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   ms-mcgregor Teacher
   High School - 12th Grade

   The basic problem with the fire is that no one is really using it in order to get rescued. Jack is busy hunting and killing the pig. He uses the fire for the immediate gratification of being able to eat meat. Ralph begins to feel sorry for himself and says, “Supposing I got like the others—not caring. What ’ud become of us?” Ralph is losing control of the group and then forgets the purpose of the fire. Piggy has to remind him that the fire's purpose is to help the boys get rescued. However, when Jack's group steals Piggy's glasses in order to start their own fire, Piggy begins to concentrate more on getting his glasses back than being rescued. All of the boys are losing track of their objective of getting home, symbolized by the fire, and focus more and more on other things. The final solution for the fire does not occur until the end of the novel when Jack uses it to smoke out Ralph and almost destroys the island in the process.

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   Posted by ms-mcgregor on Saturday October 25, 2008 at 10:59 AM