What does Simon mean when he says, “maybe it’s only us?”

Question

What does Simon mean when he says, “maybe it’s only us?”

The boys are the only survivors of the war.
The island is uninhabited.
No one else is scared except for them.
The boys are imagining the beast and the beast is actually a part of them.

Answer 1

The correct answer is: The boys are imagining the beast and the beast is actually a part of them.

Answer 2

When Simon says, "maybe it's only us?" he is suggesting the possibility that the beast they fear does not actually exist externally. Instead, he implies that the beast may be a manifestation of their own fears and anxieties. In other words, Simon believes that the boys themselves are the source of the fear, and the beast is a part of their own minds or collective imagination.