In a world where humanity is so often doubted, criticized, and negatively depicted, it can be difficult to see all the light that outshines the exaggerated darkness. Media heavily covers the tragic, devastating events that happen which overshadows all the inspiring and positive things in the world. Throughout William Golding’s novel, Lord of the Flies, Golding incorrectly depicts human nature as inherently evil rather than good; however, many other literary works and real-life events prove that humankind is innately generous and empathetic. Golding believes human nature is inherently evil and shows that with the loss of civilization, true savagery emerges. Golding often displays these evil, sadistic ideas through the character, Roger. Roger …show more content…
Atticus is very adamant about teaching his kids to experience empathy as well. He tells Scout, “You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view...until you climb into his skin and walk around in it” (Lee 33). During a time of hatred and inequality in the novel, Atticus is the light representing the good nature within humankind. He represents the ability to empathize and really understand things from another person’s perspective. Lee portrays humankind as more good than evil in her novel, which reiterates the idea that humanity is innately good. Generosity is the goodness in humans and is their ability to give and help others, purely based on kindness. In Lord of the Flies, Golding portrays generosity through the character, Simon. Simon is a Christ-like character who has strong morals and beliefs. After Jack refused to give Piggy food, "Simon, sitting between the twins and Piggy, wiped his mouth and shoved his piece of meat over the rocks to Piggy, who grabbed it” (Golding 74). Simon gives food to Piggy even though he does not have to, expecting nothing in return. He just wants to help, which shows the generous, tender nature within
William Golding’s Lord of the Flies portrays the lives of young British boys whose plane crashed on a deserted island and their struggle for survival. The task of survival was challenging for such young boys, while maintaining the civilized orders and humanity they were so accustomed too. These extremely difficult circumstances and the need for survival turned these innocent boys into the most primitive and savaged mankind could imagine. William Golding illustrates man’s capacity for evil, which is revealed in man’s inherent nature. Golding uses characterization, symbolism and style of writing to show man’s inhumanity and evil towards one another.
With an understanding of the inherent darkness in all men and first-hand experience with savagery and violence in World War II, William Golding used Lord of the Flies as not only a historical allegory and a pulpit from which to address the darkness in all men, but also as a metaphor and a example that no one is exempt from human nature. Golding’s characters in Lord of the Flies reflect this idea greatly, but none more so than Roger. Throughout Lord of the Flies, Golding uses the character of Roger to show the follies of mankind and the ability of all people to turn to savagery, as well as the inherent nature of man and society’s internalized acceptance of violence, stemming from Golding’s own experiences with the subject. Golding created Roger to be an extension of Jack’s own personality; Roger externalizes Jack’s internal sadism and amplifies his lust for power over others. From the beginning of the novel to the end, he exemplifies the sadism of the savages on the island and catalyzes much of the violence that goes on throughout, from the viciousness of the pig hunts to the premeditated death of Piggy. While not being a central character in Lord of the Flies, and while remaining a primarily static character throughout, Roger becomes a pivotal example of the disintegration of the human condition and the ability of all men to turn to cruelty when presented with the opportunity and put in circumstances that foster anarchy and violence, such as those that the boys find themselves in in Lord of the Flies. Through a use of complex psychopathy, a disintegration of societal morality, and violent imagery and symbolism, Golding shows that, while everyone is potentially civilized, humans are essentially savage by nature.
When viewing the atrocities of today's world on television, the starving children, the wars, the injustices, one cannot help but think that evil is rampant in this day and age. However, people in society must be aware that evil is not an external force embodied in a society but resides within each person. Man has both good qualities and faults. He must come to control these faults in order to be a good person. In the novel Lord of the Flies, William Golding deals with this same evil which exists in all of his characters. With his mastery of such literary tools as structure, syntax, diction and imagery, The author creates a cheerless, sardonic tone to convey his own views of the nature of man and man’s role within society.
Humans, by nature, are genuinely good people who show compassion and concern for others, right? Well true, if we all lived in a utopian land. Unfortunately, humans are, in fact, evil and easily corrupted by others. In William Golding’s 1954 published Lord of the Flies, the boy’s on the island learn that a peaceful civilization is easily destroyed without cooperation or agreement. The frustration manifested itself, making a transformation of the boys into meat hungry, hunters, who even try to hunt the other boys who don’t follow the pack. Golding analyzes the flaws of human society, directly related to human nature.
Golding makes very good use of characters in Lord of the Flies, he shows both good and evil through each of the characters. One of the characters that represents goodness is Simon. He is very good and pure, and has the most positive outlook. Simon is very different from the other boys, he seems to always be helping the Littluns and many other vulnerable boys such as Piggy. "Simon sitting between the twins and Piggy, wiped his mouth and shoved his piece of meat over the rocks to Piggy, who grabbed it." (Golding, pg.74) This quote interprets an example of a time when Simon helped Piggy by giving him food, it shows Simon's wholeheartedness. Another example would be when Simon helps the Littluns pick fruit from high to reach places. All in all Golding tries to portray Simon as a Christ like figure.
Golding has a rather pessimistic view of humanity having selfishness, impulsiveness and violence within, shown in his dark yet allegorical novel Lord of the Flies. Throughout the novel, the boys show great self-concern, act rashly, and pummel beasts, boys and bacon. The delicate facade of society is easily toppled by man's true beastly nature.
Whether people will deny it or not, it is certainly apparent that human nature is all too evil; for there is a demon that lurks in everyone, just waiting to come out. Humans can build civilizations and attempt to deviate themselves from such basic instincts, yet nevertheless, evil is not something that they can run from; it is not something that they can defeat. William Golding knew this, and so in his book, Lord of the Flies, he presents so by portraying a microcosm of a society in the form of little British schoolboys. Their plane, in an attempt to escape from the raging war, came to its own demise as it was shot down, leaving the boys stranded on an island they know nothing of. Ralph, later on the leader of the boys, and with the help of
In Lord of the Flies, William Golding expresses the idea that humans are naturally immoral, and that people are moral only because of the pressures of civilization. He does this by writing about a group of boys, and their story of survival on an island. The civilized society they form quickly deteriorates into a savage tribe, showing that away from civilization and adults, the boys quickly deteriorate into the state man was millions of years ago. This tendency is shown most in Jack, who has an animalistic love of power, and Roger, who loves to kill for pleasure. Even the most civilized boys, Ralph and Piggy, show that they have a savage side too as they watch Simon get murdered without trying to save him. Simon, the only one who seems to have a truly good spirit, is killed, symbolizing how rare truly good people are, and how quickly those personalities become corrupted.
... of hope for rescue and the destruction of their ties to former human society; and the Lord of the Flies, used to represent mankind’s “essential illness”: inherent human evil. Ultimately, Golding’s symbols, simple in appearance yet burdened with the weight of human savagery, violence, and inner darkness, do more than frighten. As these symbols are ingrained into our minds, so, too, is responsibility: the responsibility of recognition, understanding, and action. If we do not take heed of the messages behind Golding’s symbols, then our ignorance may be more than unwise—it may be fatal. For if we do not soon take steps to confront our inner evil face-to-face, we may eventually find ourselves trapped in Golding’s harrowing depiction of human society: one bound only by rules far too fragile that, when broken, lead only to chaos, self-destruction, and total savagery.
“Everybody has good and evil within them. All we're trying to say is that people are not all good or all bad. People are more complicated than you think, and one has to be more knowledgeable about the complexities.” This quotation from Stephen Schwartz establishes that even the best of people can be bitter by their own nature. In the novel, Lord of the Flies, William Golding removes the restraints of society to prove that it is human nature to live primitively and that evil lies within all of us. The sanctions of society begin to deteriorate due to the loss of communication, Jack’s obsession with hunting, and the inhumane nature of Jack and his “tribe”.
The novel “Lord of the Flies” was written by William Golding to demonstrate the problems of society and the sinful nature of man.
This paper will explore the three elements of innate evil within William Golding's, Lord of the Flies, the change from civilization to savagery, the beast, and the battle on the island. Golding represents evil through his character's, their actions, and symbolism. The island becomes the biggest representation of evil because it's where the entire novel takes place. The change from civilization to savagery is another representation of how easily people can change from good to evil under unusual circumstances. Golding also explores the evil within all humans though the beast, because it's their only chance for survival and survival instinct takes over. In doing so, this paper will prove that Lord of the Flies exemplifies the innate evil that exists within all humans.
Lord of the Flies provides one with a clear understanding of Golding's view of human nature. Whether this view is right or wrong is a point to be debated. This image Golding paints for the reader, that of humans being inherently bad, is a perspective not all people share. Lord of the Flies is but an abstract tool of Golding's to construct the idea of the inherent evil of human nature in the minds of his readers. To construct this idea of the inherent evil, Golding employs the symbolism of Simon, Ralph, the hunt and the island.
William Golding’s Lord of the Flies is an author’s painting of the evil that resides in all of the human race. The tropical island setting presents an environment free from civil order introducing a battle ground for the war of good and evil. Showing different side of human nature one can ponder the question “What would I do?” Golding explains the good, bad and balance of human nature, revealing that in times of despair man can easily regress to a primitive state, leaving the strong willed to promote civil order, but often be extremely out numbered.
Why do people decide to buy? Some consumers use an intense system of thorough investigation before they decide to purchase, while others are basic impulse shoppers. Either way, three factors affect all purchasing decisions. Apple, Inc. was flawless in their execution when they rolled out the new iPhone and iTouch because they knew what made consumers act.