Greed Lord Of The Flies Essay

Evil is a choice, a choice. No one is born good or bad. The choices that people make define who they want to be. Of course, no one is entirely good or evil; there is good and evil within everyone, and people can choose whether to bury it or let it take over. However, people are influenced by the world, which influences their choices. William Golding illustrates this conflict in his novel, Lord of the Flies. When a group of young British boys are left stranded on an island and forced to forsake the semblance of the orderly society they are used to, they find out just how much evil they are capable of and eventually make their choice of what path to follow. Many factors influence the boy’s choices on the island, such as power, people, and their

But he wouldn’t have been able to do so without the approval and support of his followers, who were quick to abandon Ralph as soon as his civil society began to fall apart. But this begs the question, why is it easier to be a bad leader than a good one? How does power corrupt? While Jack let power overtake him completely, Ralph had a different experience. He wasn’t the most obvious choice for Chief, but “most powerfully, there was the conch” (Golding 30). From the beginning, Ralph strived to recreate the orderly society that the boys came from. He tried his best to get things done on the island, such as making shelters, gathering food, and most importantly, keeping the signal fire, while still giving the boys their autonomy. His approach required discipline and work ethic, which grows increasingly more difficult for the boys as the allure of freedom tempts them. His long-term goals such as rescue and survival become less appealing compared to the short-term pleasures the boys want. And keeping them motivated proves to be a challenge. Ralph began to lose his patience. He realizes that you cannot demand as much of them as you do yourself, and you must be more forgiving of them than you are to yourself. Eventually, his power and the conch lose meaning entirely, and Jack takes over. Where Ralph failed to make his goals appeal to the boys, Jack did the exact opposite. He allowed the boys to indulge in their base instincts, such as the trill of hunting, violence, and the complete rejection of societal norms. His short-term gratifications were the kinds of things the boys wanted to do, he told them what they wanted to hear. Hunting and the promise of protection from the beast brought immediate excitement and a sense of purpose for most of the boys. But he also bent the idea of the beast to adopt a style of ruling. Fear, intimidation, and violence. Along with that, he delegated his power to those