Lord of the Flies - Entmoot Book Club Discussion

[azalea]

Jack and Ralph hefting the large limb together has the air of symbolism -- the limb being the leadership role or something like that -- and Ralph says it's "almost too heavy" and Jack responds "not for the two of us." All of the boys are scattered around the mountainside looking for firewood.
Then they realize they can't light the fire. This is a bit of very obvious symbolism -- Civilized man emerges with the ability to harness fire. Guess who might have that power? Piggy of course, although Ralph is the one who thinks of it -- he being the representation of civilization. Piggy is perturbed about having his specs snatched away, and cannot function without them -- what is intellegence without the ability to reason? Also, he is made even more physically incapable of survival without them.
The fire is started, and all are happy until it burns itself out -- almost. Piggy has an "I told you so" moment when he points out they've started an out of control forest fire. It isn't enough for Man to be able to make fire, he must also be able to harness and control it. Notice that Jack thought the fire itself was enough, the fact that it wasn't producing smoke -- the point of the exercise, didn't register as important to him. I've known so many people like that -- completing the task at hand is all they consider, they don't think about why they are doing what they're doing. It is so typical of so many people -- it's as if they have no brain, or just enough to be dangerous!
Tension is growing between Piggy and Jack, because Piggy sees that Jack isn't respecting the conch, in that he tells him to shut up even when he has it. Imperfections in the system already. But of course Jack is smart enough to be on Ralph's side, because he knows he can have power through him.
I love the line "Piggy glanced nervously into hell."
Piggy realizes in horror that not all of the little boys are accounted for. Ralph throws back that he'd given Piggy the job of getting all the names so they'd have a list. But Piggy doesn't have the power of leadership that way, so wasn't able to do it -- they all wandered away from him. It becomes especially horrifying when they realize the boy who'd seen the beastie was missing -- and we are to assume, like they do, that he was trapped in the forest fire. Piggy has an excellent example to illustrate his point about keeping order, etc., but it has come at too high a cost.
One last note -- notice how it is Simon who makes a point of contradicting Jack's statement that Piggy didn't help build the fire; he points out that without Piggy there would have been no specs to make the fire at all.
I hope I haven't said too much! Next time I'll wait and let someone else start the chapter discussion. But I'm having fun!