Character Development of Piggy
Nicole Messer and Christianna Haas
Quiz
1. Piggy suffered from ____, poor eyesight and a weight problem.
2. ____ raised Piggy and was a big influence on him.
3. Piggy's ____are what gave the boys the ability to start a fire.
4. The ____ was created by Piggy.
5. The conch and the glasses represent _____.
6. The boys viewed Piggy as _____.
Piggy
- Most intellectual of all the boys on the island
- Not respected for his ideas, but judged for his physical and medical weaknesses
- Created the idea of the conch
- Physically inferior
- Poor eyesight
- Overweight
- Has asthma
Quote 1
Piggy had a faith and honest conscious that was unmatched. He relies and trusts so much on science, and never once doubted it, that it led him to think the most logically about their situation and fears. While the other boys are literally loosing themselves over the idea of a beast being on the island with them, Piggy sees that it is not scientifically possible for an animal that big to live on the island with them. But he also thinks about the future of all of them on the island, and tries his best to use his intelligence to their advantage.
Quote 2
“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. “ (page 84).
Ralph recognizes that Piggy has intellect much greater than his, however he also realized that Piggy didn't have the qualities necessary to be a leader. But because he has knowledge far beyond his own, Ralph is sure to have Piggy's input. Piggy also stays as Ralph's adviser because he stays calm in situations when Ralph isn't.
Quote 3
"I didn't expect nothing. My auntie-' 'Sucks to your auntie!" (Golding 8)
In this quote, we see Piggy acting as the adult voice on the island. And by frequently talking about his auntie, he provides a female "input" on their situation. We also are able to see the rational side of Piggy as well. He knows what it takes to survive, and he knows what the boys need to do in order to stay the good English boys that they claim to be.
Quote 4
Piggy was always trying to find a scientific and logical explanation for everything that happened on the island. Even after Simon's death, he tried to reason that it happened only because Simon had crawled into the middle of the group during the bonfire. His faith in science reassures him of his fears, and thus, Piggy stays the most humane out of all of them. His intelligence allows him to think rationally and he comes to realize that the only thing to fear on the island are the other boys themselves. Through this realization he becomes more independent even when left alone in a strange place, which helps him evade the descent into savagery.
Quote 5
“Only Piggy could have the intellectual daring to suggest moving the fire from the mountain.” (page 142).
Intelligent, Piggy is brimming with good ideas. It was his thought in the first place to start the signal fire, with the hope that it will bring someone to rescue them. As well as the fire, it was also from Piggy that they made the huts, the conch, the sundial, and even know the names of those that survived the crash. Only Piggy would even think of moving the fire from it's place on the top of the mountain to a more manageable place, since they were having trouble keeping it lit.
Don't discriminate on those who are different from you, rather accept them for their differences and be open to their possible contributions to society.
Questions
2. How is the relationship between Faber and Montag from Fahrenheit 451 similar to that of Piggy and Ralph?
3. If the children would've been females, do you think that Piggy would've been treated the same? If not, how would it have been different?
4. Is there something that Piggy could've done differently in order to get the boys to listen to him?
5. In the world, do you think that there are more Piggys, Ralphs, or Jacks?
6. What kind of impact did Piggy's death have on the boys, if any?
Citations
Golding, William. Lord of the Flies. New York: Coward-McCann, 1962. Print.