Conflict Between Good and Evil

From ArticleWorld

The conflict between good and evil is an eternal one, taking place on both a world scale between individuals and ideologies and as an inner battle between the good self and the bad self. It is one of the most common themes in literature and indeed, it is quite difficult to find books that do not tell of some sort of struggle between good and evil. The ‘Star Wars’ series epitomises both types of conflicts, with characters such as Luke Skywalker struggling with his character traits while the Rebel Alliance struggle with the Empire.

Conlict in literature

In traditional folk literature, the difference between good and evil are well defined and unchangeable, and are indicative of the moral culture of the society represented in, or by, the story. Regardless of which side triumphs, the moral of the story is intended to reinforce community solidarity and values. In classical literature, fate plays a major role in the tale and tragedies usually ended happily with good triumphing over evil but for the tragic hero invented by Aristotle. The Aristotelian tragic hero had four characteristics – goodness, superiority in some area such as politics or battle, a tragic flaw and the realisation of the flaw which then leads to his downfall.

Christian literature is concerned with the epitome of the fight between good and evil – the eternal conflict between God and Satan. There is also literature which concentrates on the struggle of mankind to find and keep their religious beliefs.

The Heart of Darkness

The inner conflict of individual vs self or Heart of Darkness after the classic novel by Joseph Conrad is possibly even more riveting to observe or read as it is one that is a universal human condition.