Emma Rader

Humanities PM

June 13th, 2017

Beauty vs Brawn

What kind of society would be the best to live in? One where an individual has a voice, freedom?

Or a society that is told what to do and does not have a choice in any matter, oppression? In The Lord of

The Flies we are introduced to two very different types of leadership involving Ralph and Jack. Likewise,

both are powerful. However, Ralph shows democracy and Jack represents dictatorship. William Golding

shows that Ralph is the higher form of government by the way he leads and enforces law and order. While

Jack on the other hand is being presented as a dictating government which is violent and forceful in his

way of leading.

Democracy and Dictatorship have two very different ways of leading a group of people. In Lord of

the Flies the boys crash on an island and Ralph decides they need a chief to keep things in order. Seems

to me we ought to have a chief to decide things, (Golding 20). This shows that Ralph is the one to want

to make sure the boys are able to survive on the island until help gets there. Not only does Ralph represent

democracy he also portrays it by giving some of his power as chief to Jack. Jacks in charge of the choir.

They can be- what do you want them to be? (Golding 22). Furthermore, Jack says he wants his group to

be the hunters which Ralph allows them to be. That is also a way Ralph demonstrates democracy,

specifically an indirect democracy. On the other hand, Jack is introduced as an example of dictatorship.

He shows this by saying, I ought to be chief because Im chapter chorister and head boy. I can sing a C

sharp, (Golding 20). This is a way Jack is portrayed as dictatorship because he is not letting other people

decide what is best and he is proclaiming his thoughts, for the good of only him being in charge. With

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Ralphs way of leading he was able to communicate and build trust between him and the boys. With what

the leaders offer, will affect the way the boys will react.

Ralph and Jack also differ in the way they exert power and enforce law and order. In Jacks case

as dictatorship, he is forceful and violent. Eat! Damn you! Take it!, I got you meat. I painted my face-

I stole up. Now you eat- all of you, (Golding 89). This is an example of Jack being forceful, he was able

to kill a pig for his tribe but didnt allow Piggy to eat it because he didnt help catch it. Simon offered to

give Piggy some and Jack was very violent with the way he was telling them to be grateful for the meat

that he caught. Dictatorship is the form of government where leaders can be very strict and commanding.

Their citizens are being told what to do with no choice in the matter. Ralphs way of enforcing the rules

are very calm. He knows what needs to be done for the survival of the society. The main thing that was

keeping the tribe in order was the conch. Thats what this shells called. Ill give the conch to the next

person to speak. He can hold it when hes speaking, (Golding 36). The conch was the talking piece it

would be blown and that would inform the boys when a meeting would need to be held and when they

needed to come together. There is also a point where things are getting out of order and the boys are

acting more savage than when they first got to the island. Ralphs way of dealing with the situation is by

calling a meeting and pointing out the things that are going wrong and needing to be fixed. So

remember. The rocks for lavatory. Keep the fire going and smoke showing as a signal. Dont take fire

from the mountain. Take your food up there, (Golding 99). He also discussed how they are now

drinking out of the river because theres no more water from the stream and all the coconut shells have

gone dry. He also talked about the shelters and how they were not all built with everyones help and due

to that one is tottery and could fall when and if the rain comes back. Ralph was not being forceful or

violent when he was discussing all the things that needed to change. The boys needed to step up to their

work so they would have a greater chance of survival and not become more and more savage and less

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civil as the days go on. When people feel supported and listened to, they feel more encouraged to

cooperate. With that it makes them feel more involved.

Ralphs form of leadership is best because democracy ensures order and safety while Jacks form

of dictatorship is oppressive and controlling. There is more of an availability to make choices and have an

impact on the society. Its not like a dictatorship where there is no room to have a voice and one person

makes all of the decisions. In Lord of the Flies most of the boys are leaning more towards Jacks type of

leadership but in that situation they dont have a choice in what they want to do and all Jack cares about is

hunting. Jack influenced the boys to join him in a hunting spree to motivate the group to follow his

leadership. Look! Weve killed a pig- we stole up on them- we got it in a circle- (Golding 82) During

the hunting spree, Jack finally caught a pig. He excluded Piggy in the feast of eating meat, based solely on

the fact that Piggy did not help catch the food and is not contributing to his form of leadership. Living

under Ralphs type of government would allow more freedom than Jacks and have more rules to keep

you safe but not feel like youre trapped or being forced to do something. Theres too much talking out

of turn, Ralph said, because we cant have proper assemblies if you dont stick to the rules, (Golding

111) In this instance Ralph is not being too forceful but making sure they realize what the lack of rules

result in. A leadership that makes one-minded decisions prevents a gathering of individualism, with

democracy the leader is able to bring everyones point of view into an integrated environment.

Both a democracy and dictatorship are powerful. In Lord of the Flies we learned that Ralph rules a

democratic government and Jack a dictatorship. However, both governments deliver different ways of

leading a group of people and enforcing law and order. A democratic government is the best because

individuals get a voice in the matter at hand and there are regulations that are being enforced for safety.

Under a dictatorship there is more concern for the participant themselves than the outcome of others.

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