Internal conflicts placed upon characters by an author will stand out to the reader and develop the work's themes. William Golding and William Shakespeare used this technique in the characters of Ralph, in the Lord of the Flies, and Macbeth, in the play Macbeth, in order to expand their themes.

Ralph dealt with the seductive lure of become a savage and to give into to his immediate desires, but something dissuaded him the instinct of civilization acted as the opposite force and altered his decisions. Timeless conflicts, reason vs. desire, order vs. chaos, good vs. evil, all were depicted in this character's psyche. Which would win out? Well, that is the theme of the book. Ralph had experiences of both. He joined in a hunt, which Golding used as a symbol for savagery, and after hitting a boar with a spear he became ecstatic with "their new respect...