What do the boys have that is a symbol of authority in the society's system?

Ralph and Piggy find a conch shell at the beginning of the novel, and the shell quickly becomes a symbol of authority on the island. Ralph blows into the shell and the sound brings all the other boys—who were scattered after surviving a plane wreck—to the sound of its blasts. At that first assembly, a call arises to elect a chief. Ralph wins, mostly because of the conch:

But there was a stillness about Ralph as he sat that marked him out . . . and most obscurely, yet most powerfully, there was the conch. The being that had blown that, had sat waiting for them on the platform with the delicate thing balanced on his knees, was set apart.

Throughout the rest of the novel, the conch grants its holder the right to speak at assemblies. It is blown to summon the boys to group meetings and to silence the boys when they speak out of turn. Even the youngest children come when the conch was blown, "partly because Ralph blew it, and he was big enough to be a link with the adult world of authority."
Towards the end of the story, when the conch is shattered, Jack shouts at Ralph, "There isn't a tribe for you any more! The conch is gone." The destruction of the shell symbolizes the end of Ralph's leadership. His followers have deserted him, and now the instrument of his power is gone too.


The conch shell symbolically represents civilization, order, and structure throughout the novel. It is also considered a symbol of authority because everyone must assemble when it is blown, and any person holding the conch shell during the assemblies has the right to speak without being interrupted.
At the beginning of the novel, Ralph and Piggy discover a conch shell in the lagoon and immediately retrieve it. Ralph then blows into the conch, which summons the boys to assemble on the platform. The boys are mesmerized by the beauty of the conch, which symbolically represents their initial affinity for civilization. Ralph is also elected leader of the group simply because he possesses the conch while the boys are voting. Rules are then established, and it is decided that whoever is holding the conch has the right to speak without being interrupted. Also, every time the conch is blown, the boys must assemble for a meeting. Being that the conch summons the boys to assemble and gives any boy the right to address the group, it is considered a symbol of authority throughout the novel.

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