Lord of the Flies Chapter 11 Notes

Chapter 11

Key Characters

Ralph: Faced with the fact that they no longer have Piggy's specs to start a fire, Ralph furiously tries to rekindle flames from the fire the allowed to die out the night before but fails. Piggy encourages Ralph to call a meeting (with the only kids they have left), at which Ralph expresses his frustration: Jack didn't need to steal anything, they would have shared the fire. Ralph continues to lose his train of thought frequently, which Sam and Eric notice. Ralph, however, remembers Simon's assertion that he'll "get back all right," and regains some hope. He ultimately agrees to accompany Piggy to Castle Rock to meet with Jack. There, he gets into a fight with Jack and tries to make a final point about getting rescued to get the boys back on his side, but is met by silence. The futility of trying to reason with Jack's tribe is confirmed when they capture Sam and Eric and kill Piggy. The chapter ends with Ralph fleeing for his life.

Piggy: With no other option besides blindness, Piggy suggests the boys go to Castle Rock with the conch to reason with Jack.  Piggy realizes he isn't as strong as Jack but hopes he can show him the difference between right and wrong. Piggy is passionate about doing this "against all odds." When they reach Castle Rock, Piggy is allowed one final speech in which he makes another plea for reason. Roger answers by heaving an enormous boulder at Piggy.  Piggy is knocked off the narrow strip of rock and falls 40 feet to his death. He is killed instantly and swept out to sea by the waves.

Roger: recalling an earlier scene, Roger begins throwing rocks again, at first "aiming to miss" though he feels a dark "source of power" (most likely our violent nature, "the beast") begin to "pulse" in him.  He eventually heaves a huge boulder off the top of Castle Rock (100 feet up), which kills Piggy. No longer are the rules of society holding Roger back! In fact, he almost shoves Jack as he walks by him and the narrator confirms that he has a "nameless authority," which likely refers to his willingness to submit to his own "inner beast."

Jack: He shows up at Castle Rock on the same level as Ralph since he was out hunting. They get into a physical fight but it breaks momentarily as Piggy reminds Ralph why they are there (to remind Jack about the importance of the rescue fire and "playing fair"). Once Ralph finishes his speech, Jack orders Sam and Eric to be captured and tied up, leaving Ralph completely on his own.

Key Things and Moments

The Conch: Piggy would like to believe that the conch, with its symbolism of rational society and democracy, still has power. It does afford Piggy the authority for one last speech, but it is shattered by the boulder that kills him. This is, of course, very bad symbolic news. The conch and the civilized society it represents is gone forever. The outlook for Ralph looks bleak.

Castle Rock/The setting: understanding this chapter relies heavily on understanding how the setting is, well, set up.  The full description is on p105-106.

Castle rock is a rock formation about 100 feet tall. To get to it, you need to cross a narrow strip of rock that extends into the ocean, and is beaten by the water on both sides (though on one side, when the waves recede, another large flat rock is revealed, which is where Piggy falls). This narrow strip is about 40 feet in the air and is where Piggy, Ralph, Sam, and Eric are standing in this scene.

To get to the top of the 100 foot formation, it is better to edge around it to the other side, where there is a steep incline that is easier to climb than the face of the cliff. At the very top are lots if large boulders that could be pushed off the cliff onto "intruders" below. This is where Roger and some of the other boys are standing.

Away from Castle Rock and on the "island side" of the narrow strip is a grassy area where Jack and his hunters show up after Ralph and the others have crossed onto the strip.