In chapter 10, the morning after Simon's murder, Ralph and Piggy have a heart-wrenching conversation about what happened. There are multiple quotes in this section that show the boys' loss of innocence and the deterioration of the boys' civilization. First, Golding allows the description to symbolize their fallen state. The two sit "gazing with impaired sight" and the "sunshine played over their befouled bodies." These descriptions suggest the internal darkness of the boys' hearts now that they have become murderers.
Next, Ralph laughs disturbingly as he caresses the conch, showing that the symbol of their civilization is now a laughingstock. Ralph states outright, "That was murder." While Piggy tries to deny it, Ralph's plaintive "Don't you understand, Piggy? The things we did--" shows how he is plagued with guilt for what the boys have become. Piggy argues that their act was justified and that they must forget it, but Ralph states, "I'm frightened. Of us. I want to go home. Oh God, I want to go home." Here Ralph acknowledges that their society has failed monumentally and that this may only be the beginning. He is now afraid, but not of "them"; he includes himself as an object of his own fear, showing that he understands he is no longer innocent.
Finally Ralph begins to bend to Piggy's persuasion to gloss over their evil--as the only way they can deal with their guilt. When Samneric arrive, they have evidently reached the same place. They deny having been present at the end of the dance. Golding writes with great irony,
"Memory of the dance that none of them had attended shook all four boys convulsively."
The boys are now all lying to themselves and each other but cannot escape what they themselves and their society have become--murderers in a debauched culture.
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