Literature reflects many aspects of human nature. It can be seen as a collection of mankind’s thoughts. The intangible is transformed from brainwave patterns to ink patterns. What leads to the writing of literature varies from author to author. In the case of Clive Staples Lewis (C.S. Lewis), it was his personal experiences in life. Written during the dark hours immediately before and during the Second World War, Lewis’ Space Trilogy, of which Perelandra is the second volume, has become timeless and beloved by succeeding generations as much for the sheer wonder of its storytelling as for the significance of the moral concerns. Perelandra was one of Lewis’ longstanding favourite of his own works, according to Michael White’s biographical book, …show more content…
When a man is getting worse he understands his own badness less and less. A moderately bad man knows he is not very good: a thoroughly bad man thinks he is all right. This is common sense, really. You understand sleep when you are awake, not while you are sleeping... Good people know about both good and evil: bad people do not know about either.” (Lewis 268) The story opens with the narrator struggling alone on the road to Ransom's, trying to decide if what he is facing is good or evil. Even when he decides what he is commissioned to do is good, he fights against doing it. We see this theme throughout the story as Ransom battles the Un-Man, trying to keep Evil from overcoming the Green Lady. Evil overcomes Professor Weston, capturing his body for its own devices. Weston resists the evil force, but his pride causes him to be vulnerable and in turn be overcome. Ransom also ponders the desire to live the pleasures of life over and over, just as he wishes to drink the nectar of the beautiful bulbous growths given for his pleasure. The entire novel is also rampant with obvious symbols and parallels between this story and that of the Adam and
The book opens up with the author talking about his journey home from a summer stay in a cabin in the north. The relevance of this is due to his subsequent stop made at his Aunts house along the way. The author notes that she had a “handsome” set of an edition of Lewis' journals. After acquiring the journals from his Aunt the author states that he read them and frequently discussed them with his Aunt, so much so that they even followed the path taken by Lewis and his group of explorers. All of this leads to explaining his love for the exploration that had taken place so many years ago, with his ending statement saying he felt “privileged” to have spent time with Lewis.
Although he is initially fearful, his experiences in Malacandra nurture the growth of his courage and help form him into a better person. His bravery is seen to be lacking in the beginning of the story, such as when he attempts to stop Weston and Devine from harming the boy Harry. Even though he tries, his attempts are weak and lack conviction, as he merely shouts at them. On Malacandra, he lives in almost complete fear for the first part of the story, running and hiding from creatures he knows nothing about. It is only his meeting with the Hross that convinces him that not all the inhabitants of this strange world are hostile towards him. In befriending the Hross, Ransom begins to form a more open mind towards Malacandra, still somewhat fearful but now beginning to see it more and more as a home. He later encounters the creatures he feared most, the Sorns, and learns that they too are not hostile. Gradually, Ransom becomes acquainted with all three species, and in talking to them and seeing their viewpoints on things begins to lose his fear. He even comes to care for Malacandra and its people, to the point where he tells Oyarsa he should kill not only Weston and Devine but himself to protect it. Ransom’s suggestion shows that his courage has blossomed to the point where his willingness to defend is much stronger than it was when he tried to defend the boy Harry, the valuable lessons learned from the
The first time I looked at the story, I did so only because it was assigned to me as homework. I ultimately found myself reading quickly, and not actively reading in the slightest way. Eventually however, I began to wonder whether or not “good” was going to prevail over “evil”. My burning curiosity and natural need for information was not satisfied with my initial sub-par reading. Upon closer and much more active reading
Ransom, by the end of the book, is a virtuous man. He grew much during his time on Malacandra, gaining faith, hope, and a greater understanding of love through Oyarsa. He not only avoids evil, but seeks good, and seeks to share that good with others, shown in his writing of the book. “Out of the Silent Planet” emphasizes the fallenness of man, and shows a glimpse of what we would be without the fall. It offers
The idea that man's relationship with good and evil is not predestined is a central idea in this novel. The conflict between good and evil is a universal battle. Many characters in the novel, East of Eden, struggle both internally and externally with Good versus evil.
The first misconception claims that there is the notion that “evil” is only something committed by despots and tyrants, such as the atrocities studied in human history. Second, is the notion that the medical community is complicit in the decline of society by engaging in a “ridiculous pas de deux.” This meaning that eminently predictable problems attributable to bad choices made by individuals are conceptualized and treated as medical ailments, such as depression. The following point states that while few individuals specifically seek to do evil, virtually all of the evil in modern life (at least within non-tyrannical societies) is caused by the choices made by persons throughout their lives. Fourth, the idea that passing judgment on moral choices and irresponsible behaviors is “wrong.” As a final point, he expresses that the state blindly enables the conduct responsible for the decline of society by rewarding and incentivizing personal irresponsibility.
...n idea about the human psyche and the nature of evil. Throughout the novels, we have acts that were dubbed as evil. Some of these were: the acts of the rabbi’s son, the killing of Simon, and even the joy Eliezer felt at the death of his father. All of these points and the many that weren’t mentioned all shared a singular idea. It was that the ulterior motive of these acts revolved around people reacting on instinct and desire. From these, we gain the final message of the novel that was proven time and time again. This message was that evil isn’t an act that just isn’t moral. Evil is the primal, instinctual, an animalistic rage that lives in the darker part of our heart, a part of the heart that is brought to light upon the moment the chains of civilization are broken..... A moment where we fall prey to our instincts and our conscience disappears into the darkness.
In the end of each story the main character(s) who has shown the trait of evil has either succeeded in their goal or realized the error of their ways. In the end of Lord of the Flies Jack is broken down to tears as he realizes the mistakes he has made. At the end of "The Lottery" the Townspeople have once again saved the harvest from some unknown force by slaughtering a member of the community. In the end of "The White Circle" Tucker doesn’t kill Anvil but learns an important lesson about perspective. Finally in the last scene of "The Vigilante" Mike realizes just how much he liked killing the black man. The theme of mans inherent evil is carried out
The clash between good and evil has been a prominent theme in literature. The Bible presents the conflict between good and evil in the story of Adam and Eve. Many authors use the scene in the Bible in which the snake taunts and tempts Adam and Eve to take a bite of the apple of knowledge to demonstrate the frailty of humankind. John Gardner provides these same biblical allusions of good and evil in his novel, Grendel.
How are the themes of good and evil explored in Chapters 16 and 17 of
At first it is seen as a story about man and the evils he can do, yet
the dark side of human nature is rooted deeply within a person no matter how hard they try
In the beginning of the twentieth century, literature changed and focused on breaking away from the typical and predicate patterns of normal literature. Poets at this time took full advantage and stretched the idea of the mind’s conscience on how the world, mind, and language interact and contradict. Many authors, such as Fitzgerald, Steinbeck, and Twain, used the pain and anguish in first hand experiences to create and depict a new type of literature, modernism. In this time era, literature and art became a larger part of society and impacted more American lives than ever before. During the American modernism period of literature, authors, artists, and poets strived to create pieces of literature and art that challenged American traditions and tried to reinvent it, used new ways of communication, such as the telephone and cinema, to demonstrate the new modern social norms, and express the pain and suffering of the First World War.
Zimbardo, P. G. (2004). A Situationist Perspective on the Psychology of Evil: Understanding how good people are transformed into perptrators. In A. G. Miller (Ed.), The Social Psychology of Good and Evil (pp.21-50). New York: Guilford press.
Literature has many purposes, and opens doors to unique worlds. Through Literature, we discover ourselves and world time and again.