Your Questions...

Please post your questions for your peers in the post below. Feel free to answer any or all of the questions so that this is truly a virtual discussion forum...say anything that you'd usually say in a class discussion.

Solving the Mystery of Symbolism in Lord of the Flies

Your job throughout your reading of Lord of the Flies is to take a close look at William Golding's use of symbolism by attempting to solve the mystery of: what meanings do these people and objects carry??

How will you do this? Take a look at the different posts that I have listed on this blog (Ralph, Simon, Jack, the Conch Shell, the Fire, and the Beast). Each one of these posts is a symbol that Golding uses. Every time you notice something or find something out about one of those objects or people, write a comment about it on the specific post.

(For example, I would write any comment I have about Ralph's character as a comment on the post, "Ralph".)

As you all read and write your thoughts and questions about each symbol, hopefully a bigger picture of what each thing or person could mean will emerge. This is also meant to be a place where you can ask each other questions and hopefully get some answers.

(For example, if I had information about Simon, thought it might be useful but I didn't know why it was useful yet, I might write my information and then ask..."Does anyone know what this means to the story?"...You might get an answer! Or, you might write, "I don't know if this is going to be helpful or not, but on page such-and-such, Simon does this or that")

Remember to always write your page number so that everyone can find it and be able to look at what you are talking about.

What Is Symbolism?

As I am sure many of you know, symbolism is the element of story-telling used when an author makes a specific object mean something more than what it LITERALLY is. The author uses the object to help carry the plot along and to hint to the readers what lesson he or she really wants to teach us through the story.

For example: In The Hunger Games, Katniss's token is the Mockingjay. The Mockingjay starts out being a good-luck charm from an acquaintance but ends up being so much more than that; it symbolizes Katniss's bravery, her spirit, her intelligence, and her refusal to be controlled by the Capitol.

Now, think about this: Suzanne Collins (the author) didn't just get lucky or think of the symbolic value of the Mockingjay half-way through writing the book. She purposefully gave Katniss the token early in the series so that it could be developed into that symbol throughout the series. Whenever we think of the Mockingjay, we think of all of the attributes I listed above....and the author WANTED us to think of those things. Symbols help us learn themes that resonate through the series or a single book and tie the story together.

Summary:
Symbol: The Mockingjay
Themes/morals of the story: Survival, spirit, bravery, not being controlled by anyone, being true to yourself and where you come from....etc

Questions or comments on symbols? Do you think you understand what symbols are and how you might find their meaning in the story?

Ralph

Characters are often used as symbols in literature; their thoughts, actions, and beliefs help the author tell us the moral of their story. For Ralph (and other characters such as Jack, Simon, and Piggy) you will want to pay attention to:

- How others view the character
- How the character acts
- What the character believes or views is important

....And, MOST IMPORTANTLY, how those things change over the course of the story.

The "Beast" or "Beastie"

The "Beast" is something that comes into the story a little bit later on. You'll want to write about how the boys view and talk about the Beast; where they think it lives, when they talk about it, when they think they see it....etc. You will probably not figure out the symbolic meaning of the Beast until very late in the story but it is still important to look for throughout.

Jack

Characters are often used as symbols in literature; their thoughts, actions, and beliefs help the author tell us the moral of their story. For Jack (and other characters such as Ralph, Simon, and Piggy) you will want to pay attention to:

- How others view the character
- How the character acts
- What the character believes or views is important

....and MOST IMPORTANTLY, how those things change over the course of the story.

Simon

Characters are often used as symbols in literature; their thoughts, actions, and beliefs help the author tell us the moral of their story. For Simon (and other characters such as Ralph, Jack, and Piggy) you will want to pay attention to:

- How others view the character
- How the character acts
- What the character believes or views is important

....and MOST IMPORTANTLY, how those things change over the course of the story.

The Conch Shell

The Conch Shell is a prime example of an otherwise ordinary object being of special significance to the story. You'll want to pay attention to:

- What the conch shell is
- When it appears/what happens when it appears/how the story is affected when it appears
- What it's function is (what it is used for)
- How the characters view the shell

...And, MOST IMPORTANTLY, how the the meaning of the shell CHANGES over the course of the story

The Fire

The Fire is another great example of an otherwise ordinary object being of special significance to the story. You'll want to pay attention to:

- What the fire is
- When it appears, what happens when it appears, and how the story is affected when it appears
- What it's function is (what it is used for)
- How the characters view the fire

...And, MOST IMPORTANTLY, how the the meaning of the fire CHANGES for the boys over the course of the story

Piggy's and his glasses

Piggy in and of himself is a symbol in this story; his glasses, however, are especially symbolic. In this category, you may post about Piggy, what he says, how he acts, what kind of person he is, etc. But, you may also write about what you notice about his glasses and how they might be important to the story.