Papers > English > Presentation of Evil in William Golding s Lord of the Flies and R L Stevenson s
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Presentation of Evil in William Golding s Lord of the Flies and R L Stevenson s
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Although both writers express their views of the world as a duality of good and evil, we must examine the differing ways in which they view the corruption of man. Stevenson’s approach to the perversion of good by evil is very much focused on the individual. ... Compare this with Golding’s portrayal of a breakdown of social constraints, leading to a reversion to our primal selves, or what Dr Jekyll calls the "extraneous evil".
Robert Louis Stevenson was born into a middle-class Scottish family. Stevenson’s father worked as a civil engineer, and was a well respected figure in the affluent social circles of the time. For Stevenson, growing up in Protestant Scotland meant that as well as living life according to the strict and repressive norms of Victorian morals, Calvinism’s oppression ensured he grew up with a mindful awareness of man’s capability to sin. Stevenson was a sickly child, and it is thought that his father often regaled him with exciting, yet moralistic stories of dangerous expeditions and sinful men who were doomed to face an eternity in hell to entertain him while he was ill. ... His obvious fascination with the duality of good and evil – clearly visible in his literary works – is believed to have stemmed from his father’s Calvinist belief that evil cannot be conquered. Stevenson was largely influenced by the story of William Deacon Brodie, who was known as a standing pillar of community by day, yet terrorised 18th century Edinburgh during the dark hours as an alcoholic, gambling thief. ...
William Golding was born in the south-west of England in 1911. ... Golding joined the Royal Navy in 1940, shortly after World War II began. ... The reality of man’s inhumanity to man had a huge effect on Golding. Before the arrival of Nazism, Golding believed that mankind was not inherently evil, instead he believed that evil behaviour or intent was the result of ignorance and what he called ‘off campus history’, - the passing of morals from generation to generation. The actions of Nazi Germany encouraged Golding to reconsider his beliefs. His novel ‘Lord of the Flies’ was an attempt to explore how normal, socialised people can co-operate in evil actions if given the correct social structure. He chose to parody the well-known children’s novel ‘Coral Island’ with the outcome being drastically altered so that morality does not triumph, simply because the characters are British.
Stevenson’s character Edward Hyde represents man’s inhumanity. ... Hyde’s character is brutal and immoral, “the man trampled over the child’s body and left her screaming on the ground”, this implies Hyde has no human conscience, he is a reflection of pure, unbridled evil.
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Paper Information
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Title: Presentation of Evil in William Golding s Lord of the Flies and R L Stevenson s
Words: 2138
Rating: None
Pages: 8.6
submitted by: tonyheneghan
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