Essay

According to an anonymous person, "In literature, evil often triumphs but never conquers.” This means that in works of writing, malevolent actions will dominate temporarily but never subjugate. This statement is proven to be true in Lord of the Flies by William Golding and Macbeth by William Shakespeare. This is evident through the authors’ use of theme and characterization.

In the first work, Lord of the Flies, for example, the author’s use of theme and characterization provides evidence for the fact that evil never successes. In this work, British boys had crashed onto a deserted island due to plane malfunctions. Readers see through time how the boys regress to savage ways when detached from civilization. When civilization malformed, an individual will revert to one’s natural instinct: evil. A theme in Lord of the Flies is the corruption of power. When one of the boys, Jack, becomes the leader of his own tribe, he starts to believe that he is superior over the other boys. He becomes dictatorial and immoral. Jack’s acts of being a tyrant triumphed for him because the others would do as commanded, and were supportive in his decisions. Although Jack was the leader and did malicious actions, his doings did not help the boys get back home to their families. It is evident that evil never wins, throughout this novel, through the use of characterization as well. Simon is ethical because of his moral ways and generosity; an example being when he gave the littluns food. In chapter 3, Simon walks around on the island with the littluns and helps them pick some fruit, disregarding the entire savage power struggle going on right behind him. Although savagery was taking over the other boys, it never defeated Simon, whereas he did not succum...

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...onquers.” This means that in contextual works, evil provisionally achieves but never will fully succeed. This quote is proven to be true through William Golding’s Lord of the Flies and William Shakespeare’s Macbeth. This is clear through the authors’ use of theme and characterization. In Macbeth, Macbeth becomes corrupted by his own ambition and desire to have more power. Although Macbeth takes over Duncan’s thrown, he had to perform gruesome actions to get there. By the end of the play, Macbeth was killed by Macduff, proving how evil never wins. In Lord of the Flies, Jack becomes completely savage, along with other boys on the island, and is described with characteristics of a dictator. Although Jack was portraying malicious actions, his ways did not help himself, or the others on the island, to get rescued. Evil temporarily defeats, but morality succeeds forever.