In addition
to the quotes given in the other answers, here are three more.
Whenhas left
's group to form his own tribe, he begins to wear face paint as a sign of his authority.
Whencomes up to Castle Rock after passing the checkpoint:
The chief was sitting there, naked to the waist, his face blocked out in white and red.
... The newly beaten and untied Wilfred was sniffing noisily in the background.
Face paint, or the mask, allows Jack to perform a violent act
against Wilfred that does not need to be explained to the boys. Roger recognizes it as "the
possibility of irresponsible authority."
Later Jack informs his tribe
they will hunt again and have a feast, but one of the boys asks how they will get
fire.
The chief's blush was hidden by the white and red
clay.
Jack's light complexion predisposes him to
blushing, which gives away his insecurities. The mask allows him to hide his emotions that are
too often betrayed by his normal skin shade. Thus the mask allows him to don a facade of
self-confidence.
In chapter 11, Ralph staunchly refuses to give in to the
temptation to wear a mask when he goes to confront Jack.
"But they'll be painted! You know how it is."
The others
nodded. They understood only too well the liberation into savagery that the concealing paint
brought."Well, we won't be painted," said Ralph, "because we
aren't savages." ... Ralph shouted. "No paint!"
Here Golding clearly states the link between the masks and savagery. By concealing
themselves behind paint, Jack's tribe found it easier to forsake their morality. Refusing to
wear a mask, Ralph holds on to the standards of civilization. "We must go as we are,"
he says. They have lost the grooming and clothing that had identified them as civilized beings
in the past, yet Ralph is not willing to forfeit his upbringing and his sense of right and
wrong. By not allowing his group to hide behind masks, he asserts his commitment to civilization
and morality.
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