Lord of the Flies, Chapter 3 & 4

Make sure to post your questions!!


Key Characters:

• Jack:  The chapter starts off with Jack in an intense hunting scene.  He is neglecting other responsibilities to their small community in favor of his hunting obsession.  Chapter 4 ends with an uneasy shift in power:  Jack has literally brought home the bacon and the question of who should be leader is the elephant in the room.

• Simon:  At first, this kid probably seemed pretty negligible to you:  he faints and smiles a lot and went on the initial excursion with Jack and Ralph.  Big deal.  However, he gains importance in these chapters.  In Chapter 3, Simon puts words to what everyone has been feeling:  there's something wrong going on on this island.  In a rather creepy scene that dominates the end of the chapter, Simon sneaks off into the forest and crawls into a dense "mat" of plants that keeps him completely hidden.  He even appears to stay here, alone, overnight. The question is: what is Simon hiding from?

• Roger:  Roger begins to truly show his "dark side" in Chapter 4.  He intentionally kicked over the littleuns' sand castles (along with Maurice, who is the only one to show remorse) and amuses himself by hiding and throwing stones at Henry (another littleun).  Golding really makes a point to characterize Roger as potentially dangerous noting his "gloomy face [that] made what had seemed at first an unsociable remoteness into something forbidding," (60).  This is pretty strong language for talking about an 11 year old!  Later, when Jack interrupts Roger at his game, Golding says "a darker shadow crept beneath...his skin" (62).  This is, of course another hint: Golding wants us to watch out for Roger.

Key Things and Moments

• Man v. Man conflict:  Annoyed with Jack's hunting obsession, Ralph is starting to feel the weight of responsible leadership.  The latter thinks it is most important to build shelters, while the former is more concerned with "getting meat".  Though at this point neither wants full confrontation, Golding will definitely develop this conflict.

• The Beastie:  In their discussion of the shelters, the boys note that the "littluns" are having nightmares.  Simon asserts that perhaps this is a "bad island" and that the "beastie" may in fact exist (even if solely in their heads).

• Hunting vs. Fire/Rescue:  In my Chapter 2 post, I mentioned that the fire symbolized the potential and desire for rescue.  In chapter 4, this symbolism pays off.  In their excitement over hunting, Jack and his cohorts forget to keep the fire going.  As a result, the boys miss out on being rescued by a passing ship.  This, of course, is also symbolic:  Jack is already joining the "dark side,":  he'd rather hunt in the wild than tend to the fire (and ultimately be rescued).  In fact, Jack is successful on this hunting trip and the night ends on a feast of roasted pork.  The boys seem to be losing their desire to go back to civilized life.  This is highlighted by what happens to Piggy's glasses (specs)...

• Piggy's Glasses: When Jack punches Piggy, Piggy's glasses fall off and one of the lenses break.  As the symbol for rational vision, the fact that one lens has broken shows that the boys' sense of reason is already becoming cracked.  (Side note:  the glasses (symbolizing "reason/logic") are what the boys use to make the fire (symbolizing "potential/desire for rescue" see how it's all connected??!)

• The Littleuns:  Golding spends considerable time developing the life of the youngest of the survivors at the beginning of Chapter 4.  Most significant is the moment with Henry, who, in his own power grab, tries to control the tiny sea creatures that flood in with the tide.  Golding appears to assert that the desire for power is present in even the youngest of our species...

• The Civilizing Effect of Society:  Both Maurice and (surprisingly) Roger seem to feel this.  After kicking the sandcastles "Maurice still felt the unease of wrongdoing," because "in his other life" he had been punished for a similar act (60).  Similarly, the only reason Roger doesn't actually hit Henry when he is throwing stones at him is the "invisible yet strong... taboo of the old life," (62).  Thanks to the civilizing effect of society, Roger isn't quite as cruel as he could have been and Maurice feels some guilt.  However, these effects are wearing off day by day.  Golding appears to believe that the only thing that keeps us from being cruel is the rules of society.