Dario Mazhara									Mazhara, 1
English 10
October 26, 2016
The Result of Human Nature and Leadership lacking a superego
Every story has its own abstract meaning presented by the use of symbols, which according to the American Heritage Dictionary, are “things that represent something else by association.”. They are found everywhere and can represent people, ideas, themes, etc. There is commonly one symbol which holds the highest meaning and serves as the foundation of the story. William Golding’s novel, Lord of the Flies constantly implements these symbols throughout the story which ultimately add up to one main moral. The novel tells of a group of British boys, stranded on an island, enduring phase changes which reflect their status. Following the entire novel is the symbolic use of the conch, where it’s used to represent leadership (alongside other small themes) while the superego declines.




The author’s interpretation of the conch is initially clearly portrayed as an authoritative symbol, as it’s first used to summon an assembly; a step towards order. Shortly after Ralph, the main character, blew the conch and “a deep harsh note boomed under the palms”(17), “signs of life became visible on the beach.”(18). Immediately the conch is seen as a symbol of leadership because it quickly gets Ralph elected as chief, rather than his counterpart, Jack, who attempted to claim leadership lacking desirable leadership traits: “‘Vote for chief!.... Him with the shell…. Ralph!’”(22). The symbolic value of the conch rendered a strong figure of Ralph, making him the ideal chief, “there was a stillness about Ralph as he sat that marked him out: there was his size, and attractive appearance; and most obscurely, yet most powerfully, there was the conch.”. However, the power of the symbol is not only used by Ralph to give absolute authority, but also as a tool of democratic order, allowing all people to have a say, preventing social discontent, “I’ll give the conch to the next person to speak.”(33). Since the crowd has only recently been isolated from the world, the effect of the superego remains strong and it insists on law and order, made possible by the conch.




The description of the conch and its colors reflect its declining effectiveness as a symbol of authority and ability to maintain order. In the beginning of the novel when order was stable and new, the conch “was a deep cream, touched here and there with fading pink.” (16). However, as issues are presented and stability dwindles, negative imagery of the conch is seen: “bleached the yellow and pink to near-white, and transparency.”(78). Now the conch’s characteristics do not illustrate a pleasant imagery, but rather a harsh one. In this chapter of the novel is when real problems start to come to light. This description is used prior to an assembly, where Ralph discusses complications in the order of their society: “We decide things. But they don’t get done.” (79). Much later, when most have interpreted their fears as a beast, the difficulties which were previously relatively light, have now become direr (yes, this is a word) as those influenced by fear become useless and cannot contribute to social stability. Ralph has lost hope and his effort to maintain the society diminishes, “So we can’t have a signal fire…. We’re beating….. Hunters… Boys armed with sticks.” (125).  The conch is now a “white blob” (124) and increasingly loses its symbolic value and respect by others. Ralph’s high dependence on the conch to maintain order has affected him negatively as he expected it to permanently preserve its value and govern for him, without effort. Now that obstacles beyond the scope of the conch have been introduced, he finds that the conch itself is not powerful enough to always sustain the superegos of the boys.




Though still cherished by Ralph, lack of credible superego among others as they turn to savagery shows the conch’s now nonexistent value. Evidence such as: “We don’t need the conch any more. We know who ought to say things.” (101-102), “ conch doesn’t count at this end of the island—”(150), “We shan’t hear it” (151), is all said by Jack. Jack despises Ralph’s democratic-like rule, which is part of what the conch represents, and believes that a monarchy is the best course of action. He secedes from Ralph’s group, starting his own hunting tribe, taking many others with him to savagery. Conflict immediately breaks out between the two societies. Jack’s tribe raids Ralph’s to steal Piggy’s glasses: “We’ll raid them and take fire.” (136); an act of savagery. Jack also tries to “get more of the biguns away from the conch” (133) to get them to lose sight of who they are and to make them into his subordinates. The conch’s last sliver of symbolism is killed when it is destroyed and “exploded into a thousand white fragments” (181). However, in its last moments, Piggy holds out the “talisman, the fragile, shining beauty of the shell” (180) where it’s last attempt to portray order is immediately denied by “an incantation of hatred”. The destruction of the conch was the mark of complete absence of superego. From there on out, Piggy is killed and Ralph is hunted by a pack of senseless animals. The value held by the conch represents the morality of the boys. Initially, it was a strong and majestic figure which was respected by all, but later began to lose respect as realism decreased until, eventually it “ceased to exist”, which reflected the existence of the superego of the boys in the tribe.




The conch’s symbolic value of leadership branched out into several different sections, all of which describe how it symbolically represents the situation of leadership and how it affects Ralph’s character. William Golding’s Lord of the Flies presented a cause of long term disconnection from society and how it affects individuals’ state of minds. This analysis revealed exactly what was interpreted of the author’s purpose of this novel: isolation eventually leads to the deterioration of the superego as one loses the ability to adhere to standard moral codes.