Comparative Essay of Lord of the Flies and Animal Farm

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Not every leader is power hungry. Some leaders are good with power but others can never get enough. They are never satisfied with how much power they have. They want more and more, no matter the sacrifice . In William Golding's Lord of the Flies and George Orwell's Animal Farm, secondary characters, who play the roles of spokesmen, enforcers, and followers, bolster the power of the leaders, there by ensuring the leaders' success.

Firstly, both books contain secondary characters who play the role of spokesmen and increase their leaders' power. In Animal Farm, the secondary character, Squealer, has a way with words. No matter what the angle, he is able to convince all of the animals on the farm that what he says is true and right. He helps his leader, Napoleon, by keeping the animals loyal to him by using his skill of “ [turning] black into white” (Orwell 9). Moreover, Squealer blinds the animals of the truth that the pigs and especially Napoleon are their masters and things are better then they were under the rule of Jones (awkward and confusing sentence). For example, Squealer modifies the story of the Battle of the
Cowshed, so the pigs and Napoleon look like they are heroes and Snowball is the criminal. Squealer helps Napoleon by lying to the animals and keeping them on their side so no one realize that their conditions are worse then in the days of Jones, and rebel. On the other hand, Piggy of Lord of the Flies intentions are good and true -unlike those of Squealer's. Piggy helps Ralph stay in power by providing advice and ideas, which leads to most of Ralph's success. Ralph uses theses advice and ideas, to lead the group of stranded boys. Furthermore, Ralph loses his power despite having Piggy's hel...

... middle of paper ...

... roles of the enforcers, played by secondary character, use their ability to inflict pain and therefore evoke fear, to help their leader's gain more power.

In conclusion, in William Golding's Lord of the Flies and George Orwell's Animal Farm, secondary character effect the leaders' success, by helping them gain power through, the roles of spokesmen, enforcers, and followers. Too much power can damages a person's sanity, they may become paranoid, greedy, and violent to an uncontrollable state. While a lift of a finger can destroy millions, it can also save millions. Two powerful question now poses: How much power can one individual person handle, and how much can they be trust with?

Works Cited
Golding, William: Lord of the Flies. London: Faber and Faber Limited. 1954. Paperback
Orwell, George: Animal Farm . London. Penguin Books. 1951. Paperback

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