisis as a playground. However, this cynicism, on a deeper level, can be seen as a method of deflecting and a power play. On page 46, he looks upon the others with disdain as they rush up the mountain to start the fire. This separates him from the other boys, in case something goes wrong. And, of course, it does. Towards the end of chapter two, as the mountain is burning, Piggy scolds them for both not thinking, but also(and more importantly) not listening to him in the first place. These actions enable Piggy to pass the blame to everyone else and thus, allowing him to walk away with a free conscience even though their main hope for food just burnt and one of their own might be dead.…
- 244 Words
- 1 Page
Good Essays -
In William Golding’s Lord of the Flies, several injustices take place. Piggy, Ralph, and the Littluns. Piggy is constantly mocked and exploited, no one listens to Ralph or shows him much respect, and the Littluns are ignored and taken advantage of.…
- 1551 Words
- 7 Pages
Good Essays -
Simon’s death is a tragic event in this novel . Piggy, Ralph, Sam and Eric all have in mutual reactions towards Simon’s death. They each handle the guilt towards Simon’s death in different ways. Also, they decide not to say his name aloud to one and other. Even though they all know that they and the rest of the boys murdered Simon they decide to say that they all left the “party” early. In addition Jack has his own thoughts on what has happened the previous night.…
- 476 Words
- 2 Pages
Good Essays