In "Lord of the Flies" William Golding offers a realistic fictional story in a way that no other author can. It tells the story of a group of kids stranded on an island fighting between the forces of good and evil. The story is carried forward by powerful diction, frightening details and insightful imagery to show how the conch is a symbol of good that is used by Ralph to show the boys' responsibility while the sow's head is a symbol of evil that is used by Jack to instill fear in the kids. When Ralph and Piggy discovered the conch they realized that it could be used to communicate and summon the boys. Golding expresses the little power Ralph has by saying “mightier[l], there was the conch” (Golding 22) this shows that although Ralph has power over the boys, the conch is more powerful than him. If Ralph calls the boys they won't answer, so he has to blow the conch to gather the boys. The shell should teach kids responsibility because eventually, if they feel it enough, they will connect the two. After Jack tells Ralph how he killed the pig, Ralph replies "with the conch devil calling a meeting" you can see he is trying to keep his cool when he says "when I blow". Now!" (75) This shows that in the midst of all the bad things happening, Ralph feels he must restore order among the boys. He cannot lose his grip on them, so he must use the conch to the fullest of his powers. Golding uses an exquisite play on words when he states that “the shell exploded into a thousand white fragments” and that it “ceased to exist” (181): this shows that the shell no longer has power because it does not exist Without the shell there will no longer be a sense of responsibility on the island. Now that the shell is no longer there, evil has a chance to thrive and... middle of paper... they have made good use of it ever since. When Ralph finds the sow's head in the forest, he hits her and she comes back “grinning,” then hits her again and falls down and her “grin is now six feet wide” (185). to his tribe, but he won't. Jack and the sow's head will stop at nothing to have power. Without the “big shell of cream” there is nothing good left on the island. When the shell broke, Ralph could no longer have power, so the jack became the main rule. The breaking of the shell took away all the good things and left all the bad things there to thrive and prosper. Now Ralph must find a way to survive until they are rescued. The conch had so much power and Ralph used it as best he could. The sow's head also had a lot of power and Jack used it too. The objects had so much control over them. Works Cited Lord of the Flies