Lord of the Flies: Imagery And Symbolism Of The Conch Shell And Ralph In the novel Lord of the Flies by William Golding imagery and symbolism are used frequently. Two examples of this are the conch shell and Ralph. The conch shell symbolizes all the boys as a group. Ralph symbolizes being civilized and keeping order. These are only two of the symbols that William Golding uses in his novel Lord of the Flies. The conch shell is a very important symbol in the novel it is the symbol of the group of boys that were marooned on the island. In the beginning of