Irony is the use of words to convey a meaning that is the opposite of its literal meaning. This rhetorical device is often used many times in literature and is a very significant device. An example of irony is found at the end. In the final chapter, he was setting fire to the jungle, to get Ralph out of the smoke. Fire, at the beginning of the book, was used for two things: it allowed the boys to signal a ship for rescue, it helped cook meat, and it helped them stay warm. So, at the beginning of the story, fire symbolized civilization and hope. However, this changed when Jack confiscated fire from Ralph's tribe and used it to help them carry out further wrongdoing. He set the jungle on fire so that Ralph can burn. This changed the symbolism of fire from civilization and hope to evil, ferocity and calamity. However, something ironic soon happened. The naval officer saw the fire burning the island and went to the island! Ironically, the fire was used as a fire signal, which was a virtuous symbol, but was actually used for evil purposes (the fire was intended to kill Ralph). The person who didn't care about the signal fire (Jack).