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Chapter
Cry of the Hunters
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Contents
Cry of the Hunters
Section recap
What happens in Cry of the Hunters.
Jack's tribe hunts Ralph across the island with the intent to kill him. Samneric, now part of the tribe under duress, secretly warn Ralph that the boys plan to smoke him out by setting the island on fire. As the fire spreads and Ralph runs for his life, he stumbles onto the beach and collapses at the feet of a British naval officer whose ship spotted the smoke. The boys break down crying, and the officer is visibly uncomfortable at what the children have become. The novel ends on a note of rescue that is also a note of grief—civilization has returned, but innocence is gone forever.
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Why this page matters.
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Key moments
The beats worth remembering.
Samneric's Warning
Ralph finds Samneric on guard duty and they reluctantly tell him that the tribe plans to hunt him the next morning and that Roger has sharpened a stick at both ends—implying his head is meant to be displayed like the pig's.
The Island Burns
Jack orders the forest set on fire to flush Ralph out. The fire that was once the boys' only hope of rescue is now a weapon used to hunt one of their own, completing the inversion of the signal fire's original purpose.
The Naval Officer Arrives
Ralph bursts onto the beach and finds a British naval officer standing there. The officer's presence instantly ends the hunt. When he realizes what has been happening, the boys begin to weep—Ralph most of all—mourning the loss of innocence and the deaths that occurred.
Evidence lanes
The moments you can actually use later.
The Sharpened Stick at Both Ends
Samneric's warning that a stick has been sharpened at both ends directly echoes the mounted pig's head from earlier in the novel, suggesting the hunters plan to treat Ralph the same way they treated the pig—a chilling callback that shows how far the boys have fallen.
Ralph's Weeping on the Beach
When the naval officer asks what has been going on, Ralph begins to cry uncontrollably. His tears are described as mourning for the end of innocence and for the friend he lost—a moment students can use to discuss Golding's central argument about human nature.
Section takeaways
What to carry forward.
The Fire's Meaning Is Completely Reversed
The signal fire started as a symbol of hope and rescue; here it becomes a tool of murder. Students should track this symbol across the whole novel—it perfectly illustrates how the boys' priorities shifted from civilization to savagery.
Rescue Is Not a Happy Ending
The naval officer represents a return of adult authority, but his arrival does not undo what happened. Piggy and Simon are dead, the island is destroyed, and the boys are weeping. Golding uses the rescue to argue that the violence was real and its consequences permanent.
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How this guide is built
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