Billy Bud: Contrast Between Good and Evil Since the beginning of time, there has always been a tenacious struggle between good and evil. In a particular famous book, The Bible, the continuous clash between good and evil remains evident throughout the work. In Herman Melville's novel, Billy Budd, symbolism, characterization, and irony are put to use to develop the dramatic contrast between good and evil. Symbolism is used to directly contrast good and evil. The night before Billy's hanging, "through the rose-tan of his complexion no pallor could have shown." Billy portrays a ver