Looking at the world today through all of the different media outlets, it is hard not to see evil as a force taking over our society. With all of the war, destruction, and injustices, it is almost as if it weighs out the good. In William Golding's "Lord of the Flies," evil is seen as not only a recurring problem in the world, but instead as a trait that lies inside of each of us. He analyzes human nature as a whole, but also more specifically the way that evil manifests itself in each of us. The central conflict exists in the human desire to follow rules and the desire to act out violently in order to obtain power or ranking. Golding creates characters that are easy to identify with so that the audience can more easily come to terms with the ideas of both good and evil in society. The protagonist, Ralph, is representative of the desire to keep peace and order while the antagonist, Jack, represents the human impulse toward savagery and the instinct to gain power and status in any given situation. These characters both have defining qualities and outlooks. Ralph begins as the leader of the group. He begins to assign roles to each of the boys and believes that they only way they will escape this fate is through civilization. He believes that each boy should be assigned a job that will benefit every member of the group and begins to construct a democratic plan. Jack, on the other hand, is overcome by his bloodlust and savagery. He doesn't believe there should be any type of order and that they should all be free to do as they please. He doesn't understand the inner workings of a society. Most of the boys eventually grow tired of Ralph's rules and are unwilling to invest the time and energy it will take to execute them. This same behavior is displayed throughout the course of history constantly. Rules are often broken not only because of evil acts, but out of laziness and lack of motivation.
