One of the most important themes running through the entire story of William Golding's Lord of the Flies is the power of different symbols. Golding often uses symbolism, which is the practice of using symbols especially by investing things with symbolic meaning. The main point of each symbol is its use and its effect on each of the characters. They help shape who the characters are and what they will be. The symbols are intertwined throughout the story and are more powerful than they seem at first glance. Two kids with similar upbringings can both be drastically different when they are put in difficult situations and given things that make them wield power among others. Spitz says, “But his desire for lots of control, of course, didn't extend to controls. These glasses are very symbolic. They not only represent Piggy, but all the kids and how they have to survive on the island even if they don't understand the importance of it yet. When Piggy first arrived on the island, his glasses were pristine and perfect, undamaged, just as the boys were. Everyone arrived on the island as someone else and left completely changed. They represent intelligence and intellectual research. Piggy is probably the brightest of the kids abandoned on the island in Lord of the Flies, and his glasses help set him apart from the others. He is symbolized as an adult figure with common sense. He is the most rational boy of the group; making his glasses also symbolize logical reasoning within society. But he was completely disrespected, as Jacks says in the novel: "'You're talking too fatly.' ” (Golding 18) The glasses not only represent Piggy and what he represents, but for everyone else, like in real life, we have symbols that mean power, and Washington DC is a good example of this. Wiebenson goes into detail about the power of symbols on Pennsylvania Avenue: “These few examples show much more than the power of symbols that encourage citizens to respect their government. They also demonstrate the growing strength of local interests and the intent for the city to symbolize the fact that residents are people too. The battles recorded here demonstrate that national symbols still have great power." (Wiebenson 20) He believes that the power of symbols lies not only in the respect of his government, but in how each symbol demonstrates the growing strength of the people within it. Although there are no major buildings in the novel, the conch, Piggy's glasses, and the fire show how symbols exert different amounts and types of power. As each is destroyed, there is a weakening of the power that can be gained from them. The use of symbols is crucial to this novel, so William Golding helps to show us that an object is much more powerful than it might seem at first glance.