Essay on Human Nature in William Golding´s Lord of the Flies

In Lord of the Flies, a 20th century novel written by William Golding, countless issues are portrayed; however the essential nature of humankind is, perhaps, the most recurring. From the moment we meet the boys after they land on the island, it is obvious that this fundamental issue will play out through the entire length of the novel, and, as it progresses, the deeper Golding will delve into mankind’s true nature. Shown through the loss of innocence, social skills, and order, the nature of humankind is showcased in this novel. The novel begins when a plane, containing seemingly innocent schoolboys, crashes onto an island. The plane was vacating the boys from their country, where a war is currently happening. The fact that there is a war†¦show more content†¦As the novel continues, and the boys’ societal conditioning is diminishing, their true nature begins to show more. At first, when they tried to create their own society and set of rules, they had a bit of o rder; now, the boys are beginning to break all of the regulations and letting their morals decay, especially Jack’s group of hunters. The author is trying to show us what we would be like with all of the rules stripped away, and what we would do. Golding is suggesting how our innate evil can be brought out in certain situations. At this point in the story, the boys’ morals are beginning to collapse under the weight of their savagery; and, rather than follow rules and work hard, they pursue fun, succumb to fear, and fall to violence. The majority of the boys are regressing to merely their primal instincts. By the end of the novel, there is a clear division of two tribes, one being good-natured, and the other being barbaric. Golding shows us, then, what the boys would do when all of their rules and societal conditioning is gone, and what their true nature would be. In the beginning of the novel, the boys had feared an imagined beast, and their terror of it had grown throughout the novel. Simon figures out that the beast is not real and that it is themselves that they should fear: Fancy thinking the Beast was something you could hunt and kill! You knew, didn’t you? I’m part of you? Close, close, close!Show MoreRelated Struggle Between Good and Evil in William Goldings Lord of the Flies1186 Words   |  5 PagesGood and Evil in William Goldings Lord of the Flies   Ã‚  Ã‚   Evil is not an external force controlled by the devil, but rather the potential for evil resides within each person. Man has the potential to exhibit great kindness or to rape and pillage. In the novel Lord of the Flies, William Golding deals with this evil that exists in the heart of man. 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