SUMMARY: Lord of the Flies, Chapters 7 and 8
Chapter Seven
Ralph muses on the state of his hygiene and appearance. He has a "grey
[unwashed] shirt . . . filthy [long] hair," a desperate need for a toothbrush, and
nails bitten to the quick. Water (as seen in sweat, washing, and the ocean) is seen
as symbolically both a baptismal chance at rebirth and isolating imprisonment, as
it surrounds the island and cuts the boys off from civilization.
The boys have a boar hunt, and Ralph joins in. Ralph realizes how much he enjoys
the experience: "the desire to squeeze and hurt was over-mastering." The hunt is
successful. Afterward, the boys do a re-enactment of the hunt, with Robert
playing the "part" of the pig, but the boys get so carried away they almost hurt
him. A new ritual is born. Jack suggests next time they get a littlun to play the
part of a pig "and everybody laughed."
The tension increases between Ralph and Jack, with Ralph asking Jack, "Why do
you hate me?" Jack, changing topics and focus, decides to lead an attack to the
top of the mountain to face the "beast." Ralph and Roger go with him. Ralph
wants to wait until daytime, but Jack insists they go at night, implying again that
Ralph is scared. They face the "beast," but in the dark, what they think they see
is terrifying, and the boys run away. Ironically, if they had followed Ralph's
advice, they would have clearly seen it is not a supernatural beast but a dead pilot
attached to his parachute; when the parachute is filled with wind, the cords are
being pulled to move the body as if he's a puppet on strings.
Chapter Eight
When the trio return from the mountain, Jack calls a meeting. He tells the others
that they've seen the beast and only the hunters can protect them. Jack also
accuses Ralph of being a coward and saying that "my hunters are no good."
Despite this, when he calls for another vote for chief, he still fails to get elected.
Jack stalks off to form a new tribe. Many of the boys, especially the older ones,
go with him.
Since no one wants to go back up the mountain to relight the signal fire, Piggy
suggests they light it on the beach instead. With the sun up and the help of
Piggy's glasses, they get a fire going. Simon leaves to go to his spot in the forest
and seems almost to meditate.
Jack and the hunters have another successful hunt. However, Golding's choice of
imagery is intense and vivid. The pig is repeatedly called a "her": "She squealed
and bucked and the air was full of sweat and noise and blood and terror." The
boys thrust, prod, and stab the pig with their spears before finally killing it. When
finished, Jack tells the others to "sharpen a stick at both ends," cut off the pig's
head and put it on a stick in the middle of a clearing close to where Simon is
hiding in the jungle: "This head is for the beast. It's a gift." After the hunters
leave, Simon faces the pig's head, naming it the Lord of the Flies.
Jack and several of the hunters, with faces covered in improvised paint, raid the
beach camp. Piggy protects the conch, but the boys could care less -- they want
to steal fire instead. Jack invites the remaining boys to come up to their camp for
a "feast." The littluns whimper hungrily at the thought of meat.
Meanwhile, Simon has a conversation with the Lord of the Flies . . .
We will now read an excerpt from Chapter 8 together, starting with "Simon
stayed where he was..." to "...a pulse began to beat on his brain," and then
reading the last few pages (starting with "You are a silly little boy..").