Painted Face
Painted Face
“Jack shouted so loudly that Ralph jumped.
"What? Where? Is it a ship?"
But Jack was pointing to the high declivities that led down from the mountain to the flatter part of the island.
"Of course! They'll lie up there--they must, when the sun's too hot--"
Ralph gazed bewildered at his rapt face.
"--they get up high. High up and in the shade, resting during the heat, like cows at home--"
"I thought you saw a ship!"
"We could steal up on one--paint our faces so they wouldn't see--perhaps surround them and then--"
Indignation took away Ralph's control.
"I was talking about smoke! Don't you want to be rescued? All you can talk about is pig, pig, pig!" (p.40)
“All the boys of the island, except Piggy, Ralph, Simon, and the two tending the pig, were grouped on the turf. They were laughing, singing, lying, squatting, or standing on the grass, holding food in their hands. But to judge by the greasy faces, the meat eating was almost done; and some held coconut shells in their hands and were drinking from them. Before the party had started a great log had been dragged into the center of the lawn and Jack, painted and garlanded, sat there like an idol. There were piles of meat on green leaves near him, and fruit, and coconut shells full of drink.”(p.114)
ANALYSIS
Jack was definitely possessed by the spirit of hunting. To paint the face in a war means to get disguised, but in the primitive civilization, it was more than that, it was how they used to identify others from the same tribe. Jack in the beginning used his previous knowlodge about hunting and war just to hunt, however, after he ascended to leader in his own tribe, he took use of the painting to identify and characterize his tribe as supreme.
Painted Face
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