Example research essay topic: Good And Evil Victorian Society - 1,118 words

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With reference to the title, this essay will attempt to demonstrate Golding's philosophy, that evil is a natural part of every human being. The origins of his work will be examined, such as his schoolteacher background, and the influences of his war time service. Similarly, Stevenson's accusation that society is to blame for mans evil will be discussed. The influences on this author will be shown to include his own Calvinist upbringing, his own past experiences, such as his observations of Victorian society, and his own fascination with duplicity. Detailed analysis of characters, language, symbolism, location, and the historical and social context in which both stories take place, will be also shown to reflect both authors philosophy and point of view. When Golding wrote Lord of the Flies the world was in the grip of the Cold War.

This was a war of words and propaganda, a fear of the spread of communism, and nuclear threat between the two great super powers of the Soviet Union and the United States of America (USA). The fear of a repeat of the atrocities of World War II, and the publication of Hitlers evilness (Mein Kampf), such as his plan to exterminate a whole race, the Jewish people, had been greeted with denial and disbelief. Although he never succeeded in exterminating the whole race, the holocaust had claimed the lives of six million people. This act of barbaric depravity had shocked the world, leaving these supposedly developed countries disgusted at how this act could have happened in a civilized world.

Hitler, a well educated and therefore, civilized man, illustrates Golding's view that evil is innate, and may be the reason why the children in the text turn from civilized schoolboys to barbaric savages. Golding's position as Navy commander also allowed him to see at first hand how the war acted as a trigger to unleash soldiers darker sides. His service took in the sinking of the Bismarck and the D Day Normandy landings, and caused him to say that only original sin could be the reason. He was appalled that one race of humans could so easily annihilate another. The war, although a strong aspect, was not the only influence on Golding.

His experience as a schoolteacher also led him to believe in mans innate evil. Children, he observed could be brutal and wicked too. He had many years experience of observing boys behavior. For example, some of the boys in the story are from an elitist choir school where severe discipline, beatings and bullying were an acceptable part of school life.

Golding may be suggesting that this strict regime and school conditioning, when not enforced, may allow the boys to release their stifled darker self. Or it may be that religion, through church schools, which condoned a campaign of terror for disciplinary purposes, actually made students more aggressive. He also suggested that any creativity would be suppressed in such an environment. Lastly, he may have been suggesting the futility of wars - many of which had been fought in the name of religion. Golding wrote of all these experiences in a book called The Hot Gates. In a passage called Fable he said: Before the Second World War I believed in the perfectibility of social man; that a correct structure of society could produce goodwill; and that, therefore, you could remove all social wills by a reorganization of society.

It is possible that today I believe something of the same again; but after the War I did not because I was unable to. I discovered what one man could do to another. If Golding believed that a correct society could produce goodwill, then Stevenson's text also promotes the theory that man was made up of good and evil - but to varying degrees. Both came to believe in this from very different backgrounds. Whereas Golding's influences had been his schoolteacher background and the war, Stevenson's influences more domestic. His own ill health from early childhood, seems to have affected the author as he spent most of his time reading in bed.

For example, he was intrigued by the tale of Decon Brodie. During the day the character of this story was a reputable furniture maker, but by night he was a thief. This double nature, suggesting that evil is innate, may have influenced Stevenson in writing Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Other influences may have been his own family upbringing.

For example, his relationship with his father, who was a famous and well respected engineer and well liked, as was Dr. Jekyll. It was a disappointment to his father that his son had chosen a profession of a lower social standing (a writer). In the original text Jekyll does refer to himself as a father and describes Hyde as his bad son. Stevenson may have seen himself in this light as he visited the unrepeatable parts of the city of Edinburgh whilst as a student, often in disguise. Which again highlights the authors preoccupation with duplicity.

This was a contrast to the strict Calvinist upbringing of his childhood. He may have remembered his nanny, who taught him that the sinful would burn in hell, and the good would flourish in Heaven. Frightened of being found out in sordid areas he took on a different persona, although the constant reminder of his religious background made him realize how easy it is to be corrupted, as was Dr. Jekyll. Stevenson may have rebelled at the strict morality of his father and his Calvinist upbringing but also at the hypocrisy of the middle class society in Edinburgh. Stevenson portrays Jekyll as a man who wants honor, distinction and respectability but in order to achieve this any darker sides must be concealed.

Although the darker actions of Hyde are never discussed they are assumed to portray visits to brothels and inns. So although Victorian society on the outside was respectable, there was a nasty underside to life where professional men sought bestial pleasures, and where child prostitution was widespread. Drug taking was also widely practiced. At the time of the story there were rising suspicions about drug taking and its consequences.

This may be illustrated by Stevenson's use of a potion in the story which Jekyll becomes dependent upon, until it takes him over, rather like drug addiction. Other aspects of Victorian society may also have influenced Stevenson's writing. Many writers at the time were preoccupied with the struggle between good and evil, such as Wilkie Collins, The Woman in White or the Sherlock Holmes stories by Arthur Conan Doyle. Horror stories were also extremely popular and he may have been responding to one of the chief literary critics of the day (George Sain...

Research essay sample on Good And Evil Victorian Society