Chapters 7-9 Analysis

Chapter 7: Shadows and Tall Trees

1. Summary: What Happens?

• Ralph joins the hunt for the first time, feeling the thrill of violence.
• The boys wound a pig but fail to catch it. In their excitement, they re-enact the hunt, using Robert as the pig, nearly hurting him.
• Jack suggests using a real human next time, foreshadowing later violence.
• Ralph, Jack, and Roger climb the mountain at night and see the silhouetted parachutist, mistaking it for the beast.
• They flee in terror, convinced the beast is real.

2. Themes

• The Thrill of Violence
  • Even Ralph enjoys the hunt, showing savagery is contagious.

"Ralph too was fighting to get near, to get a handful of that brown, vulnerable flesh. The desire to squeeze and hurt was over-mastering."

• Loss of Rationality
  • The boys let fear control them, misinterpreting the parachutist as the beast.
• Foreshadowing Murder
  • The mock hunt with Robert suggests the boys will soon turn on each other.

"Kill the pig! Cut his throat! Bash him in!"

3. Symbols

• The Hunt – Symbolises the growing bloodlust among the boys.
• The "Beast" – Fear blinding them from reality; they fear a monster but fail to see the evil within themselves.

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Chapter 8: Gift for the Darkness

1. Summary: What Happens?

• Jack tries to overthrow Ralph as leader but fails.
• Furious, Jack leaves the group to start his own tribe of hunters.
• The hunters kill a pig and place its head on a stick as an offering to the beast.
• Simon hallucinates and "speaks" to the Lord of the Flies, the pig's head.
• The Lord of the Flies tells Simon that the real beast is inside the boys themselves.
• Meanwhile, Jack's tribe grows, and they steal fire from Ralph's group.

2. Themes

• The Corruption of Power
  • Jack abandons rules and embraces savagery.

"I'm not going to play any longer. Not with you."

• The Beast as Inner Evil
  • Simon's hallucination reveals that the beast is not real – it's the darkness within the boys.

"Fancy thinking the Beast was something you could hunt and kill! … You knew, didn't you? I'm part of you?"

• Savagery Taking Over
  • The pig's head (Lord of the Flies) is a symbol of the boys' descent into evil.
  • The boys now kill for pleasure, not just survival.

3. Symbols

• The Lord of the Flies – Symbolises the primal evil within humans.
• Jack's Painted Face – Hides his identity, allowing him to commit cruel acts without guilt.

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Chapter 9: A View to a Death

1. Summary: What Happens?

• Simon discovers the beast is just a dead parachutist and tries to tell the others.
• Jack hosts a feast, attracting most of Ralph's group.
• During the feast, a violent storm begins.
• The boys, in a frenzy, mistake Simon for the beast and brutally kill him.
• His body is washed out to sea, making him a Christ-like figure.
• The parachutist is also blown away, leaving the boys with nothing to fear but themselves.

2. Themes

• Mob Mentality & Loss of Identity
  • The boys become a mindless, violent mob.

"There were no words, and no movements but the tearing of teeth and claws."

• The Death of Truth & Goodness
  • Simon's death symbolises the loss of wisdom and morality on the island.

"Softly, surrounded by a fringe of inquisitive bright creatures, itself a silver shape beneath the steadfast constellations, Simon's dead body moved out towards the open sea."

• Nature Reacting to Evil
  • The storm mirrors the chaos of Simon's murder.
  • The island is now fully under the control of savagery.

3. Symbols

• Simon's Body Floating Away – Symbolises the departure of innocence and truth.
• The Storm – Represents nature's anger at the boys' brutality.

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