As Delia states, “whatever goes over the Devil’s back, is got to come under his belly.” Maybe if Sykes were a faithful man and not so abusive, he would not be in the mess he is in now. Ironically Sykes having brought the snake home to kill Delia leads to his own demise. Therefore, the snake is not only Sykes but also Delia Jones’ protector in Zora Neale Hurston’s “Sweat”. “Sweat” is a perfect example of the sins that are committed will sooner or later be the death of those committing them. Sykes calls out to God in the end; however it is the Devil who seems to have a hold on
At this point in the novel, Jack develops resentment towards Ralph. He is exceedingly jealous of Ralph; he spends the rest of the novel nursing his wounded ego back to health. Jack does this by constantly diminishing Ralph’s authority in front of the group. The conflict on the island begins with Jack attempting to dominate the group rather than working with Ralph to benefit it. Furthermore, Jack has narcissistic traits because he behaves in an arrogant manner.
In the epic poem, the great hero Beowulf sets out to kill the supposed demon Grendel, who everyone widely views as one of the most evil beings to walk the Earth. But why, exactly, is Grendel viewed as evil? Some people argue that it is because Grendel kills people. Although that does make sense, in this story, it doesn't. Almost everyone in this story kills people.
The image of the serpent is linked to Satan and the dragon in Revelation 12:9 9And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. (Bible.com) The serpent as the devil is clearest when Satan appears before Christ tempting him, with things of the world if Christ will worship Satan. This example encompasses all the previous depictions of the serpent as evil and personifies that evil as Satan. Each piece of the theme of the serpent as evil over laps to a degree; temptation, forbidden knowledge, sin, false idols, and the devil, each of these visit and revisit the serpent as evil. This repetition cements the serpent as evil from a Christian perspective.
Abuse of power through Lord of the Flies Lord of the Flies, a novel written by Nobel Prize winner William Golding, demonstrates superior examples about abuse of power and what it reveals about society. For an example, the British Gentlemen is not likely to participate in corruption, but which happens frequently throughout the novel centered on English boys. Firstly as expressed as in the novel Lord of the Flies, abuse of power can be achieved through fear and manipulation. It is seen when Jack, a boy stranded on the island and who later becomes the authoritative figure, introduces fear to the boys’ minds to maintain his power/leadership. Secondly, abuse of power causes the destruction of our society’s democracy.
The boys are slowly turning barbaric towards their actions and fellow companions. In the lord of the flies, the boys land on the islands as civilized young adult but as time progresses they begin to lose sight of their moral values. By the boys losing sight of morality it leads them to savage behaviors. Do we become savages when we are not under control by law & order or are we just born savages? The barbaric life style that the boys decide to portrait leads them into chaos, envy, arguments, and murder threw out the novel.
Grendel is described as being completely inhuman, a ferocious beast that has no capacity to think or act rationally, and is instead driven to destroy and feed on human flesh. When introducing the ravenous demon, the poem states, “Grendel was the name of the grim demon haunting the marches…he had dwelt for a time in misery among the banished monsters, Cain’s clan, whom the Creator had outlawed and condemned as outcasts. For the killing of Abel….” It is no wonder then that the Christian scribes had this disgusting creature symbolically descend from Cain, the first murderer on Earth. And while Adam and Eve are the first sinners, thus passing on the sin to their offspring as well as to the thousands of generations to come, Cain was the first to sin on his own, murdering his own brother in cold blood due to an act of jealousy. Grendel’s blood is completely tainted with Cain’s sin, as well as his own, thus symbolizing all that is evil in this world.
Simon is the only who has figured out the fear is has been created within themselves and that they are their own inner beast. Simon represents to be saint-like himself. There are some incidents in the novel that can relate to biblical stories. For example, the Garden of Eden can be related to Simon (being Jesus) meeting with The Lord of the Flies (the devil). When he is brutally murdered towards the end, there was a heavenly setting when the sea creatures glowed and pulled him into the sea; just like when Jesus was resurrected.
Individualism is a key aspect in both novels, most prevalently in the protagonist of each story. The presence of it maintains a positive aura in the story, and its gradual diminishment drains the aura out eventually, leaving the feeling of a grim ending. This is done by the relevant authorities in both novels – Jack’s “tribe” from Lord of the Flies and “the Party” from 1984 – who have many similarities. They are both totalitarian (since in Lord of the Flies becoming a “savage” in the tribe changes relevant individual aspects), they both gain power from collectivism and they both use violence to enforce their systems. Consequently the very nature of both authorities demands collective conformity, and this is the driving force for the abolishment of individualism.
One major comparison between two stories is that they both have characters that use violence in order to gain what they desire. In The Lord of the Flies the antagonist, Jack, can be compared parallel to the creation of Frankenstein. Jack is one of the older boys on the island who became leader of the hunters but wishes to have complete power over the group of boys. Jack is wild, cruel and represents human savagery. When Jack is not accepted by all of the boys as the new leader he becomes angry and violent against those who disagree with him.