Jack and his followers light a fire that goes out of control and sets the whole island—whole walls of trees—ablaze in a giant conflagration. The fire symbolizes how out of control Jack and his group have become in their lust for violence. Ralph, who they have been chasing in order to kill him and eat him, collapses on the sand at the shore of the island as the flames come closer. He wakes up to see the white cap of a naval officer above him. The officer explains that his naval vessel detected the smoke of the fire and came to investigate.
Once the ship with its adult crew arrives to rescue the boys, the barbarous island adventure is over. Since the context of the novel is World War II, however, the ship that saves them is a symbol of the larger scale barbarity of a world at war. Civilization is a thin veneer, the novel asserts, thrown over mankind's inherently savage nature.
At the end of the novel, the boys lose their humanity and become savage. They hunt and kill each other.
Ralph has been trying to maintain order and keep the signal fire going, but Jack's group would rather hunt instead. Piggy is killed when Roger pushes a boulder on him, Sam and Eric are captured, and Ralph is alone. He hides as the others search for him. Sam and Eric find him and tell him they joined Jack after being tortured. They also tell him Jack and the boys are coming for him. To flush Ralph out of the forest, the hunters set the trees on fire.
Ironically, the forest fire is what draws the attention of the Navy. A naval officer appears just as the boys are closing in on Ralph. The Navy comes because they see the fire.
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