11. (what is the beast?)

Although nobody initially gave Simon a second look in assemblies, and Jack at a point even says: "What good does Simon do speaking?", I still think that out of all the opinions voiced during the late-night assembly, Simon's makes the most sense.  I think the fear the boys have of the beast is just a label being thrown on the internal fear on the island, which comes about due to the boys' fear of each other.Although up until this point nobody has really physically harmed or injured anyone else, there are many people on the island who show the potential to do so.  I think this just creates all sorts of tension on the island, which ends up becoming a collective fear.  I believe that the reason this fear gets translated into the fear of a beast is because, in all honesty, this is just a group of young boys.  No matter how much bravado they put on in the face of danger, they're still just boys, and they have no way to grasp such an internal and penetrating fear, especially the littluns.  Simon is the exception to that rule, and his quiet, subdued wisdom might be the only thing that can save the boys from what they have become.