Abstract:As a famous British writer who was the Nobel Prize for literature, William Golding was called “fabler” in the West. He deeply concerned about the problem of human nature and the future of human beings. Inheriting the western traditional ethics, his works mainly explore the darkness of human heart. Lord of the Flies is the representative work of Golding. It is an important philosophical novel which probes the serious theme of evil human nature via the children’s innocence.

Lord of the Flies is the story of a group of boys with different backgrounds who are marooned on an unknown island when their plane crashes. The children at first attempt to establish an orderly society, but their efforts end with a tragedy—the island becomes a hell consumed by fire instead of a civilized community.

This essay mainly interprets the theme of human evil in Lord of the Flies through the analysis of boys’ survival and competition on the deserted island so to reveal the darkness and cruelty of human nature. Without moral and legal constraint of the civilized world, human darkness and evil will be revealed completely. Human beings need to thoroughly understand their own darkness existing in the souls so that they can find a possibility of redemption to their good side.

Keywords: Golding   Lord of the Flies   evil human nature   degeneration

Contents

Abstract

摘要

Chapter One Introduction-1

1.1 A Brief Introduction to the Lord of the Flies-1

1.2 Literary Review of the Lord of the Flies-1

1.3 The Purpose and Structure of This Paper-2

Chapter Two The Process of Degeneration-3

2.1 From Solidarity to Division-3

2.2 The Change of Ruler-3

2.3 The Appearance of “Beast”-4

2.4 Three Symbolic Images-4

2.4.1 The Damage of the Conch Shell-4

2.4.2 The Smashing of Spectacles-5

2.4.3 The Destructive Force of the Rock-5

Chapter Three Goodness Vs Evilness--The Images of Some Leading Characters-7

3.1 The Civil Leader--Ralph-7

3.2 The Defender of Order-- Piggy-7

3.3 The Insightful Advisor--Simon-7

3.4 The True Devil-- Jack-8

3.5 The Henchman of Devil-- Roger-8

Chapter Four The Inevitable Degeneration of Human Nature-9

4.1 The Influence of the World WarⅡ-9

4.2 Unavoidable Evil Human Nature-9

Chapter Five Conclusion-11

References-12