Leadership In Lord Of The Flies

Despite of the numerous unknowns of the island, the boys establish their own form of leadership and government. Through such an act of civility Ralph, the boy whom gathered the entire group of survivors together, became their first leader. The boys made the decision when the group decided, “Let’s have a vote” (Golding 22). In the novel, Lord of the Flies by William Golding, the fateful decisions of a group of stranded young boys on an uncharted island lead to changes in their character and values. The changes continued, unchecked, due to their leader, who was powerless to stop it. Although Ralph attempted to stop their transition to savagery, the group continued to run amuck under the leader’s watch. Despite Ralph’s early successes as a leader,

the boy ultimately failed to guide and govern the group of survivors.
In the beginning, Ralph obtained the chance to lead, which was accepted and at the start Ralph gradually gained authority as the leader.

For example, Ralph attempted to organize and lead at the first meeting which ended in failure. As Ralph explained the importance of a signal fire, the other boys became distracted by the thought of fire. Golding states, “At once half the boys were on their feet. Jack clamored among them, the conch forgotten” (Golding 38). Unable to maintain control, Ralph could not handle the situation which unleashed a major fire among the forest. After the devastation of the previous meeting, Ralph had new reasons for stronger leadership, which caused the boy to assign jobs and duties to different people, bringing more order. Although Ralph fought to unite the group under strong morals, the boy’s ability to lead began to slowly deteriorate after gaining

control.
In addition, Ralph continuously loses authority over the group as Jack gains power. One reason that Ralph loses authority is because Jack challenges the boy’s power as leader. For example, during a meeting Ralph and Jack argue stating, “I’m chief. I was chosen,” which Jack responds to with, “Why should choosing make any difference? Just giving order that don’t make any sense” (Golding 91). Despite the fact that Ralph is the leader of the group, Jack questions his leadership and the necessity of order. Jack’s stand against order is a reason that his rule was more appealing. A society which lacks order also offers less restrictions for behavior. In fact, a portion of the boys choose to join Jack’s group rather than remaining with Ralph. Although Ralph’s intentions were for the best of the group, Jack could lead in a more effective way than Ralph.
Furthermore, Ralph was an unfit leader who could not unify the boys for long.

Throughout the novel, it becomes evident that certain people would be better suited to the role of a leader. When the boys first choose the leader the narrator states, “what intelligence had been shown was traceable to Piggy, while the obvious leader was Jack” (Golding 22). Better leaders would have brought more stability and order the group of young boys. Jack’s role as the main source of power and authority for group would have made the boy the desirable choice as a leader. Yet the conch brought the attention of the group to Ralph, which would later be a reason for the group’s downfall due the boy’s inability to fulfill the role of leader. In fact, Jack controlled a larger percentage of the group than Ralph at the end of the novel. Ralph could not effectively lead the survivors or save the group from their own

savagery.
In conclusion, Ralph’s attempt to unify the boys failed and the group’s society eventually collapsed. The leadership skills of Ralph remained in question throughout the novel. Recurring failures and betrayals dotted the story due to the boy’s lack of leadership skills. A leader is one who can bring together people under a common goal which is often difficult. While the boy held sound intentions, the group required more in order to function and sustain itself. In comparison to Jack’s style of leadership, Ralph’s style failed to unite the boys. A large portion of boys eventually merged with Jack’s tribe because the boy gave results with while Ralph only tried to assure the boys that help would arrive, yet the boy could not guarantee their rescue. Despite the boy’s efforts, Ralph could not measure up to the task of leading a society.