1. Features of the interaction of good and evil in folk tales.
2. Changing the approach to the relationship between heroes and antagonists.
3. Differences in the relationship between positive and negative heroes.
4. Blurring the boundaries between concepts.
Despite the apparent diversity artistic images and characters, fundamental categories have always existed and will exist in world literature, the opposition of which, on the one hand, is main reason development storyline, and on the other hand, encourages the individual to develop moral criteria. The vast majority of heroes of world literature can easily be classified into one of two camps: defenders of Good and adherents of Evil. These abstract concepts can be embodied in visible, living images.
The significance of the categories of Good and Evil in culture and human life no doubt. A clear definition of these concepts allows an individual to establish himself in life, evaluating his own and other people’s actions from the point of view of what should and should not be done. Many philosophical and religious systems are based on the idea of opposition between two principles. So is it any wonder that characters in fairy tales and legends embody opposite traits? However, it should be noted that if the idea of the behavior of heroes embodying the evil principle changed little over time, then the idea of what the response to their actions by representatives of Good should be did not remain unchanged. Let us first consider how victorious heroes dealt with their evil opponents in fairy tales.
For example, the fairy tale “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs”. The evil stepmother, using witchcraft, tries to destroy her stepdaughter, jealous of her beauty, but all the machinations of the witch turn out to be in vain. Good triumphs. Snow White not only remains alive, but also marries Prince Charming. However, what does the victorious Good do with the losing Evil? The ending of the tale seems to have been taken from a narrative about the activities of the Inquisition: “But iron shoes had already been placed on the burning coals for her, they were brought, held with tongs, and placed in front of her. And she had to step her feet into red-hot shoes and dance in them until she finally fell, dead, to the ground.”
A similar attitude towards a defeated enemy is typical of many fairy tales. But it should be noted right away that the point here is not the increased aggressiveness and cruelty of Good, but the peculiarities of the understanding of justice in ancient times, because the plots of most fairy tales were formed a very long time ago. “An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth” - this is the ancient formula of retribution. Moreover, heroes who embody the traits of Good not only have the right to brutally deal with a defeated enemy, but must do so, because revenge is a duty assigned to man by the gods.
However, the concept gradually changed under the influence of Christianity. A. S. Pushkin in “The Tale of dead princess and about the seven heroes" used a plot almost identical to "Snow White". And in Pushkin’s text, the evil stepmother did not escape punishment - but how is it carried out?
Then sadness took over her,
And the queen died.
Inevitable retribution does not occur as the arbitrariness of mortal victors: it is the judgment of God. In Pushkin’s tale there is no medieval fanaticism, the description of which involuntarily makes the reader shiver; the humanism of the author and positive characters only emphasizes the greatness of God (even if He is not mentioned directly), the highest justice.
The “longing” that “took” the queen—isn’t it conscience, which the ancient sages called “the Eye of God in man”?
So, in the ancient, pagan understanding, representatives of Good differ from representatives of Evil in the ways of achieving their goals and the undoubted right to something that their enemies are trying to take away - but not at all by a kinder, more humane attitude towards the defeated enemy.
In the works of writers who have absorbed Christian traditions, the unconditional right of positive heroes to carry out merciless reprisals against those who could not withstand the temptation and took the side of Evil is questioned: “And count those who should live, but they are dead. Can you resurrect them? But no, don’t rush to condemn anyone to death. For even the wisest are not given to foresee everything” (D. Tolkien “The Lord of the Rings”). “Now he is fallen, but it’s not for us to judge him: who knows, maybe he will rise again,” says Frodo, the main character of Tolkien’s epic. This work raises the problem of the ambiguity of Good. Yes, representatives bright side may share mistrust and even fear, moreover, no matter how wise, courageous and kind you are, there is always the possibility that you can lose these virtues and join the camp of villains (perhaps without consciously wanting this). A similar transformation occurs with the magician Saruman, whose original mission was to fight Evil, embodied in the person of Sauron. It threatens anyone who wishes to possess the One Ring. However, Tolkien does not even hint at Sauron's possible reformation. Although Evil is also not monolithic and ambiguous, it is, to a greater extent, an irreversible state.
The works of writers who continued the tradition of Tolkien present different views on what and which of Tolkien's characters should be considered Good and Evil. Currently, you can find works in which Sauron and his teacher Melkor, a kind of Lucifer of Middle-earth, do not act as negative heroes. Their struggle with other creators of the World is not so much a conflict of two opposite principles, but rather the result of misunderstanding and rejection of Melkor’s non-standard decisions.
In fantasy, which was formed on the basis of fairy tales and legends, clear boundaries between Good and Evil are gradually blurring. Everything is relative: Good is again not so humane (as it was in ancient tradition), but Evil is far from black - rather, it is denigrated by enemies. The literature reflects the processes of rethinking previous values, the real embodiment of which is often far from ideal, and the tendency towards an ambiguous understanding of the multifaceted phenomena of existence. However, it should be remembered that in the worldview of every person, the categories of Good and Evil should still have a fairly clear structure. Moses, Christ and other great teachers said long ago about what is considered real Evil. Evil is the violation of the great commandments that should determine human behavior.
Essays on the topic “Good and Evil” are assigned to schoolchildren as early as primary school. Children write essays on this topic in literature, social studies, and music lessons, examining this topic from a variety of angles.
What should you consider when writing?
When writing an essay on the topic “Good and Evil,” you need to rely on some work (if you were assigned it in literature). It is necessary to compare the heroes of this work with different moral qualities.
But usually children are given an essay on such a topic to test their level of reading, perception of the world, and how they can reason and analyze. The theme "Good and Evil" allows you to do this. It’s quite easy to write an essay if you know how to think through information and analyze it.
Introduction
Ideally, any essay should consist of three paragraphs: an introduction, the main part, which reveals the whole meaning, and a conclusion.
An introduction must be written, even if it is a mini-essay on the topic “Good and Evil.” It is from the beginning of your reasoning and narration that the reader’s further perception of the rest of the text depends. The introduction reveals the meaning of the subsequent text; you should notify the reader about what you want to write about, as well as your position. The introduction should be short, about 2-5 sentences, no more. Examples of introduction for an essay on the topic “Good and Evil”:
- Our Big world divided into white and black, good and evil. Absolutely every person has encountered both good and evil at some point in his life. This topic is the most relevant today, which is why it is so important to discuss the topic of good and evil, their interaction and differences.
- From the early childhood We are read books and fairy tales about how good and evil are opposed. The theme of good and evil has always existed on our planet; it is the most relevant. But can good exist without evil? How do good and evil interact? Let's try to speculate on this topic.
“Good and Evil” is not that difficult to write if you have something to say. The introduction is always much more difficult than writing the main part of the essay and conclusion. Many experienced writers say that starting a story, even for them, is much more difficult than finishing it.
Main part of the essay
Essays on the topic “Good and Evil” are food for thought for any person, both an adult and a child. In the main part you can give arguments from life, literary works, from personal experience. The main part can consist of 10-20 sentences, and for a mini-essay even 8. Ideas for writing the main part of such an essay:
- Psychologists believe that everything in our lives comes back like a boomerang. This assumption, the theory, has existed in practice for many years and is proven by examples from life and literary works. If a person does good, then, as a rule, it will definitely return to him. The proverb “don’t do good to people, you won’t get evil” refutes the boomerang theory, but this proverb rarely true. In fact, a person who does good receives it in return. Perhaps from another person, but he receives it. A person who does good is happy and believes in the kindness of other people. He lives surrounded by a world of good-natured people. An evil person who commits evil against other people does not receive good in his life, but only anger and aggression from others.
- Can good exist without evil? I think not. God created evil so that people would understand. If people did not know, they would not value such things as good deeds. A person towards whom only evil is constantly manifested begins to value good deeds and perform them himself. This is observed in many examples, for example in the book When the boy was little, he was offended and disliked. But there were strangers in his life who gave him kindness. Since childhood, David felt the sharp difference between good and evil, so he learned to value goodness and tried to do the same with people.
Conclusion of the essay
At the conclusion of the essay on the topic “Good and Evil,” it is necessary to make a brief conclusion of your reasoning and speculation. For a long essay, this section can reach up to seven sentences, and for a mini-essay, up to four. In conclusion, you need to say the same thing as in the main part, but at the same time convey only the main essence.
Theme of Good and Evil - eternal theme. It has interested people throughout the entire existence of mankind. What is Good? What is Evil? How are they connected? How are they related in the world and in the soul of each person? Each writer answers these questions differently.
Thus, F. Goethe in his tragedy “Faust” shows the struggle between the “devilish” and the “divine” in the soul of the hero. By “diabolical” we mean not only the forces of evil, but also a person’s (and all of humanity’s) lack of faith in their own strength, self-limitation, and pessimism. “Divine” is the daring spirit of discovery, exploits, and creativity. This is creation, eternal dissatisfaction with oneself and the world around us, the desire to make life better.
Main character works - Faust is a zealous truth-seeker. He wants to comprehend the “internal connection of the universe” and at the same time indulge in tireless practical activities, live in full swing of your moral and physical strength.
For this he is even ready to sell his soul to the devil. Mephistopheles could not seduce this hero with simple carnal pleasures - Faust's desires are much deeper. But the devil still gets his way - he makes an agreement with the hero. Captivated by the bold thought of developing living, comprehensive activity with the help of Mephistopheles, Faust sets his own conditions: Mephistopheles must serve him until the first moment when he, Faust, calms down, content with what has been achieved.
The hero makes another “deviation” from Good in his relationship with Margarita. Gradually, feelings for this girl cease to be something sublime, the hero seduces her. We understand that Faust is only playing with love, and by doing this he dooms his beloved to death.
But at the end of the work, Faust still learns the truth. He comes to the conclusion that all ideas, all brilliant thoughts make sense only when they can be implemented in reality. We can say that he takes the side of Good, science, life.
M. Bulgakov develops the theme of Good and Evil in the novel “The Master and Margarita”. The theme of Good and Evil in the novel is directly related to the image of Woland and his retinue. Satan himself, along with Azazello, Koroviev and Behemoth, appears in contemporary author Soviet Moscow. The purpose of Woland's visit was to find out whether man had changed over many centuries; what drives his actions today, how his soul lives.
The epigraph to the novel is the lines from Goethe’s Faust: “I am part of that force that always wants evil and always does good.” They help to understand the author's thought - by exposing evil, Woland thereby serves goodness and beauty, that is, restores the balance between Good and Evil in the world.
Satan has always been opposed to God. Bulgakov treats him freely and makes Woland a defender of God as the only criterion of good and evil, morality and immorality in man. But it is important that the hero himself judges people mercilessly, without loving them.
Bulgakov shows that the “demonic” principle lives in every person. Thus, the author depicts for us the lifestyle of an association of writers, for whom the main business of life is to eat deliciously and dance. Envy, careerism, the ability to get a job, hatred of the talented - this is the moral portrait of those who made literature for social purposes.
Only by availability dark side in my heart one can explain the bribery of the chairman of the housing association Nikanor Bosogo. Who forced him to register him for money, to move him into vacated rooms for a bribe?
"Session black magic"brought these heroes and other Moscow residents together. Mass hypnosis showed in everyone his inner “I” - a greedy, rude person, with base tastes, a lover of bread and circuses. But Bulgakov, horrified by his merciless grotesquery, “saves” the audience with the screams of Bengalsky, a talker and buffoon, whose head was torn off by the cat Behemoth.
The writer instructs Woland to pronounce the “sentence”: “Humanity loves money... Well, they are frivolous... well, well... and mercy sometimes knocks on their hearts... ordinary people...”.
One of my favorite books, which has changed my views in many ways, is the philosophical parable “Jonathan Livingston Seagull,” written by Richard Bach. The main character of the work, the seagull Jonathan Livingston, was not like everyone else. He wanted to fly higher than everyone, farthest, wanted to be the best in everything. Nobody believed in him; all the seagulls in his flock laughed at him.
Without listening to anyone, Jonathan flew at night, although no one had done this before. The hero developed an incredible speed - 214 miles per hour - and dreamed of even more. Expelled from the pack, but not broken, in the finale Jonathan gained freedom and found like-minded people.
As an epigraph to the work, the author wrote the following lines “To the non-fictional Jonathan Seagull who lives in each of us.” This book instills in us faith in ourselves, in the fact that a person can do anything if he strives for a goal and learns not to depend on public opinion.
So, Good and Evil are fundamental concepts that determine not only the essence of man, his inner world, but also the entire world order. Writers all over the world tried to determine for themselves, find out, understand... But this search will continue forever as long as the world and man exist on Earth.
Good and evil... Eternal philosophical concepts that trouble the minds of people at all times. Arguing about the difference between these concepts, it can be argued that goodness, of course, brings pleasant experiences to the people close to you. Evil, on the contrary, wants to bring suffering. But, as often happens, it is difficult to distinguish good from evil. “How can this be?” another ordinary person will ask. It turns out it can. The fact is that good is often embarrassed to talk about its motives for action, and evil is embarrassed to talk about its own. Good even sometimes disguises itself as a little evil, and evil can do the same. But it trumpets that it is great good! Why is this happening? Just a kind person, as a rule, is modest, it is a burden for him to listen to gratitude. So he says, having done a good deed, that it didn’t cost him anything at all. Well, what about evil? Oh, this is evil... It loves to accept words of gratitude, even for non-existent benefits.
Indeed, it is difficult to figure out where the light is and where the darkness is, where the real good is and where the evil is. But as long as a person lives, he will strive for good and to tame evil. You just need to learn to understand true motives actions of people and, of course, fight evil.
Russian literature has repeatedly addressed this problem. Valentin Rasputin did not remain indifferent to her either. In the story “French Lessons” we see the state of mind of Lydia Mikhailovna, who really wanted to help her student get rid of constant malnutrition. Her good deed was “disguised”: she played “chiku” (that’s the name of the game for money) with her student for money. Yes, this is not ethical, not pedagogical. The school director, having learned about this act of Lidia Mikhailovna, fires her from her job. But the French teacher played with the student and gave in to the boy, because she wanted him to buy food for himself with the money he won, not go hungry and continue to study. This is a truly kind deed.
I would like to recall another work in which the problem of good and evil is raised. This is M.A. Bulgakov’s novel “The Master and Margarita”. It is here that the author talks about the inseparability of the existence of good and evil on earth. This is a truism. In one of the chapters, Levi Matvey calls Woland evil. To which Woland replies: “What would your good do if evil did not exist?” The writer believes that the real evil in people is that they are weak and cowardly by nature. But evil can still be defeated. To do this, it is necessary to establish the principle of justice in society, that is, exposing meanness, lies and sycophancy. The standard of goodness in the novel is Yeshua Ha-Nozri, who sees only good in all people. During interrogation by Pontius Pilate, he says that he is ready to endure any suffering for faith and goodness, and also about his intention to expose evil in all its manifestations. The hero does not give up his ideas even in the face of death. “ Evil people there is no one in the world, there are only unhappy people,” he says to Pontius Pilate.
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