Good And Evil In Lord Of The Flies Research Paper

“The battle line between good and evil runs through the heart of every [person].”
-Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn. At a certain point in one’s lifetime, they are faced with the choice of following their good side or their evil side. Although this is true, not everyone has the strength to deny their evil side. In Lord of the Flies by William Golding, the author explores the concept of people starting off good and letting their evil side win. Several main conflicts between characters in the novel demonstrate that the evil in humankind is brought out by fear. Various symbols in the novel illustrate that the evil in humankind is triggered when the boys are in fear. When under the influence of fear, the evil within the characters is brought out. Fear brings
During one of Simon’s epileptic episodes, the Lord of the Flies speaks to him, saying that he is “part of [them].” (158). This means that if the boys are afraid of the Lord of the Flies, they are afraid of themselves. The Lord of the Flies, or the beast, represents the evil inside of humankind. Fear of the beast brings out the true beast within, which is the evil in humankind. After the island boys murder Simon, Golding writes that “Simon’s dead body moves out towards the open sea.” (170). The water represents the subconscious, where the beast comes from. Simon’s dead body washing into the water shows that after Simon is killed, he disappears into the subconscious and is forgotten about. The other boys’ intense fear of Simon, who they think is the beast, causes them to completely forget about his existence and the fact that they murder him. Shortly after the Lord of the Flies finishes speaking to Simon, Golding writes that “Simon fell down and lost consciousness.” (159). This shows that Simon fainted, due to his epilepsy. Epilepsy is often seen as a religious condition because of the theory that seizures and blackouts as a result of the condition are visions of God or the Devil. Simon represents Christ and is having visions of the Devil. In the bible, Jesus was crucified because he had sinned and deserved to be punished. The boys on the island believed Simon to
The morning after the boys kill Simon, Piggy says that “[they were] scared...anything might have happened.” (173). Piggy states that their actions are justified because they are scared. Piggy’s fear of the beast is so overpowering that he does not feel guilty for killing another human. After Piggy is killed, Golding states that “Samneric [are] part of the tribe now.” (207). Saying that Samneric are part of the tribe now suggests that they were not always. Roger and Jack had already tied up a young boy from the island, and Samneric do not want to be next. Samneric became part of the evil side because of their fear of what Roger and Jack would do to