Leadership – Who is Better
Being a good leader is a quality that stands out among people. Most people look to the strongest people to be leaders. However, the strongest person may not always be the best choice for the job. In the book, Lord of the Flies, written by William Golding, Jack and Ralph both have the qualities to be great leaders. Lord of the Flies is a story of shipwrecked boys on an island that suddenly turns into a complex account of endless trickery and deceit which stems from jealousy. Ralph, one of the main characters, treats the other boys better and understands them, he is patient with them and keeps his mind on the getting them rescued. Ralph, influenced by nurture, for the most part, does not change being a great leader
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throughout the book. In the beginning of the book Ralph tells the boys, “Fire on the Mountain.” Then he says, “If we have a signal going, they'll come and take us off. And another thing. We ought to have more rules. Where the conch is, that's a meeting. The same up here as down there." (Golding 38) This shows Ralph’s capability to lead. By creating rules to keep order on the island, as well as his devotion to being rescued, he shows wonderful leadership qualities. Most would think that Jack would be the stronger and better leader of choice however; Ralph is the better leader. The initial situation is tough, Ralph quickly demonstrates his ability to lead and assert command almost instantly. Respectively, Ralph tries to bring order to the chaos on the island.
Much like the article, The Teenage Brain, Ralph would be faced with making serious choices that would have serious consequences. In chapter two, he lays down the rules for the boys about keeping the rules and using the conch, as well as the rescue. He knows there needs to be some sort of order on the island if they are going to survive. He sets up a simple form of leadership and creates straightforward rules. Although this doesn’t last very long, it still shows Ralph is a better leader than Jack. Unfortunately, Ralph soon finds that simply saying, “I’m chief”, isn’t enough, there must be people to enforce the rules. (Golding 23) Ralph is constantly keeping his mind on the most important goal, to be rescued. When the fire goes out, Ralph gets upset because he feels their only hope of being rescued is gone. He enforces his leadership and surprisingly gives the boys a sense of stability and continues to help them work together. Seemingly, Jack continuously causes chaos on the …show more content…
island. Oddly enough, since the boys know Jack, they want to follow him, even though there is no discipline among them.
Jack is unable to see what the boys really need. He decides he should be chief simply because he could sing a chord and was the head boy in the choir. The truth is Jack doesn’t care about anything else other than hunting. In the beginning he seems to be a great leader but his selfish ambitions show him to not be a good leader choice. Jack does not treat the boys with respect and is only focused on killing the pigs and eating them. Ralph doesn’t think he is better than the rest of the boys, this is partially what makes him a better leader than Jack. He understands the other boys, especially Piggy. When Jack hits Piggy’s glasses and breaks them Ralph says it’s, “a dirty trick”. This illustrates Ralph’s compassion as well as Jack’s disregard for others and their property. Jack does not know how to understand people, unlike Ralph. In relation to leadership Jack also does not change throughout the book, in the end he is still the same aggressive and bossy
character. In conclusion, Ralph is the first boy to step up and take control of the difficult situation and sets a great example for how to best survive. He makes a better leader than Jack because of his care and respect of the boys, and is a great example of compassion and morals. Although Jack is a strong individual his lack of empathy and his temper make him a weak leader. Decisively, when the boys do decide to follow Jack for a time, he is only interested in solving their short term needs, food. Jack’s rise to power doesn’t change him as much as it brings out his selfish personality more. Consequently, if the boys had listened to Ralph and took the more logical long-term ideas, the story may not have taken such a tragic turn.
Leadership is a trait that many people have naturally and others try to obtain. Many people consider themselves a good leader when they fail to carry out the characteristics leadership require. In the book, “Lord of the Flies”, Ralph is a better leader than Jack because of the traits he possesses. That is why certain skills are necessary to be considered a successful leader.
Leadership is something that stands out in people. In a group, people tend to look to the strongest person to follow. However, the strongest person may not be the best choice to follow. In Lord of the Flies by William Golding, Ralph and Jack each have leadership qualities. Jack is probably the stronger of the two; however, Ralph is a better leader. He has a better understanding for the boys. He also has more common sense and treats the boys better than Jack.
In William Golding's novel, Lord of the Flies Ralph though not the stronger person, demonstrates a better understanding of people than Jack which gives him better leadership qualities. Ralph displays these useful human qualities as a leader by working towards the betterment of the boys' society. He knows the boys need stability and order if they are to survive on the island. He creates rules and a simple form of government to achieve this order. Jack does not treat the boys with dignity as Ralph does. Ralph understands that the boys, particularly Piggy, have to be given respect and must be treated as equals. This makes Ralph a better leader as he is able to acknowledge that he was not superior to any of the other boys. Ralph's wisdom and ability to look to the future also make him a superior leader. Ralph has the sense to keep his focus on getting off the island. He insists on keeping the fire burning as a distress signal. Ralph's leadership provides peace and order to the island while Jack's leadership makes chaos.
In a group, there are always people who prove to have better leadership skills then others. The strongest of these people can often influence the weaker people into following them. However, the strongest person is not necessarily the best leader as it is proven in William Golding's book, The Lord of the Flies. Although Ralph is the weaker person, he is still able to show a better understanding of people than Jack who is stronger. Ralph demonstrates his excellent leadership skills throughout the book by keeping the group in line, treating everyone with respect, and staying focused on getting rescued.
Ralph first takes on the position as leader at the beginning of the story, when the rest of the boys vote him in as chief. He carries this position until Jack and his fellow hunters break away from the group. Ralph makes it his job to set out the rules to organize a society. Ralph always thinks of what is best for everyone and how they will all benefit from his decisions. Rules and standards are set when Ralph is the chief. He orders the group to build the basic necessities of civilization, shelters, and most importantly to keep the fire going, in hope that they will be rescued and return to humanity. "But I tell you that smoke is more important than the pig, however often you kill one" (Golding 75). Jack, on the other hand, takes on the idea of every man for himself. He does not care about making homes, only about hunting. When Jack is the leader, evil takes over and all good is destroyed. Under Jack's power both Simon and Piggy are killed.
Early in the novel, we saw almost immediately that Ralph was focused on what was most important. While most of the other boys were distracted by hunting and playing games, Ralph was focused on what was most important for the boys to get home safely. These important things included the fire and shelters. Most of the other boys could not be bothered by the idea of tending the fire or building shelters. Ralph on the other hand, was bothered only by the fact that the other boys refused to do these things. Just as they had the chance to be rescued, Ralph realizes there was no chance they would, as the hunters let the fire go out. Angrily, Ralph confronts Jack about this and says, “There was a ship. Out there. You said you’d keep the fire going and you let it out.”(70) This shows that between Ralph and Jack, Ralph was the only one seriously concerned with their
From the start, Ralph tries to take on the main job and set the main focus on the fire. They all know from the bringing that they will need to have the fire to be a there sign of getting saved. Ralph starts to guide the boys in what they need to do. Ralph is doing this to make it seem that they seem to have a place to say to start a civilization. Ralph seems like he could be a great leader at the beginning of this book, but issues start to begin happening he's starting to lack in many characteristics; he's not leading them like he was at the bringing. He seems like he is nervous to speak. He starts letting piggy talk and make comments that he wouldn't let happen before. "`He's like Piggy. He says things like Piggy. He isn't a proper chief.'"(2)
After Ralph officially became the chief, all the boys applauded for Ralph, but Jack felt embarrassed and sat down. Ralph saw Jack’s embarrassed face, then decided to give him back the status of being the leader of the choir boys. Jack became excited again, and his embarrassment face vanishes, Ralph had successfully did what he anticipated. Ralph was trying to make Jack feel better, belonged to the group. Jack was the former leader of the choir boys after all, losing the election would have some level of indignity. If Ralph didn’t give him back his position and gain his status again, Jack wouldn’t be that aggressive in the story. That’ why Ralph is respectful as a leader, and it’s a positive character trait. Ralph is also conscious. In chapter five, Ralph calls for a meeting to discuss the problems that they are facing. He said to boys that they aren’t doing anything that was planned. They refuse to build the shelters, He also said, “And another thing. We nearly set the whole island on fire. And we waste time, rolling rocks, and making little
Ralph defends Piggy, one of the boys, which is good administration. “‘You’re talking too much,” said Jack Merridew. Shut up, Fatty.’ Laughter Rose. ‘He's not Fatty,’ cried Ralph, ‘his real name's Piggy’” (Golding 21). This is a good characteristic to have because he is preventing harassment toward his people. He needs everyone to work together to leave the island. Later in the story, Ralph strengthens his ability to be leader by managing the group once again. “‘I'm chief. We've got to make certain. Can't you see the mountain? There's no signal showing. There may be a ship out there’” (Golding 108). The boys were silent after and listened to the chief as they followed Jack across the bridge. Ralph incessantly needs to yell at them to listen to him so they can work together. As expressed, Ralph shows the ability to be a leader continuously throughout the
There are several interesting evidences for obtaining the role of a triumphant leader. In William Golding’s Lord of the Flies, the boys on the island form a democratic, social order that can aid in their act of survival. Specifically, Ralph and Jack emerge as one of the top influential leaders on the island. Despite their different perceptions on leading various activities, both boys are ideal leaders based on their educational backgrounds, situational actions, and striving virtuosities.
In the novel Lord of the flies the theme of leadership is consistent and the characters jack and Ralph are consistently used to highlight each other weaknesses and strengths. Golding uses other symbols such as the conch to showcase Ralph's future role as leader. Furthermore golding uses the other characters to be the catalyst of Ralph's gradual devolvement and doubtful thoughts.
Lord of the flies written by William Golding in 1954, was based on group of boys who were forced to find ways to survive on their own on a tropical island. They have no adult support and no clue how to survive on the island by themselves. Which leads to the boys wanting to select a leader to guide them to find ways to survive. Their relationship start to break and they end up forming two competing groups that have two very different values. One group is led by Ralph who tries to hold onto common sense and does things best to keep everyone safe. The other group is led by Jack who act like “savages”. It will be examined how the boys change on the island losing their sense of being civilized over the period of time, by wanting power resulting
John C. Maxwell once said, “People buy into the leader before they buy into the vision”. Maxwell would have greatly appreciated Jack’s leadership style on the island in Lord of the Flies by William Golding.While Jack might not have the more promising or logical concepts of survival on this deserted island, he is a strong leader with very visible leadership qualities. Because of these qualities, the boys on the island are inclined to listen to his speeches and ideas. The two leaders on the island are Jack and Ralph. Ralph is a more passive-aggressive leader that rules on democracy, while Jack is a very aggressive leader who uses fear and instills his dominance. Despite the belief that Ralph is the better leader because he
Ralph is the leader of the boys on the island. Ralph was voted by the boys on the island to be the leader. Ralph is a symbolic character in this story because he shows leadership, courage, determination, and responsibility. Ralph is always one to be quick to judge on his decisions. Ralph has to make decisions that can be life threating to everyone on the island in a spilt second and hardly has time to think of a better solution. Ralph said, “You hunters! You can laugh! But I tell you smoke is more important than
In Lord of the Flies, written by William Golding, the two main characters, Ralph and Jack, are twelve years old on an island with no adults. Their power clashes against each other in their fight for control on the island. When Ralph makes decisions he thinks about what others want, but when he should be assertive he is not; Jack is a very effective leader because he identifies with the other boys, but he is immoral. Ralph and Jack’s strengths and weaknesses are what make them the kind of leader they were. During their time on the island they experience many challenges that tests their leadership abilities.