Original sin is a Christian doctrine that refers to the sinful nature of humanity. The debate of whether humans are born good or evil has continued for hundreds of years. The writer William Golding expresses his insight of this topic through Lord of the Flies. This book tells a simple story about dozens of boys who accidentally land on a deserted island without adults and who eventually end up killing each other. William Golding cleverly demonstrates the heavy theme of original sin by using children, who usually represent innocence in literature. Each character behaves differently on that isolated island, and most of them end up revealing their base natures demonstrating the concept of original sin.

One of the boys Jack Merridew symbolizes the dark side of humanity. He enters the story as a highly disciplined choir leader but ends up becoming a savage by the end of the story. His desire for power slowly turns him into a barbarian step by step.  Jack suggests that there should be rules overseen by a chief, because this is how he can gain power in a civilized society. "I ought to be chief," said Jack with simple arrogance, "because I'm chapter chorister and head boy. I can sing C sharp"(chapter one). Although he was not selected as chief, he tries to follow the rules and do what he is responsible for. He does not initially have the courage to stab a knife into a pig’s throat, and he apologizes for letting the fire out. However, the impact of civilization does not last long on him. The moment he kills his first pig, Jack realizes that the feel of killing is not scary; in fact, it is thrilling. Butchering the pig not only brings him meat but also the power that he had wanted for so long. The cheerfulness of the crowd finally drives him to give into his primitive desires. On an island without adults, the so-called authority, he stops at nothing for power. He demonstrates it is hard to build a civilized society, but it is easy to destroy one.

"The rules!" shouted Ralph. "You're breaking the rules!"

"Who cares?"(page #).

The contagious barbarity soon spreads to almost everyone on the island. The boys paint their faces, dance wildly in the rainstorm, take lives without blinking. The trace of civilization disappears completely from Jack’s life.

Another character Ralph is the representation of order and civilization. His image is always optimistic and positive, yet he also has a dark side. However differently from Jack, he refuses to live like a savage and persists in surviving with principles and rules. As the selected leader, he tries to create a society with laws and authority on the island. “There's no signal showing. There may be a ship out there. Are you all off your rockers?" (chapter six). Rules are the most important things to him, because this is what differentiates humans from savages. Without law and order, people tend to lose their moral principles and finally turn into barbarians. 

However, even a character like Ralph also has his dark side. He cannot endure the temptation of Jack‘s meat and somehow becomes involved in the dancing that kills Simon. The meat representing savage and violence is too irresistible and makes even Ralph give into the savagery for once. “Ralph too was fighting to get near, to get a handful of that brown, vulnerable flesh. The desire to squeeze and hurt was over-mastering” (page #). In the end of book, Ralph realizes he also became part of brutality when the war ship comes. He cries not only for the death of Simon and Piggy but also for his own guilt.

A third character Simon is the prophet in the book. He has high moral codes, outstanding insight into the situation, and a sense of justice. Compared to other children who fear the beast, he is able to think logically and presume the creature is actually in their hearts. Simon goes alone into the woods to justify his theory and finds out that the so-called beast is just a dead pilot with a parachute. Simon’s fate is foretold by the lord of flies that he will die tragically if he tells people the truth. However, he still goes down the mountain to tell the others. He is eventually beaten to death by all the boys dancing in the storm. It is ironic that the “beast” they kill is the only one who could have saved them from becoming a one. Simon’s death officially announces the de-civilization of the innocent children. His ending is very typical for a prophet; usually the one who knows the truth always dies, such as Cassandra in Greek mythology.

Due to his background in life, the author William Golding expresses his belief in the original sin, that humans are born evil, in The Lord of the Flies.. However, he did not write this book to only tell of the evilness of humanity; he also wants to inspire readers to see goodness inside people past the evilness through the character contrasts between Jack, Ralph, and Simon.