Earthshine Emmeline Posted May 22, 2011 Share Posted May 22, 2011 Hi! So has anyone here read Lord Of The Flies? I have a question about the symbolism of pigs. My question is: What is the symbolism of pigs? I'm usually good with this kinda thing but I'm stuck here. I have a project to do on it in English and it's such a vast topic, how can I give pigs just one theme? So far I've considered religion, obsession, superstition, omens, temptation, sex and death, but what do you guys think? Thanks ^_^ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
In A Tidewater Surge Posted May 22, 2011 Share Posted May 22, 2011 I read it when I was.. 8 or so, and again when I was 12, but I haven't read it since.. sorry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Earthshine Emmeline Posted May 22, 2011 Author Share Posted May 22, 2011 QUOTE (In A Tidewater Surge @ May 22 2011, 05:03 PM) I read it when I was.. 8 or so, and again when I was 12, but I haven't read it since.. sorry Thanks anyhow ^^ XD I'm 16 and I can hardly read the damn thing! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Babycat Posted May 22, 2011 Share Posted May 22, 2011 I only wish I knew what it was about... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Invisible To Telescopic Eye Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 I can't believe I'm typing this....but it symbolizes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ColdFireYYZ Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 I read it a few years ago and I thought the pigs represented innocence. Jack, who was obsessed with killing and hunting represented evil and guilt while the pig was like a victim. I'm probably way off but that's how I saw it. Good luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnnyBlaze Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 It's been 25 years since I read this fun book. I thought of the pig as: the loss of innocence itself...the desire to hunt the pig, and the actual appearance of the pig's head deteriorating/changing. I vaguely remember one of the characters leaning into and putting all his weight into the pig as it's being slain (is this right or am I too old?). That in itself could be thought of as sexual. Who knows? I might have to read that again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Earthshine Emmeline Posted May 23, 2011 Author Share Posted May 23, 2011 QUOTE (JohnnyBlaze @ May 23 2011, 05:02 AM) It's been 25 years since I read this fun book. I thought of the pig as: the loss of innocence itself...the desire to hunt the pig, and the actual appearance of the pig's head deteriorating/changing. I vaguely remember one of the characters leaning into and putting all his weight into the pig as it's being slain (is this right or am I too old?). That in itself could be thought of as sexual. Who knows? I might have to read that again. THANK YOU!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
micgtr71 Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 The pig is not necessarily symbolic of anything until they decapitate one and offer it as a gift for the beast...which the reader knows does not physically exist. The beast is actually themselves as suggested early on by Simon. The pig's head on the stick is actually the "Lord of the Flies" which talks to Simon and tells him the problem. Lord of the Flies is a euphemism for Beelzebub, one of the seven princes of Hell. As suggested earlier, the pigs do lead to the loss of innocence as they are a harmless creature that offers them something when dead. Killing them satisfies Jack's blood lust which then leads to Roger and Maurice's move later in the story. Hope this helps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Earthshine Emmeline Posted May 23, 2011 Author Share Posted May 23, 2011 QUOTE (micgtr71 @ May 23 2011, 08:26 AM) The pig is not necessarily symbolic of anything until they decapitate one and offer it as a gift for the beast...which the reader knows does not physically exist. The beast is actually themselves as suggested early on by Simon. The pig's head on the stick is actually the "Lord of the Flies" which talks to Simon and tells him the problem. Lord of the Flies is a euphemism for Beelzebub, one of the seven princes of Hell. As suggested earlier, the pigs do lead to the loss of innocence as they are a harmless creature that offers them something when dead. Killing them satisfies Jack's blood lust which then leads to Roger and Maurice's move later in the story. Hope this helps. Thanks, my teacher seems to think that "pigs" in entirety is a symbol but I think it's absurdly broad. I mean, you have pigs that Jack hunts, the talking pig head, Piggy and The Sow all rolled into one topic there But thanks so much C: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnnyBlaze Posted May 24, 2011 Share Posted May 24, 2011 QUOTE (Earthshine Emmeline @ May 23 2011, 09:16 PM) QUOTE (JohnnyBlaze @ May 23 2011, 05:02 AM) It's been 25 years since I read this fun book. I thought of the pig as: the loss of innocence itself...the desire to hunt the pig, and the actual appearance of the pig's head deteriorating/changing. I vaguely remember one of the characters leaning into and putting all his weight into the pig as it's being slain (is this right or am I too old?). That in itself could be thought of as sexual. Who knows? I might have to read that again. THANK YOU!!! No problem. Although, I wouldn't trust me too much . If your teacher is decent you should be able to argue that it's symbolic of almost anything (if you have enough support to back it up of course). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garbo Posted May 26, 2011 Share Posted May 26, 2011 Just verifying that it's a loss of innocence (that's generally how it's perceived) and drive it home with the name "Piggy" and what Piggy actually stands for and the themes centered around Piggy as a character. And pronounce Ralph's name correctly! That drives me nuts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
micgtr71 Posted May 26, 2011 Share Posted May 26, 2011 QUOTE (Earthshine Emmeline @ May 23 2011, 02:36 PM) QUOTE (micgtr71 @ May 23 2011, 08:26 AM) The pig is not necessarily symbolic of anything until they decapitate one and offer it as a gift for the beast...which the reader knows does not physically exist. The beast is actually themselves as suggested early on by Simon. The pig's head on the stick is actually the "Lord of the Flies" which talks to Simon and tells him the problem. Lord of the Flies is a euphemism for Beelzebub, one of the seven princes of Hell. As suggested earlier, the pigs do lead to the loss of innocence as they are a harmless creature that offers them something when dead. Killing them satisfies Jack's blood lust which then leads to Roger and Maurice's move later in the story. Hope this helps. Thanks, my teacher seems to think that "pigs" in entirety is a symbol but I think it's absurdly broad. I mean, you have pigs that Jack hunts, the talking pig head, Piggy and The Sow all rolled into one topic there But thanks so much C: I suppose that if one stretches it, the pig could be a symbol of the race of people that a 12 year old could dominate. As part of the fascism theme, the boys use the pig for power, Jack rise to power by exploiting them, and one of the pigs is sacrificed to appease the enemy (beast). When looked at this way, the pigs could be symbolic of the helpless masses. You could go in that route and see what your teacher thinks. Hope this helps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Good,bad,andrush Posted May 26, 2011 Share Posted May 26, 2011 Hey buddy. It's not just the loss of innocence but the loss of innocence leading to greed, lethargy, and filth, among other things of course. Sex and death...doesn't sound very fun, but probably a fun way to go But seriously, regard only the first part of my post. And try to analyze it with the whole story, not just by itself. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Show Don't Tell Posted May 26, 2011 Share Posted May 26, 2011 QUOTE (micgtr71 @ May 23 2011, 08:26 AM) The pig is not necessarily symbolic of anything until they decapitate one and offer it as a gift for the beast...which the reader knows does not physically exist. The beast is actually themselves as suggested early on by Simon. The pig's head on the stick is actually the "Lord of the Flies" which talks to Simon and tells him the problem. Lord of the Flies is a euphemism for Beelzebub, one of the seven princes of Hell. As suggested earlier, the pigs do lead to the loss of innocence as they are a harmless creature that offers them something when dead. Killing them satisfies Jack's blood lust which then leads to Roger and Maurice's move later in the story. Hope this helps. This. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
burgeranacoke Posted May 26, 2011 Share Posted May 26, 2011 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack Aubrey Posted June 2, 2011 Share Posted June 2, 2011 Sometimes a pig is just a pig. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LuisSaunders Posted August 5, 2011 Share Posted August 5, 2011 I only realized that pigs were a recurring reference in Lord of the Flies once I read your post and then I looked it up on Shmoop. The pig hunts represent human tendencies towards violence, destruction, mob mentality, cruelty and subjugation of those perceived as weaker. Taking this a little further, we can see pigs as our innocence. The death of Piggy, Simon as well as the barbaric, horrifying, hideous massacre of the female pig show us that the pigs were no longer being killed for survival, but for the sake of violence, brutality and power--lust itself, and in doing so, the boys were killing their own innocence. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sonictheplumber Posted August 5, 2011 Share Posted August 5, 2011 I am one of the few who didn't enjoy this book Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ancient Ways Posted August 5, 2011 Share Posted August 5, 2011 QUOTE (micgtr71 @ May 26 2011, 04:26 PM) QUOTE (Earthshine Emmeline @ May 23 2011, 02:36 PM) QUOTE (micgtr71 @ May 23 2011, 08:26 AM) The pig is not necessarily symbolic of anything until they decapitate one and offer it as a gift for the beast...which the reader knows does not physically exist. The beast is actually themselves as suggested early on by Simon. The pig's head on the stick is actually the "Lord of the Flies" which talks to Simon and tells him the problem. Lord of the Flies is a euphemism for Beelzebub, one of the seven princes of Hell. As suggested earlier, the pigs do lead to the loss of innocence as they are a harmless creature that offers them something when dead. Killing them satisfies Jack's blood lust which then leads to Roger and Maurice's move later in the story. Hope this helps. Thanks, my teacher seems to think that "pigs" in entirety is a symbol but I think it's absurdly broad. I mean, you have pigs that Jack hunts, the talking pig head, Piggy and The Sow all rolled into one topic there But thanks so much C: I suppose that if one stretches it, the pig could be a symbol of the race of people that a 12 year old could dominate. As part of the fascism theme, the boys use the pig for power, Jack rise to power by exploiting them, and one of the pigs is sacrificed to appease the enemy (beast). When looked at this way, the pigs could be symbolic of the helpless masses. You could go in that route and see what your teacher thinks. Hope this helps. The problem is my experience was high school and below was all about finding out what the accepted interpretations are and regurgitating while college allowed you to decide for yourself. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Invisible To Telescopic Eye Posted August 5, 2011 Share Posted August 5, 2011 QUOTE (Jack Aubrey @ Jun 2 2011, 10:57 AM) Sometimes a pig is just a pig. Wendy O. Williams agrees. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KngP03zj2Sw Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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