What are "creepers" in Lord of the Flies?

"Creepers" are long jungle vines that hang from trees and trail through the forest like ropes. They are ordinary plants, but the younger boys’ fear turns them into something frightening.

Early in the novel, a little boy describes seeing a monster in the forest. Piggy reports that the boy saw “the beastie, the snake-thing,” and then says, “He says in the morning it turned into them things like ropes in the trees and hung in the branches. He says will it come back again tonight?” The boy is probably describing creepers: vines that look snake-like in the dark and then seem harmless in daylight.

Creepers also appear around Simon’s secret place in the forest, a hidden glade surrounded by creeper vines where he goes alone to sit quietly. For Simon, the jungle is not simply a place of terror, and he can enter it without the fear that overwhelms the others. The same natural objects that scare the "littleuns" become part of Simon’s private, meditative space.

Creepers help show how the boys project fear onto the island. The island’s jungle becomes terrifying as the boys begin to believe the beast is outside them, while Simon gradually understands that the real danger comes from within the boys themselves.