In a way, Simon shares the same perception but sees the darker side of knowledge. He sees the sow’s eyes as “dim with the infinite cynicism of adult life” and later hears the head speak with a schoolmaster’s voice, telling him to accept the presence of evil on the island. This view of adults is not defined by the civilized politeness and capability the boys imagined just two nights before, after the assembly. Cynicism results from gaining experience while losing optimism; having witnessed the pig’s slaughter and defacement has given Simon experience in death and brutality and caused him to lose hope. Yet he soldiers on in his quest to discover the identity of the beast on the mountain top, the beast he knows is false because he has just had a conversation with the true beast.
Just as Piggy and Simon seem to share an idea about the cause of the island society’s disintegration, Simon and Jack have similar revelations as well. During the first successful hunt in Chapter 4, Jack is excited by “the knowledge that had come to them when they closed in on the struggling pig.” In this chapter, Simon’s “gaze was held by that ancient, inescapable recognition” as he looks upon the Lord of the Flies. Both boys are connecting with the savagery that begets evil, but Jack revels in it while Simon is undone by it, trapped by his vision of the Lord of the Flies in his hidden spot until he passes out.
Another concept related to this knowledge of savagery is a twist on the idea of fun. From the beginning, Ralph’s goal for the group was for everyone to have fun. Such a goal did not seem farfetched given that the boys were on a pristine tropical island, the type featured in the adventure stories they all had read. Once Jack defects and lures his hunters away, he also promises fun, the kind that comes with dressing up like savages and having adventurous hunts.
