How Does Golding Present Fear In Lord Of The Flies

In the novel Lord of the Flies by William Golding, the boys are presented with multiple aspects of fear, such as darkness, the Beast, and the evil of mankind. Fear can result in savagery, hysteria, or insight. Several events drove the characters to experience these elements of fear. Darkness, the Beast, and the evil of mankind affect the novel tremendously. Throughout the novel, there is a constant battle between good and evil within the boys.
In the novel, darkness leads to hysteria. During the night, the younger boys would claim to see a beast or a large snake. The younger boys “...suffered untold terrors in the dark and huddled together for comfort”(59). The most traumatic events happened in darkness. For example, when they killed Simon, it was at night. Simon’s death drove Ralph to hysteria. He denied being involved and could not stop laughing. Also, Ralph looks back to how the boys were in the past and uses this to present darkness as an example of evil. He questions himself as to if he should “...pretend they were still boys, schoolboys who had said,

The boys believe the Beast is a large animal or a ghost. When a dead parachuter falls on the island, they assume that the parachuter is the beast. In contrast, Simon realizes the beast is only in their minds. He tells the boys, “what I mean is… maybe it’s only us”(89). As a result of believing in the Beast, the boys became more savage. Simon finds the dead parachuter and knows it is harmless. When he goes to tell the boys, they all attack him and kill him. Instead of confessing to their murder, they make the excuse that the Beast could make itself look like Simon. Also, due to their belief of the Beast’s immortality, this signifies the Beast remains alive even after Simon’s death. Furthermore, some of the boys leave a sacrifice to the Beast as if it is a god. When they start treating the Beast as a god, they start worshipping the savagery inside of