Keyword Guide · chapter-summary
In Chapter 8, the tension between Ralph and Jack finally results in a permanent fracture of the boys' society. As Jack forms his own tribe of hunters, the remaining boys must grapple with the growing influence of the 'beast' and the loss of order.
The chapter begins with Jack calling an assembly to denounce Ralph’s leadership. Jack accuses Ralph of being a coward and tries to convince the others to vote him out. When the boys refuse to openly rebel against Ralph, Jack leaves the group in a fit of rage, inviting anyone who wants to hunt to join him. This moment signifies the end of the unified democratic society the boys attempted to build and the start of a new, primitive tribe.
With the beast supposedly occupying the mountain, the boys are unable to maintain the signal fire there. Piggy, showing his practical side, suggests building a fire on the beach instead. While this provides a temporary sense of purpose, many of the older boys slip away during the night to join Jack’s tribe. Ralph and Piggy are left with a dwindling group, emphasizing the growing allure of Jack’s lawless lifestyle over the responsibilities of civilization.
Jack and his new tribe successfully hunt a nursing sow in a particularly violent scene. To appease the beast they believe lives on the mountain, they impale the sow’s head on a sharpened stake as a 'gift.' This act represents a shift from hunting for food to a ritualistic, superstitious form of savagery. The head, swarmed by flies, becomes the titular 'Lord of the Flies,' symbolizing the corruption and inherent evil taking root on the island.
Simon retreats to his private clearing and finds the impaled sow’s head. In a state of dehydration or a psychological break, he hallucinates that the head is speaking to him. The Lord of the Flies mockingly confirms Simon's earlier suspicion: the beast is not a physical monster but a part of the boys themselves. This internal darkness is what is causing the island to fall apart, and the head warns Simon that he cannot escape it.
Jack leaves because he is humiliated after the boys refuse to vote Ralph out of leadership. He wants total control and prefers hunting and violence over Ralph’s focus on rules and rescue.
The Lord of the Flies represents the inherent evil and savagery within human nature. It is a physical manifestation of the darkness that Simon realizes exists inside every boy on the island.
The sow's head is left as a sacrifice to the beast. It shows that the hunters have moved away from rational behavior toward primitive superstition and bloodlust.
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