Lord of the Flies Character Analysis: Simon
Sometimes the craving for control and superiority brings evil which can potentially destroy the harmony and solidarity of a population. Of all the characters in the story, which includes the enlightened Ralph, the violent Jack, the cruel Roger, and the whiny, intelligent Piggy, Simon proves to be the most uniform character as he is shown to be a Christ-like figure in the quickly deteriorating island society. From introduction to conclusion, Simon goes through the smallest amount of change in the novel. Despite the fact that Simon did not truly integrate with the other boys, he tried his hardest to make a positive change in his and other's lives. The novel “Lord of the Flies” by William Golding displays the repercussions of human evil, a complex topic that encompasses an analysis not only of human nature but also the causes, effects, and manifestations of evil. Throughout the story, Simon shows the revelation that evil isn't simply a component of human nature, but an active facet that seeks expression.
One of the main characters in “Lord of the Flies” by William Golding, Simon, is initially presented as a Choirboy (led by Jack Merridew) who had fainted due to the scorching heat of the sun and Jack reacts to this by saying that the boy is “always throwing a faint” [pg. 16]. The boy is first introduced to the readers with a name when the “boy that had fainted sat up against a palm trunk, smiling pallidly at Ralph and said that his name was Simon”.[pg. 18]. In order to imagine what Simon physically looked like, William Golding gave him a brief description of a "skinny, vivid boy" [pg. 20] with straight black hair. "He was a small, skinny boy, his chin pointed, and his eyes so bright they had deceived Ralph into thinking him delightfully gay and wicked.", this description as well as him fainting in his introduction makes him appear frail. Simon is picked by Jack to explore the new land with him and Ralph. He had already started to show signs that he has difficulties expressing himself. When exploring with Ralph and Jack,
Simon shows his excitement for their surroundings by shyly stroking Ralph’s arm. While the other boys play or hunt, Simon alone helps Ralph to build the shelters. Simon also started to show that he is a Christ-like figure by helping Ralph build shelters while all the other boys were playing or hunting. This act started to show the readers that Simon truly is a compassionate person and it also showed us that he is truly loyal to Ralph and that Simon wants Ralph to continue to go on being chief. Although William Golding displays Simon to us as an intelligent boy with the ability to understand various bewildering concepts, he is actually described physically as a short and skinny boy that is “not as tall as the biguns, but not as small as the littluns.” Simon doesn’t speak much during the course of the story. However, when he does decide to express his thoughts, they are visionary and wise in ways that make the other boys feel uncomfortable. Jack had gone to hunt and Simon stayed back to help Ralph work on building huts. Simon is the only one out of the group besides Ralph that has stuck with the building of the huts. The other boys went to play or explore. However, as evening draws near Simon is not in camp and the two boys discuss that he has gone off. The reader learns that he wanders off sometimes. The boys decide that Simon is odd. Simon is very concerned about the Littluns. He expresses concern about their crying in the night. Simon says the littluns “Talk and scream. As if-…As if it wasn’t a good island.” Simon also says that the littluns and some of the others believe that the Beastie is real. He takes them on a trek to find fruit and helps to feed them. He then goes off to hide by himself for a while. The reader learns that Simon is a caring person but he is also a loner who needs to get away from the others at times and connect with nature. He has a special peace and goodness in his personality.
Simon and Ralph had started to notice that things were getting out of hand because the boys have not done anything required of them: they refuse to work at building shelters, they do
not gather drinking water, they neglect the signal fire, and they do not even use the designated toilet area. Ralph says that the biguns are hopeless as well because they just come to the meetings and then “they’re off eating, or bathing, or playing” [pg. 51]. Jack gathers the hunters to reveal his new hunting strategy: using colored clay and charcoal to camouflage their faces and this makes the hunter boys look rather frightening and this can be interpreted as the start of when the boys start to become savage and the evil kicks in. Jack commands all his hunters, including Samneric who are on fire-maintenance duty at the time, to join in a hunt. Ralph spots a ship in the distance but due to all the hunters being busy trying to catch a pig, the fire burns out and Simon points out that there is no smoke. By the time all three have reached the dormant fire site, the ship is gone. Meanwhile, Jack and his hunters are triumphant because they finally caught a pig. Simon stands up for Piggy and helps him get his glasses back when Jack knocks them off his head during Ralph and Jack’s altercation, another allusion to Simon's visionary bent. Later when the boys are eating, Jack does not give Piggy any meat but Simon being the compassionate nice person he is, decides to give his portion of the meat to Piggy which stirs up Jack and he says “I painted my face- I stole up. Now you eat-all of you-.” Simon notices that the boys are acting more obnoxious and savage than ever and the evil truly is taking over their minds. Simon responds to the evils around him by resisting to it and he does this by retreating to his secret spot in the jungle where he meditates by watching nature’s beauty. Simon also is starting to become Ralph’s advisor in a way because Simon is constantly spending time with Ralph and Ralph is starting to trust Simon more. Simon is also starting to become less shy and starting to express his thoughts with the other boys but most of the time, his ideas go unheard.