Lord of the Flies Chapters 1&2 By Victoria Bosco-Ryan, Sedona Boyle, William Fahey and Nicholas Fisher

Chapter 1 The title, The Sound of the Shell, is significant because the sound that the shell makes when Ralph blows into it brings together all of the survivors. Ralph- He is twelve years old. He is described as having a boxer-like build, but “a mildness about his eyes and mouth that proclaimed no devil”(Page 10). Piggy- An intelligent and rational young boy who is self-conscious, talks about his auntie a lot and wears glasses During their conversation by the pool Ralph and Piggy talk about their parents. It is revealed here that Ralph’s dad is a commander in the Navy whereas Piggy’s mother and father are deceased.

Chapter 1 “We may stay here till we die.” (Page 14) -Piggy This is an example of foreshadowing because for this eventually will be the case for a few of the surviving boys. Jack Merridew- Leader of the choir boys who wants to be put in charge of everyone. Everyone except the choir boys vote for Ralph as chief. This may have had to do with the way he looked, the conch shell and that he was appealing to the crowd. Ralph feels sympathetic towards Jack and puts him in charge of the choir boys who will become the hunters

Chapter 1 Ralph picks Jack and Simon to join him on a quest to decide if they are on an island or not. He leaves Piggy behind to take names despite his desire to go with them. The three boys pretend that they are explorers and think that they are they first people to ever be there. “Next time there would be no mercy.” (Page 31) Jack is still civilized and does not want to kill the piglet. This quote foreshadows that there will be a next time. The omniscient narrator plays a key role in the novel because it gives insight into the thoughts and feelings of each of the character. It does not only focus on a single person.

Other Surviving members of the crash Johnny- Six years old and the first to respond to the conch shell’s sound Sam and Eric- Twins who act in an identical manner Maurice- Choir boy who is broad and always grinning Roger- Quiet and secretive. Recommends that they vote for chief. Simon- A choir boy who fainted and was later chosen to go on an expedition with Jack and Ralph.

Chapter 2 The title of chapter 2, Fire on the Mountain, is important because the boys on the island decided to light a fire at the top on the mountain. Hoping that the smoke would be seen by passing ships that would come to their rescue. Ralph and Jack begin to implement rules for the island: “‘I’ll give the conch to the next person to speak’…‘We’ll have rules!’... ‘Lots of rules!’” (Page 33) One of the younger boys has a mulberry birthmark on his face and claims to have seen a large snakelike “beastie” in the woods. This scares the other boys. To create the fire the boys collect dead wood and leaves. To light the fire they use Piggy’s glasses.

Chapter 2 The fire spreads to the surrounding trees, making Piggy extremely mad at the boys for their carelessness. Piggy points out that the young boy with the mulberry birthmark is missing, Ralph is described as “in shame” for not knowing where the boy is (Page 47). At this point Piggy is acting as the levelhead of the group is thinking more logically than the other boys. Piggy- “How can you expect to be rescued if you don’t put first things first and act proper?” (Page 45)

Symbolism The Conch-acts as a symbol of order and civilization. It's what unites all the boys on the beach in Chapter 1 and what orders their meetings, as whoever has it gets to speak. Piggy's glasses-Piggy represents the intellectual, rational part of society, and his glasses are a symbol of the power that entails, as they are what is used to light the signal fire. The signal fire-a symbol of the boys' connection to and desire to return to society. As long as it burns, they are connected to society. In the beginning, they keep it burning.

Symbolism Ralph, the protagonist, represents order and civilization, while Jack represents the desire for power, seen in how desperately he wanted to be elected leader. The "beast" is a symbol of the primal instinct of savagery. The boys belief in the beast is proportional to their savagery, as they don't believe that strongly at first. The boy with the mulberry birthmark is significant because he is tied to the inciting incident, which is when he dies when the signal fire grows out of control due to the boys' carelessness.

What does the title Lord of the Flies mean Lord of the Flies is the title of the demon Beelzebub. Beelzebub is, traditionally, the demon prince of gluttony. Naming the book after him is symbolic of the "insatiable hunger" for power that exists in all of humanity. The Lord of the Flies becomes an important object later in the book: a severed, rotting pig's head that becomes a false god to the boys on the island and a symbol of evil and chaos