Preview

What Is The Nature Of Evil In Lord Of The Flies

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
231 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
What Is The Nature Of Evil In Lord Of The Flies
What happens to people without the order of society? Golding explores how the trait of evil is a trait that humans are born with.He proves that evil is an inborn trait of mankind in Lord of the Flies. The author does so by taking a group of boys and putting them in an environment where they can portray traits found in human nature without society’s rules affecting how they act. He shows that all humans are born with good or evil, which is triggered by specific events to bring it out. Through the characters it is proven that humans are born with evil in them. Jack, Roger, and the Lord of the Flies each portray the quality of evil throughout the novel, Lord of the Flies.
Roger’s actions display traits of evil throughout the novel. In the beginning,

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Imagine if there was a lack of society in the United States of America. In the book Lord of the Flies by William Golding many characters’ struggle with changes in their actions and beliefs due to the lack of society. Many characters’ experiences changes into savagery like Jack while some other experience humanity like Ralph. Jack’s choices throughout the book and his transformation to savagery were influenced by the lack of society on the island.…

    • 759 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In a civilized society, rules play an extreme part. In the novel, Lord of the Flies, by William Golding, Golding demonstrates how a civilized society with a series of kind and cruel leaders, and no rules, can slowly turn into a group of reckless, savage boys. Lord of the Flies explains how a group of boys with no rules can slowly turn into a disaster. Golding shares, that without rules cruelty takes place. Every human is not born perfect but they are kept under control by societies rules, as there are no rules on the island, they boys slowly turn into cruel savages.…

    • 484 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    The author of Lord of the flies, William Golding, uses literary elements such as characterization to support his argument that man’s capacity for evil is revealed in his human nature. Golding uses his main characters- Jack and Ralph- as examples of inner evil. Jack is shown as unjust, mean and self-involved when “[he] took a step and…stuck his fist into Piggy’s stomach” (Golding 71). Additionally, Golding describes Jack as asticious, inimical, and down-right terrible.…

    • 74 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    We think of a person that is evil to be bad, although without the presences of a higher figure or rule are people naturally good or naturally evil? What would happen to a people or person that was in a situation where all forms of authority were removed. Would such person remain the way they are, or would they become savage and completely forget what it’s like when there are restrictions. In the book The Lord of The Flies, the author takes the side that people are naturally evil. In a nutshell, the book is about a group of boy’s crash landing on an island and trying to survive until they are able to be saved. As time progresses there is a clear change in the boy's actions. They become more savage like as if they were animals, the boys had completely forgotten about what it meant to be human or civil. The author is showing what he thinks would happen to kids without a figure of power or rules. Without the presences of a higher figure or rules. people are naturally evil, as time goes on in the story…

    • 868 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Throughout human history, the issue of power has been the source of countless wars and violence, and so has it sparked inspiration in many philosophers to develop potentially better systems of government. The Age of Enlightenment saw many philosophers sprout with new ideas on forms of government to replace or refine the archaic norm of absolute monarchy; one such controversial thinker was Thomas Hobbes. In his widely-recognized book, The Leviathan, he claimed that, because human beings are naturally selfish and evil, one must cede his or her rights to the absolute monarch so that peace can be established and maintained. However, if all human beings are cruel, then monarchs are not any different from the evil of those he rules. In William Golding’s 1954 novel The Lord of the Flies, Golding reflects Hobbes’ ideas about human nature as he depicts the governing of a cluster of stranded boys on an island, from the lack of cohesion of Ralph’s attempt to rationally lead them back to civilization, to Jack’s manipulation of the children into savagery. William Golding thus qualifies Thomas Hobbes’ position, supporting that humans are naturally selfish and evil but refuting his claim that an absolute ruler would make “wise” decisions through his illustration of Jack’s greed for power, hostile acts to Ralph and Piggy, and manipulation of his followers.…

    • 1210 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Since the creation of the world, humans have been falling into darkness and evil, as displayed in stories like Adam and Eve. All humans-beings have the potential to become evil, which usually comes from self-centered wants. When people go down the path of doing whatever it takes to get what they want, they end up hurting others along the way. Evil tempts everyone on a daily basis, but it is the choice whether to reject temptation or give in that exemplifies who someone is. When humans repel evil, the good shows through and their actions have a positive impact. Surrendering to evil is the easy way out, but will lead to darkness and destruction, and make it almost impossible to find a way back to the light.…

    • 333 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Lord of the Flies

    • 502 Words
    • 3 Pages

    William Golding, in his novel lord of the flies, implies that without the constraints of social order, people would descend into anarchy and chaos. Three examples in the text that demonstrate this idea are the conch, the character of jack, and the deaths of piggy and Simon.…

    • 502 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Mark Twain once said, “Everyone is a moon, and has a dark side which he never shows to anybody.” In William Golding’s Lord of the Flies, a novel where a group of young boys crash into an island and form a society. Eventually, this society falls apart and the boys revert to savagery as a means of living. The novel leads us to then question then whether there is any humanity in us or if we could so easily resort to the darkness inside of us.…

    • 892 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    The destruction that occurs on the island is due to the natural instinct of humans to destroy and tear down one another. In Golding’s novel Lord of the Flies Golding uses three major symbols, the conch shell, fire, and the beast support his theme that mankind is evil. The conch represents the order in humanity until it brakes and all hope is lost. The fire represents the hope to be saved yet in the end it only destroys. Lastly, the beast represented the fear of the unknown and is the origin of violence throughout the novel. The three symbols show the humans natural instinct to overrule and destroy one another no matter how young. The boys on the island suffer through the loss of innocence that they come to the island with and by the end of…

    • 1392 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    William Golding asserts man is inherently evil in his book Lord of the Flies. The brief history of the lost boys seems to say otherwise. Do people stay in line just because of the rules and consequences? Or are people all honorable at heart?…

    • 215 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    lord of the flies

    • 544 Words
    • 3 Pages

    In William Golding’s novel The Lord of the Flies , he questions the nature of man and origins of evil within human beings. The plot involves a plane full of British boys, between the ages of six to twelve, crashing on an empty island. There, they are stranded without any adults and as time progresses, the upbringing of the boys regarding societal rules and morals are tested as they revert into a life of savagery. Golding proposes a shocking revelation that human nature is naturally evil. This is demonstrated through mob mentality as well as hidden symbols throughout the book.…

    • 544 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    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.…

    • 637 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    A society without rules cannot expect to prosper. Rules are created so that people within the society can operate and function efficiently, with everyone doing their part. William Golding’s novel Lord of the Flies, is the result of what happens when a society tries to form without rules at all. Thus, ideas of civility and moral judgment decayed, causing the boys to do actions that society would not have thought of. Throughout this novel, a steady theme of the book is that without rules, people can lose sight of their beliefs and morals. Cruelty is a consistent result of what happens when people do not abide by rules or society’s expectations, causing ethics and moral judgment to disappear.…

    • 809 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    What defines something or someone of being evil; how is one truly considered evil? Evil has been defined by so many things. According to Dictionary.com, evil is something that is morally wrong or bad. Evil is also as wicked and or immoral part of someone or something. Common elements of evil are selfishness, ignorance, or neglect. Someone can be evil by doing an immoral act, like murder. Mao Zedong can be considered as an evil person. He has done many immoral actions throughout his life time. In “Lord of the Flies,” Jack can be connected to Mao Zedong. Jack has made some decisions when he has gotten on the island that is morally wrong and bad.…

    • 615 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    In Harper Lee's "To Kill A Mockingbird," the author portrays killing a mockingbird as a sin and a moral. The author describes how the characters are introduced to evil and are convicts of evil. Scout and Jem are very clueless to all evil in the world. They do not understand because they have never seen evilness go on, they expect everyone to be good in society. Atticus, the father, is a guide for his children. He tells them right from wrong and he helps them know that evil does not win goodness will prevail. Atticus also was the most positive man in the town, he teaches his people about the good end of the world and how things will not always be good but things will not always be bad also. Scout and Jem were siblings who usually pick at…

    • 384 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays