Table of ContentsAre We Born Good or Bad: Human Nature in "Lord of the Flies"ConclusionWorks CitedThe question of whether humans are naturally good or evil becomes a topic of discussion when people see something morally wrong happening in their lives and then begin to question why some people do bad things. They begin to wonder: Are humans born evil? Is it an internal condition that is actually subject to the rules and norms of society? Or are humans actually instinctively good people and the evil encountered is an external condition that occupies our goodness? In the novel Lord of the Flies, written by William Golding, a group of young private schoolboys find themselves stranded on an island where their means of survival are limited. Upon arrival, most of the boys were decent children, but after living on the island for only a few days, the reader can see how the change in the boys' environment affects their attitude toward others and the situation in his together. A new climate can impact the way people think and act toward others. Therefore, humans are inherently and fundamentally good people until tempted by evil or exposed to a corrupt environment. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay Experiments have been done with babies to suggest this idea that every person is born intrinsically good. It also shows that babies can tell the difference between right and wrong and that when given a choice, they will choose right every time. In an article titled “Do Babies Know Right From Wrong?” ", they tested this idea on a ten-month-old child, an eight-month-old child and a three-month-old child. A baby watched a ball try to climb a hill. As the ball tries to rise, either a square would block its path, or a triangle might try to help the ball. When asked to choose between the square or the triangle, the babies chose the triangle every time. In this 2013 New York Post article, the play's composer, Susannah Cahalan, quotes Yale University psychologist and cognitive scientist Paul Bloom, who recites: "...babies have a general appreciation good and bad behaviors, an appreciation that covers a range of interactions, including ones babies have probably never seen before. Essentially, people are born good, but they don't always stay that way. As children, we “have a general appreciation of good and bad behavior” and understand what is right and what is wrong. Even babies who can't yet speak know if something is immoral and unethical, which means we understand it today, but the way we see things may be skewed based on past experiences. The obstacles people face will affect our behavior and how we treat others. Are We Born Good or Bad: Human Nature in "Lord of the Flies" This idea is shown in Lord of the Flies when the boys find themselves stranded on the island and are forced to change their way of life. At the beginning of the novel, the boys on the island are young, innocent children. One of the main antagonists of the book, Jack, has done several horrible things throughout the novel, however, even Jack can be presented as a relatively sane person when he first arrives on the island. To thepage 31 of chapter 1, the boys realize how hungry they are, so Jack goes out and tries to kill a pig for dinner. “Jack drew his knife brilliantly again… There was a pause, a hiatus… The pause was just long enough for them to understand how enormity the downward blow would be.” Jack being hesitant to kill the pig at the beginning of the novel shows that there is still some humanity left in him. When there was a pause, it demonstrates that the idea of ​​killing the pig was too much for Jack to handle, but then he promises to finish next time because the shame of not following through is worse. Jack is still a normal person who understands the difference between what is right and what is wrong as he has only been on the island for a few days. The longer he and the rest of the boys stay there, the more their moral compass will crumble. As the novel progresses, Jack and the rest of the boys lose their humanity after realizing that they probably won't get it. off the island. This means that they have to completely change their way of life from how it was before. Once they recognize this predicament, they begin to doubt each other and ignore all the rules they have in place. Their new mindset is that they no longer need order. Jack is one of the first boys to neglect the rules, causing the little guidelines left on the island to completely disappear. He becomes malevolent and cares about no one but himself, being controlled by his pursuit of individual happiness. This new environment that he and all the boys are forced to adapt to forces their wild instincts to come out. When Jack starts talking about killing a pig, “Madness has returned to Jack's eyes. 'I thought I could kill.'" Jack claims he has to kill the pigs so all the boys can eat, but when he talks about killing the pigs, "madness came to his eyes." The boys, who had previously chosen Ralph as leader, now begin to turn to Jack to take over as they can no longer stand hunger At this point, they have indulged in barbaric ways Food is a necessity, so they must. get some, but it’s how they get it that’s concerning As the boys killed the soul, “she plunged into a tree, thrusting her spear even deeper and after that, didn’t. no matter which of the hunters could track her easily thanks to the drops of live blood.” The boys went from an understandable food-related slaughter to something entirely different. Hunting is no longer just about eating meat, but rather. to bathe in their power over a defenseless animal. Being on the island forced Jack and the rest of the hunters to become inhumane by performing these horrible acts towards the pig, such as "sticking a spear into it". They could have just done the reasonable and respectful thing by quickly killing him just to eat, but instead they terrorized him and played with him like a toy. All of the boys have gone through a series of unfortunate circumstances and because of this, they decide that the only way to survive is to allow themselves to be overcome by evil. Although many people view Ralph as resisting the temptation of evil. , this is actually not the case. Ralph is actually shown killing several people. When the boys began to perform their terrifying dance, Piggy and Ralph joined them: "Piggy and Ralph, under threat from heaven, found themselves eager to take their place in this mad but partly secure society." Ralph made it seem like he was staying away from the hunters, but as soon as the singing and dancing started, he joined in. Ralph found himself..