How Fire Symbolizes Humanity In Lord of the Flies
DescriptionAn essay about how fire is used in Lord of the Flies to represent the insane story that the boys embark on.
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ImageWilliam Golding
When reading Lord of the Flies, you may notice that there are many different symbols used to show the digression of the boys’ sanity. There are Piggy’s glasses, or the conch shell used by Ralph, but one seems to sum up their entire adventure the most, fire. Specifically, how it is one of their most important resources, and how its existence helped fuel the insane ending of the story. As the novel progresses, so does the way fire is used by the boys. When at peace, it is used peacefully as they try to get rescued, but later on, when they are at war, well, let’s just say nothing ever comes good out of fire and war. So, there is now a looming question over our heads, and that is, why is fire used as a symbol of showing the boys’ ultimate demise? Why does it tear them apart, why is it important, and what is its connection to the deeper meaning of the story?At the start, it has Ralph, Piggy, and the rest of the surviving kids come together. They needed to discuss what they were going to do, how they were going to survive, and most importantly, how they were going to be saved. Who would know that they were on the island, how would passing ships know that they were alive? They collectively came to one conclusion, that being that they needed to make a fire, on the mountain, with lots of smoke, all in the hope that someone would see it. “‘If a ship comes near the island they may not notice us. So we must make smoke on top of the mountain. We must make a fire’ (Golding 51).” This is the start of the boys' use of fire, when they were young, naive, and begging to be rescued. It was never thought of as a resource to hunt someone, and was one of their only ways of survival. The fire, in the beginning, was used as a metaphor for how, at the time, they were still sane, and still kept hope of being saved. They thought that their time on the island, being stranded, would only be temporary. But sadly, that hope didn’t last long.Towards the middle of their stay, they began to split into different factions, as Ralph, and another character named Jack, both struggled to keep power over everyone else. Ralph, the elected leader, was by himself, along with Piggy, but Jack got almost everyone else on his side. The only problem was, though, is that Ralph still had control over the fire. They used Piggy’s glasses to make fires in the first place, but since Piggy was with Ralph, they needed to find a way to get fire on their own. So Jack, along with his minions, went out to steal Ralph’s fire, and the encounter did not go well. “‘We shall take fire from the others. Listen. Tomorrow we’ll hunt and get meat. Tonight I’ll go along with two hunters—who’ll come?’” (Golding 232). Soon after it was done, Ralph and Piggy noticed, and went to confront the others. This started one of the more violent encounters of the boys, as they started arguing over it. Jack and his “armed” kids circled around them, and a kid named Roger did one of the most horrific things they could do. He pushed down a boulder, and it landed on Piggy, crushing him. The boys’ sanity was slowly slipping here, and it was all because of their fight over fire. It was used in more and more dangerous ways, as they lost their minds and began fighting each other. Though this isn’t the end of their war, as a manhunt for Ralph began, and it ended in smoke and flame.At the end of the book, Jack and his clan chased after Ralph, trying to hunt him down after the death of Piggy. Ralph ran and ran throughout the island, hiding in bushes, crouching around trees, and trying to keep himself out of sight the whole time. He was terrified, these people that were once his friends were now trying to kill him, just after killing Piggy. And it was obvious that they were going to do anything to finish the job, to kill Ralph, but what they did maybe more surprising than you think. “Smoke was seeping through the branches in white and yellow wisps, the patch of blue sky overhead turned to the color of a storm cloud, and then the smoke billowed round him” (Golding 280). Jack set the whole jungle on fire, all the trees, bushes, and shrubs, on fire, all to get Ralph out of hiding. This was the final, and most extreme, way that the boys used fire, and you can tell that this was when they truly lost it. Burning a whole forest down, to find one person, your once friend, just to kill him. It’s insane, and it shows how the fire went full circle on them. Originally, the fire was supposed to be used as a way to contact the outside world, used as a way to signal their existence. But as their time on the island increased, their humanity decreased, leading it to be used in a violent fashion. But, after all of that, the book does have a pretty ironic ending. After months of starving and barely surviving, someone came. When they set the whole jungle on fire, at the peak of their insanity, a British Naval Officer, along with some others, landed on the island, right as Jack’s savage group were about to kill Ralph. This was the first person from the outside world that they have seen in what is assumed to be an eternity, and they came because of all the smoke being made by the massive fire of the jungle. It is a peaceful and silly ending, as when they wanted a savior, no one came, but as soon as they were in the middle of one of their worst moments, a piece of civilization landed on their shores, and took them home. The boys no longer could recover from the state they were in, as they lost all humanity within them. They became killers, manhunters, and worse. The fire was both used to kill, but also to save, and that deepens the effect of the ending wonderfully.Throughout Lord of the Flies, fire was used as a way to portray the dimming sanity of the boys. It went from a way to signal help, to a fiery weapon of death, and it showed how their humanity fell into the darker and deeper depths of nature. They were willing to fight and kill all for power, and it shows the much scarier side of human beings. This book, no matter how outdated or old-fashioned it is, shows what will happen if people get out of control, and when society as we know it crumbles to vain and manipulative leaders. It is a clear representation that, no matter how old you are, where you come from, or what you do, there will always be that someone in you lurking in the shadows, and ready to bring out your true self in the process. Fire was used in the story to show that downfall, to show the destructive side of mankind, and it worked.
Sources
Golding, William. Lord of the Flies. Edited by E. L. Epstein, Berkley, 2003.
