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Post by Gina Meyer on Apr 10, 2020 4:30:19 GMT
Simon is the Christ figure because he shows compassion for the other boys on the island and he seems to be willing to almost anything for the good of his tribe. For example, he shows emotion and internal insight throughout the novel which is similar to Jesus. I know this because Jesus Christ was kind, compassionate, and he let himself die for his people. In Lord of the Flies Golding writes,"You’ll get back to where you came from…You’ll get back all right. I think so, anyway’” (Golding 111). When Simon talks to Ralph about being rescued he starts to foreshadow that he may not survive along with some of the other boys. Golding conveys the ideas of good, evil and humanity through Simon by basically making him the true good on the island. However, the evil would be represented through the boys not understanding or believing Simon when he tried to explain what the beast really was. This begins to show how humanity continuously finds ways to make chaos by getting rid of the good in the world, which in this novel is represented by Simon the Christ figure.
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Post by Maya Nelson on Apr 10, 2020 6:03:33 GMT
Simon is the Christ figure in the novel. We can see this in many ways, but one that stuck out to me was what occurred after the death of Christ and the death of Simon. After the boys violently kill Simon, a storm breaks out on the island. Simon's body is swept away and the body of the parachutist is blown onto the island frightening the boys. In the Bible, it states, ¨The Earth shook, the rocks split and the tombs broke open. The bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life. They came out of the tombs after Jesus' resurrection and went into the holy city and appeared to many people.¨(Matthew 27:51-53)
With the murder of Simon, the last of their civilized order is destroyed and is replaced with a group of savages led by Jack who makes the beast into an incredible godlike figure. It later states in the Bible, ¨When the centurion and those with him who were guarding Jesus saw the earthquake and all that had happened, they were terrified and exclaimed, ´Surely he was the son of God!´¨ (Matthew 27:54) This parallels Lord of the Flies when the storm washes away the bodies of Simon and the parachutist because there's no longer proof that the beast doesn't exist while in the Bible, seeing the bodies of the people who were resurrected is their proof that there is a God.
In the previous chapter, the sow's head tells Simon ¨I'm warning you. I'm going to get angry. D'you see? You're not wanted. Understand? We are going to have fun on this island." (Golding 144) You could compare this to Jesus' confrontation with Satan during his forty days in the wilderness. The sow tempts Simon, telling him to play his game, otherwise he will get hurt which occurs in the following chapter. Satan tempts Jesus multiple times to which Jesus replies "Do not put the Lord your God to the test." (Matthew 4:7)
After his encounter with the Lord of the Flies, Simon's death becomes inevitable. This is seen by him promising to have fun with Simon. His vision however teaches him that this beast exists in all humans. His confrontation with the beast does not end until he sees the beast in all of the boys when they kill him. Simon's death is merely an example of the power of evil within all of us.
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Post by Madden on Apr 10, 2020 7:33:19 GMT
Simon is the Christ figure in the novel in the way that his kindness and helpfulness led to his death. Simon might not have been killed for the same reason or in the same way, but he was killed for no reason other than the boys on the island had gone "savage". In the previous chapter William Golding foreshadowed Simon's death by having Simon say, "'You'll get back to where you came from... You'll get back alright. I think so anyway.'" By having Simon say you'll get back, you'll get back is implying that Simon isn't going to make it much farther in the book. William Golding is saying that that Simon was the good left in their humanity. So by killing Simon he also killed all the good left with the boys releasing the evil and insanity among there island.
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Post by Megan Jaco on Apr 10, 2020 13:23:00 GMT
Simon is the only character in the book who has not so far succumbed to the powerful influence of the lord of the flies. His greatest fear is that that side would come out of him and cries when he is told by the hallucination of the pig's head that this is inevitable and that the lord of the flies is inside all of them, just waiting to come out. Golding wrote Simon into the novel to represent the natural good inside all of us, but also to show that most of society is not this strong and is afraid of someone who does good just to do good. Everyone on the island is slipping into the barbaric ways of the lord of the flies except Simon, who still has morals even in these wild situations. In chapter 9 - as predicted when Simon told Ralph that he would get home safely - Simon was brought to a cruel end by people who were too afraid to use their heads in a time of need. Seeing Simon crawling out of the woods, and the wild energy that the fresh hunt of the pig brought them, made all the boys thirsty for more blood. The killing off of the last bit of good and sanity in the group foreshadows much more brutality and blood-lust among the boys in the future.
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Post by Autumn Davis on Apr 10, 2020 14:36:33 GMT
In this novel, Simon represents Christ; he speaks the truth, just as Jesus does, but those opposing each character act rashly without believing either man. In the bible, Jesus is crucified while the men taunt him, saying that if he truly is God's son he will have the power to save himself. This parallels the book, in which Simon tries to tell the boys that the beast they fear is simply a corpse and parachute on the mountain. Instead of believing him, the boys perceive Simon to be the beast, attacking and killing him.
Simon's death is foreshadowed in the book when Simon reassures Ralph that specifically he will return to his home safely. The text states, "one might dream of rescue; but here, faced by the brute obtuseness of the ocean, the miles of division, one was clamped down, one was helpless, one was condemned... I just think you'll get back all right" (111). In this passage, it almost seems as though Simon already knows of his own death and he seems to almost be at peace with it, calmly assuring Ralph that he will get off the island.
William Golding seems to be making a statement that actions speak louder than words through both Simon's character and the events surrounding him. Simon is a very pure, innocent character who does not seem to fear much, but does not feel the need to show off his intrepidity. Because of his silent courage, he seems to seek the truth about things like the beast on the island. However, because Simon does not boast about his actions, the other boys believe him to be batty each time he tries to tell them his knowledge through words. Once his ideas are shot down, though, Simon does not continue to try to convince the boys. This shyness seems to balance Simon's good traits, making him more human. Similarly, Simon's death is brought about by him wanting to tell the truth, only this time he is surrounded by a hysteric group of boys driven to kill by their fears. Overall, Simon is a very good character with human flaws that set his actions apart from the others, and who is killed by the very evil he wishes to extinguish: fear.
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Post by Kylie Fish on Apr 10, 2020 14:55:05 GMT
One way that Simon is the christ figure in the novel is because he is very caring and empathetic to all of the other boys in the novel. Simon makes an effort to comfort the other boys when they are in need. For example, Simon provides Ralph with emotional support is chapter 7 when Simon senses that Ralph is worried about never being rescued from the island. Simon then told ralph that he would be ok and that he would make it home (even if Simon didn’t). This part of the novel was foreshadowing the death of Simon in chapter 9. Through the character Simon, William Goulding is saying the humanity can potentially be both good and evil regardless of the circumstances. Simon showed that even if you may be in a tough situation surrounded by “evil”, you still have the ability to be a good person.
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Post by Rachel Thomas on Apr 10, 2020 16:13:34 GMT
Simon represents the Christ figure because of his outlook on life. He was the one that had the calm, steady, constant demeanor, even if they didn't listen to him. He was always keeping everyone positive, and they didn't realize how much he actually helped them till it was too late. He is also identified as the Christ figure because of his beliefs about the beast. He recognizes that it is just a dark force they have created when Golding says "However Simon thought of the beast, there rose before his inward sight the picture of a human at once heroic and sick."(103 Golding). I believe the beast is representative Satan because of the way he influences all the decision of the boy on the island, even though it wasn't exactly the same method of manipulation, and only Simon is able to realize everything with the beast is detrimental to the tasks at hand. Simon represents the Christ figure because he represents all the good and positive on the island and tried to help the boys stay away from the negative.
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Post by Navin F. on Apr 10, 2020 20:06:30 GMT
Simon is the Christ figure of the novel because of his compassion for others as well as his insight into what right. Simon is compassionate and helps others when they are vulnerable or need emotional support. He does this when Ralph is stressed, Piggy is criticized, and when the littluns need help; Ralph is always there to help. Simon's role as the christ figure implies his death, which happens at the hands of his own people. This was foreshadowed by interactions with Ralph where he assures Ralph's safe return to home, but not his own. Also, Simon is the last sliver or reason, order, and humanity amongst the boys. He was the only one who couldn't go savage and he was the voice of reason. The insight that he provided, to the boys is what just barely kept the boys from spiraling into chaos. Naturally, these aspects foreshadow Simon's death because he needs to die in order for savagery to prevail and run rampant amongst the boys. I think that Golding is trying to say that most people have evil within them, which is kept in check by having humanity. When you lose your humanity, much of that evil is released. However, there are some good people who can never succumb to evil, and keep other's evil in check. The good person is Simon.
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Post by Joey Allen on Apr 16, 2020 13:11:39 GMT
1.) Simon can be linked back to Christ with him being a voice of comfort to those in need, finding truth and clarity and trying to spread the word just for it to lead to his end. all of these points are found in both the story of Jesus and the story of Simon. 2.) Specifically, he is a voice of comfort when Ralph has mixed feelings about the boys on this island and his ideology that they will die on this island "'You'll get back to where you came from... You'll get back alright. I think so anyway.'" (Golding 111).; like how Christ was there for the people of the land, bringing health peace and prosperity to them. When Simon discovers a clearing into a grotto of flowers and life, it's him finding the garden of Eden, as a place of comfort. and it to be ruined by the actions of people, this being the pike with the boars head on it. and it splits from there, Simon hearing a voice from the boar head dubbed the lord of the flies, this being clear to Jesus being the son of god. then the downfall of Christ because the Romans didn't believe him. this being in a tie with Simon coming back just to be mauled by the boys. 3.) Golding is showing how the voice of balance and good can be tainted and lost through those of malice, it being twisted for there own desires or that voice being silenced altogether. nothing in this world can stay pure forever, it will be tainted by the darkness of people. this is proven with the entire story of Simon. he wanted to help people and found a way to help even more, just for it to be taken by the boys and for it to be ruined.
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magdalena mccormick
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Post by magdalena mccormick on Apr 21, 2020 15:38:51 GMT
I think Golding uses the contrast between the "good" side of society and the "bad" or "evil" side of society, to each their own hold beliefs on what those mean to them, he uses this contrast in relation to the boys. Simon in Lord of the Flies represents the good and holy side, he is able to determine things such as: other peoples emotions. Simon is also very kind to his peers. "You'll get back to where you came from... you'll be alrigh" (Golding 111).
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Post by Owen Flatley on Apr 22, 2020 16:33:17 GMT
Simon represents Jesus in the lord of the flies through his kindness and intelligence that it seams that the other boys did not have. his death was also representative of Christ because just like Christ, he was an innocent person who was killed for seemingly no reason. i think what William was trying to say is that even though there is some good in the world there is always more evil and no mater who you are it lives inside of you.
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Post by Maddie Van Haveren on Apr 23, 2020 7:02:20 GMT
Simon is similar to the Christ figure in many ways. First off, Simon is seen on the island as a good, empathetic person. He has compassion for the boys on the island and helps a lot of the boys emotionally, especially the younger boys on the island. He seems to be one of the only boys on the island who hasn't become savage-like and given in to his darker desires. And just as Simon is viewed as a purely good character, Christ also plays this role in the Bible. Simon foreshadows his own death when talking to Ralph earlier, saying "You'll get back to where you came from... You'll get back alright. I think so anyway." This quote shows Simon foreshadowing his own death and knowing that he's not going to make it off of the island. With the character of Simon, Golding is saying that although all people have good within themselves, that good often vanishes in the face of an environment like the island where you have to fight to survive.
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Post by Adrianna Castillo on Apr 30, 2020 23:55:17 GMT
Simon represented a sort of Christ figure in many ways during the novel. He seemed to be one of the most thoughtful characters and cared a lot about the well being of the others and he comforted them and tried to make them feel like everything would be okay eventually, he eventually also knew the truth behind the beast. "You knew, didn't you? I'm a part of you? Close, close, close! I'm the reason why it's no go? Why things are the way they are?" (Golding 143). Once he knows the truth about the beast he tries to tell the other that there isn't a beast and that they shouldn't fear it, even though he already knows that things may go badly for him if he does. He seems to already realize that some of them will die just like the little boy did as well. When Christ died he was killed by his own people just as Simon is as well and this is one of the biggest similarities between them. When Simon is killed we seem to realize the true nature of the boys and finally see that evil exists in everyone.
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Post by Kat Davis on May 15, 2020 5:22:16 GMT
Simon is shown to have similarities to Jesus many times throughout the novel, but one of the most prominent times comes at Simon's death. In many ways, his death parallels the death of Jesus, as both die after making eye-opening discoveries about human morality. However, his death differs from Jesus's death because rather than removing the burden of human sin, Simon's death only does more to weigh on Ralph and Piggy. Simon's death can be foreshadowed in this line, "Fancy thinking the Beast was something you could hunt and kill!” said the head." This line foreshadows Simon's death as an act of ignorance on the boy's part because unlike Simon, they haven't yet realized that the beast is inside of each of them. Throw Simon, William Golding is stating that each person has their good and evil, and while some may realize this, there is nothing they can do to convince the others of this. Each boy has good and evil inside them, but see the evil as a turntable, killable beast which lurks on the island, when really, they are the beast themselves.
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