Skip to main content

What sort of weapon is Jack using to hunt pigs in Lord of the Flies?

Jack uses a spear to stick the pig and a knife to cut its throat. 


The pig-hunting is very important to Jack and to the other boys on the island.  It is about much more than getting meat.  Jack also just wants to kill something, because he has an innately savage nature.  He was also appointed head of the hunters, so he considers it a failure if he doesn’t get a pig. 


Killing a...

Jack uses a spear to stick the pig and a knife to cut its throat. 


The pig-hunting is very important to Jack and to the other boys on the island.  It is about much more than getting meat.  Jack also just wants to kill something, because he has an innately savage nature.  He was also appointed head of the hunters, so he considers it a failure if he doesn’t get a pig. 


Killing a pig turns out to be more difficult, physically and psychologically, than the boys ever imagined.  The first time there is a pig, Jack finds himself unable to stick it.  It would be the first time he killed something.  The enormity of it overwhelms him.



He raised his arm in the air. There came a pause, a hiatus, the pig continued to scream and the creepers to jerk, and the blade continued to flash at the end of a bony arm. (Ch. 1) 



The boys continue their desperate efforts to kill the pig.  They even develop a song and dance centered around pig killing.  It is symbolic of their new life and existence on the island.  They want to be self-sufficient and grown-up.  Jack uses a “sharpened stick about five feet long” to hunt the pig. 



From the pigrun came the quick, hard patter of hoofs, a castanet sound, seductive, maddening—the promise of meat. He rushed out of the undergrowth and snatched up his spear. The pattering of pig’s trotters died away in the distance. (Ch. 3) 



The pig dance became more disturbing when they had a boy actually playing the pig.  Robert screamed and struggled while “Jack had him by the hair and was brandishing his knife” (Ch. 7).  One boy had already died in the fire, and soon Simon and Piggy would also lose their lives to the boys’ frenzied and desperate worship of hunting.

Popular posts from this blog

In chapter one of The Great Gatsby, what advice does Nick's father give him? How does this make him a good person to tell this story?

Nick says that his father advised him that, before "criticizing anyone," he "remember that all the people in this world haven't had the same advantages" as Nick.  As a result, Nick claims that he is "inclined to reserve all judgments," presenting himself to the reader as a fair and dispassionate arbiter of character, and thus, a reliable narrator.   The problem is that Nick immediately reveals himself as anything but reliable, as he then launches... Nick says that his father advised him that, before "criticizing anyone," he "remember that all the people in this world haven't had the same advantages" as Nick.  As a result, Nick claims that he is "inclined to reserve all judgments," presenting himself to the reader as a fair and dispassionate arbiter of character, and thus, a reliable narrator.   The problem is that Nick immediately reveals himself as anything but reliable, as he then launches into a discussion of how pe...
Post a Comment
Read more

How did the United States become an imperial power?

"Imperial power" is a bit of a vague label. It tends to mean several things at once, so let's unpack it. In the sense of "this country was built on conquest by force," the "imperial power" part of America actually predates the United States proper. The territories that would become the United States were imperial colonies, established by the great European empires of the 17th and 18th centuries. Much of the US Constitution and American governance generally goes back to England, history's largest and most successful imperial power, but vital aspects of American culture come from other imperial powers, such as France and Spain. Much of American culture comes from sources other than the old empires, but they were key influences on what the United States became. In the sense of "this country treats conquest by force as a fundamental component of its culture, economy and politics," the United States has always been an imperial power. Even earl...
Post a Comment
Read more

How and why does James Gatz become Jay Gatsby? Describe the young Gatsby/Gatz.

James Gatz, a poor Midwestern boy of probable Jewish lineage, becomes Jay Gatsby, a presumed WASP and wealthy socialite, when he moves to New York City and acquires his fortune. It is wealth that has allowed Gatz to transform himself into Gatsby. However, those who know his background (e.g., Daisy and Tom Buchanan) never allow him to forget that he is nouveau riche -- that is, an upstart who has just recently made his fortune,... James Gatz, a poor Midwestern boy of probable Jewish lineage, becomes Jay Gatsby, a presumed WASP and wealthy socialite, when he moves to New York City and acquires his fortune. It is wealth that has allowed Gatz to transform himself into Gatsby. However, those who know his background (e.g., Daisy and Tom Buchanan) never allow him to forget that he is nouveau riche -- that is, an upstart who has just recently made his fortune, whereas they arose from well-to-do families. Gatz became Gatsby through determination and discipline. At the end of the novel, the narr...
Post a Comment
Read more