Poor, Poor Misfit: The Uses of Piggy


"'Which is better -- to be a pack of painted Indians like you are, or to be sensible like Ralph is....Which is better -- to have laws and agree, or to hunt and kill?'"

PIGGY THE UNPOPULAR -- WHY?

With the possible and occasional exception of Ralph, it would seem in retrospect that Piggy is the only really sensible and clear thinking indivdual on the island. His ideas are excellent and would serve well the community of boys on the island, if undertaken. Yet almost always Piggy is treated with disdain and ridicule by the other boys. He could hardly be less popular and less effectual. Why is this? Golding does not even give Piggy the dignity of a real name. He is just "Piggy."

Yet especially in light of the last sentence in the book, it would appear that the fate of Piggy is close to the author's heart. In the larger context of the novel and its narrative, how does the fate of Piggy symbolize a civilization gone wrong? How does the character of Piggy highlight the theme of the novel? What is this theme?

SMART, BUT NO CHIEF!

"How can you expect to be rescued if you don’t put first things first and act proper?"

"Piggy could think. He could go step by step inside that fat head of his, only Piggy was no chief. But Piggy, for all his ludicrous body, had brains."