What is Golding's central theory on human nature?
My central contention, and it is a somber one, is that human nature is not inherently good. We are born with a speck of evil, a propensity towards savagery that civilization merely suppresses, not eradicates. The beast, as it were, is not something external that we hunt, but the beast that resides within each of us. This is a struggle, not a state of grace. Without the structures of society and the rule of law, the inherent flaws of humanity, our fears and our baser instincts, will inevitably surface and lead to chaos. It is a grim assessment, perhaps, but one that history and observation seem to bear out.
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