Conch
The conch represents many things: the hope for rescue, order and authority, and a return to civilization. Many characters represent different facets of absolute personalities, so when Ralph blows on the conch, he brings all these differences into attention and congregation. Jack is usually associated with dung and blood, which are the main enemies of the hope that Ralph fosters.
The effects of the conch and the mask are entirely different. The conch mainly symbolizes order and rules. The conch is used for assemblies that are with all of the boys on the island. The only person who is allowed to speak is the person who is actually holding the conch. The conch is really just a large shell that was white when Ralph found it, but due to the sun rays, it turned yellow. The conch is very important because is the original object that brought all of the boys immediately after the plane crash. The conch even allows for the small kids and less important people to have a say in the way the island is run. For instance, Piggy who is hated by most of all of the big kids, has a chance to express his mind. "I have the conch, said Piggy indignantly, you let me speak" (page 42). While the conch represents order and a civilized manner, the masks represent just the opposite. Those who wear a mask not only look like savages, but truly act like them also. A mask essentially consists of the paint that the hunters originally started wearing to have camouflage. This helps them hunt animals more easily. This may be okay for hunting, but Jack has certainly taken it to the far extreme. He forces his entire tribe to put these masks on themselves. In doing so, he aims to intimidate and to give fear to their enemies. The ironic thing i, that they have no real enemy. An enemy is defined as one who attacks or tries to harm another. At no time does Ralph and his group ever attack or try to harm Jack. Masks also represent outcasts. Jack originally left Ralph's group because he wanted to be a leader. Every one else who joined Jack is also an outcast. The mask represents freedom and liberation from Ralph's group. Due the feelings that the masks give to their hosts, Simon and Piggy both die. The masks make the wearer feel as an actual savage who needs blood and craves to do damage and destruction. The people who wear masks are all considered tribe members, which indicates that they are simplistic and savages. The motto of the boys who wear masks is dreadful. They kill because of this motto that the mask influences on them. They all thought that there was a beast. The beast only turned out to be a dead parachutist. "Kill the beast, cut his throat, spill his blood" (page 186). This could be said by none other than a savage tribe. Because of the mask, the innocent boys turn into ill thinking savages incapable of acting in an ordered and civilized manner. In this fashion, the conch and face painted masks are contradictory and on opposing ends.
"Ralph looked for a moment at the growing slice of gold that lit them from the right hand and seemed to make speech possible." (page 108).
"'Conch! Conch!' shouted Jack, 'we don't need the conch any more" (page 110).
"'When I saw Jack I was sure he'd go for the conch. Can't think why.'" (page 155).
"The group of boys looked at the white shell with affectionate respect." (page 156).
"The rock struck Piggy a glancing blow from chin to knee; the conch exploded into a thousand white fragments and ceased to exist." (page 201).
Fire
Fire represents both a destructive force and hope for rescue. For the boys it represents hope for salvation, but it also has destructive powers when not controlled, as the very first thing it does it kill young boys when it spreads uncontrollably. Ralph constantly reverts to reason and tries to listen to Piggy when he keeps asserting that the fire must be kept lit at all costs for the hope of rescue. Ironically, at the very end, Jack's fire attracts soldiers who ultimately rescue the boys. The question still remains: who will rescue the adults?
Plane Crash
The plane symbolizes the advance of science and technology in Western Civilization. The fact that it crashes shows that science and technical knowledge are not the salvation that Western Civilization is looking for, and indicate the crash, or failure of society. The decadence of Western Civilization unravels the masks covering true human nature, which thus causes wars and makes peace impossible.
Piggy and his glasses
Piggy represents the rationality and is the living image of civilization. His hair never gets longer, even though everyone else's does, and his asthma symbolizes the poor air quality caused by the West's rapid industrialization. Piggy's glasses symbolize scientific knowledge and its capacity for hope and salvation. The glasses are used to focus the sun's rays to make fire, which also symbolizes hope. The glasses also can be used for evil and destruction, as Jack uses fire for evil and destruction. The glasses symbolize the capacity of science to be used for bad, such as atomic bombs, machine guns, and other weapons that can do devastating harm.
The Beast
The beast is a symbol for what the boys fear. Only Simon sees the dead parachuted solder, and understands that there is nothing to fear but what lies inside them. By the end, Jack and his savages treat the beast as a sort of God and even leave sacrifices to it.