Conscience of Society

Conscience: the awareness between right and wrong. Conscience is different in ways to every individual, but can be viewed as a whole in society. Writers have the power to influence society’s conscience through their works. Writers bring out the flaws in society and often look at certain aspects of life in ways that aren't usually touched on by people in their everyday life. Writers underline the hidden truths society does not want to accept. This is shown in “Master Harold and the boys” by Athol Fugard and “The Cask of Amontillado” by Edgar Allen Poe by ideas, symbols, characters, and different aspects that make their writing stand out. Both are very different styles of works, but come together to contribute ideas of the good and the bad. However, with the writers influencing our thoughts it is up to the individual on how they interpret it. The ideas trying to be portrayed in “The Cask of Amontillado” and “Master Harold and the Boys” are different, but reveal some of the imperfections in humanity. In the “Cask of Amontillado” there are several ideas that show us flaws in humanity. In the story revenge is a big motif and how it can overpower a person. From the first line “… but when he ventured upon insult, I vowed revenge,” we can see straight away how a person’s actions can power us to do horrible deeds. Poe straight away shows us how human emotion can override conscience through his perverse way of writing. Another motif is the negative effects of alcoholism. In the story alcohol has caused Montressor, the victim, to be unaware of his surroundings and unable to comprehend the events unfolding in front of him, therefore falling into the murder’s trap. His perverse style of writing catches our eyes and draws us in as we are captivated, then forth influencing us as he shows us the dark side of humanity and what is wrong with society. Fugard’s take on flaws of society isn’t as perverse as Poe’s but he does bring to light problems of society and how the