Evil In Lord Of The Flies Research Paper

Kaitlyn B. Lee
English II-2
Mr. Work
September 28, 2012
Lord of the Flies: Who is Infected by Evil? Lord of the Flies, written by William Golding, is about a group of boys that are stranded on a deserted island. They struggle to find civilization because there are no adults to take care and watch over them. Ralph, who is the main character and leader of the boys, tries to establish a civilization by building a signal fire as a sign for their rescue. The boys start to struggle with their persona and they start believing that they might be evil. In the novel, Lord of the Flies, everyone is infected by evil. Evil has a different influence and consequence on each individual person in the novel. One in particular that is infected by evil
would be Simon. Although Simon is one of the boys who is really the good guy, he has evil because he is swallowed by darkness. In this instance, darkness in the novel is represented by the beast’s mouth. In chapter eight, Simon is confronted by the Lord of the Flies, which is being disguised by the pig meat that is on a stick. The Lord of the Flies is trying to muddle with Simon’s mind and it’s making him think certain things about himself that aren’t true. “You knew it, didn’t you? I’m part of you? Close, close, close!...This is ridiculous. You knew perfectly well you’ll only meet me down there—so don’t try to escape!...Simon found he was looking into a vast mouth. There was blackness within, a blackness that spread…Simon was inside the mouth. He fell down and lost consciousness.” (Golding 143-4) In the Bible, everyone is infected by evil, except for Jesus. Genesis 8:21 says that people infected with evil from youth, “21 And when the Lord smelled the pleasing aroma, the Lord said in his heart, “I will never again curse the ground because of man, for the intention of man 's heart is evil from his youth. Neither will I ever again strike down every living creature as I have done.” (ESV Gen. 8:21) Other Bible verses that support this are Ephesians 2:1, John 3:1, and Romans 3:9-20. There are many other examples in Lord of the Flies that refer to a person’s “darkness” and being “swallowed.” “Ralph was puzzled by the shutter that flickered in his brain.
There was something he wanted to say; then the shutter had come down.” (Golding 141) Ralph describes a “shutter” in his brain which meant that he was mentally in the dark. “He looked from face to face. Then, at the moment of greatest passion and conviction, that curtain flapped in his head and he forgot what he had been driving at. He knelt there, his fist clenched, gazing solemnly from one to the other. Then the curtain whisked back.” (Golding 163) This passage is describing how Ralph tries to overcome the darkness within. Ralph’s darkness came within himself. It didn’t come from any other source, therefore darkness that overcomes Simon must originate from Simon. Romans 3:9-20 makes good point saying that all have sinned and nothing righteous is in a person unless saved by Christ. What Simon and Romans have in common, or the point that they’re both making, is that we all have evil, or sin, in us. It comes from none other, but ourselves. By having Jesus Christ as our savior we are able to have more of a control of what the flesh does and wants to do. Jesus is the one whom we pray to for his guidance and by his grace, he is
merciful.

Works Cited
English Standard Version (ESV). N.p.: Crossway Bibles, 2001. Eng. Standard Vers. BibleGateway.com. Web. 27 Sept. 2012. .
Golding, William. Lord of the Flies. New York: Penguin Group, 1954. Print.