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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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…
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
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Show MoreHowever, as the plot progresses, Ralph faces both internal and external conflicts; from those conflicts he greatly matures. Ralph always has the strong belief that all the children will be saved from the island sooner or later; he is so sure that he even insists that they should have fire at all times to signal. However, when the boys abandon the fire which is symbolic of Ralph’s hope of getting saved, Ralph faces an internal conflict that makes him fear about their future; perhaps they will not be rescued at all. By insisting that the children should keep the fire going, he creates an external conflict with Jack whose values are different. Jack is enjoying life as a leader of the savages, and he fears that fire will possibly end his authoritarian rule over the savages. Both conflicts are resolved when Ralph finally meets the naval officer.
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.
There is an unknown perfect science to being a leader. Some say that this is something you can attain over time with training or guidance, and others say it's a talent you must be born with. In Lord of the Flies by William Golding, one of the main characters Ralph, is elected the leader. The reason he is elected the leader isn't boldly laid out for the reader, but what is noticed, is that Ralph carries the true essence of a leader. Ralph can be seen as a great leader by the way he has everyone's best interest in mind, by the way he sets certain rules to maintain a civil society, and how he calls assemblies to address the issues that he has become most concerned with.
Jack was also at play in all this not just Ralph. Jack was an arrogant boy, but also tried to be civil and keep everything together, hunt, and, survive in the beginning. But then realized that getting saved might not be an opportunity for them. For example Jack split up his choir and hunted. Also kept the fire going but then left the fire unattended to go catch a pig with all of the group, Jack fought with Ralph because he was the leader and Jack wasn't. Then Ralph was “telling everyone what to do”. He was trying to keep everything together. Jack thought he should have been leader, so Jack left the group and started his own tribe.
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)
However, at the end of the book, he simply stood for a common human being. In the beginning of the story, before a formal introduction, Ralph was described simply as “a fair boy.” This already sets him out in a favorable light. Then it further describes how he is apparently good-looking and has the natural air of leadership. Of course, the conch played a big role when the kids voted him for leader, but his appearance played a large role as well. For the good first part of the book, Ralph has always symbolized leadership. As the story progresses and the kids became more and more distant from the idea of civilization, Ralph became more like a representation of common sense. Golding wrote, “‘I was chief, and you were going to do what I said. You talk. But you can’t even build huts-then you go off hunting and let the fire-’ He turned away, silent for a moment. Then his voice came again on a peak of feeling. ‘There was a ship-’” At this part, Ralph criticized Jack for not doing the necessary civilized things in favor of quenching his thirst for a hunt. As more and more of the kids become more and more uncivilized, Ralph became one of the last voices of common sense. When Simon and Piggy died, Ralph was the last one who retained that common sense and yearned for civilization. He had no leadership powers left anymore, and he stood for nothing more than a
Subsequently, Ralph had a plan to escape from the island. In chapter two, Piggy granted Ralph an idea of creating a signal fire with Piggy’s glasses. As this process was going on, Ralph needed a way of retrieving food and building shelter to sustain his resources. He organized all these duties to maintain social order. Based on the information from the book, Ralph can be characterized as an organized, relentless individual. As a leader, one must push oneself to stay with an ultimate goal. In response, Ralph sticks with his long-term plan and the boys eventually achieve their one true goal of rescue. If a person sets a positive mind-set, then that person will strive to obtain success. To resume, Jack vows to kill a pig after a failed attempt of killing his first pig. (Golding 31).Above all, Jack sets a high goal that is not feasible by other means. He is an opportunistic boy who takes chances when necessary. In fact, Jack is a boy who never gives up even when situations are overbearing. He fears nothing when he carries the role of a leader. As a result, Jack became one of the greatest hunters on the island due to the fact that he possessed high
Ralph has a powerful knowledge to know what needs to happen to enhance the group’s chances of being rescued. As a group of boys come together they had no idea what happened, found themselves upon a tropical island, without adult supervision, and no rules. The group decides they need to elect a leader to bring organization and leadership to their situation. Ralph being a very knowledgeable person states the obvious potential for leadership, which leads to Ralph being elected for Chief. ” Shut up, said Ralph absently. He lifted the conch. "Seems to me we ought to have a chief to decide things.”A chief! A chief! I ought to be chief," said Jack with simple arrogance, "because I'm chapter chorister and head boy. I can sing C sharp." (p. 18). However, Jack who plays a main character in the novel, who desires power above leadership, Jack was furious of the decision made by group. Ralph as chief, he felt obligated to be civilized with Jack, resulting in the decision for Jack being leader of the boys for the use of hunting. This soon results in Jack’s love of authority and violence enabling him to feel powerful, as the novel progresses the civilized boys slowly start
... Ralph has proven to have a much better understanding of people and their needs and this makes him a much better leader than Jack. With Ralph's understanding of the need for order and rules, he improves the condition where the boys are living in. Jack's condition was horrible. Also, Jack treated the boys very badly and like he better. Ralph, on the other hand treated the boys all equally and with respect. Ralph's priority to get off the island shows his wisdom and ability to make good decisions. Although Jack was popular on the island for the short amount of time the boys were there, he would not have been popular for much longer. He does not have any of the qualities that a good leader should have and turned himself and the rest of the boys into complete losers. Jack's plan would have soon faded but if Ralph had become leader, his wisdom would last much longer.
To be a leader, one has to show excellence. Heroes strive to improve themselves in every way possible. In the novel Ralph shows leadership when he blows the conch to get everyone together. “Let him be chief with the trumpet-thing” (Page 22). He had to be the leader since he was head over everyone. Ralph used leadership skills to take responsibility over everyone on the island, set rules, and keep everyone safe. The Naval officer asked “’Who’s boss here?’” “’I am’ said Ralph loudly” (Page 201). He showed leadership by taking the role of chief. “He is God in my eyes” (Sappho). What Sappho is saying is that in her eyes the hero is greater than what he is and that is what people think leaders are. “Doing what’s right regardless of personal consequences” (Schlenker). Leaders always do what right and always make the right
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.
Ralph is only 12 years old, but he has a conscience and is a responsible leader. He tries very hard to create and organize some kind of working order. Ralph realizes that he needs to treat the boys with respect in order to earn respect. In the novel, Golding has Ralph spending most of his time running after Jack, trying to prevent him from making a mess with everything. Jack wants to Ralph to lead by fearing the boys into doing what they
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
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.
Ralph was chosen leader on the island because of his appearance, but most of the boys soon found out that he actually was a good leader. Ralph made decisions by including everyone in the group meetings because he wanted to hear their opinions and inform them about what was happening on the island. Ralph proved his bravery by leading - when no one else wanted to - the exploration into untraveled territory which they later became known as Castle Rock. Ralph’s weakness was that he allowed things get out of hand; for instance, Samneric went hunting with Jack, leaving their post of tending to the signal fire. Without anyone tending to the fire, no smoke was produced to draw the attention of the ship that sailed by the island. When Jack found out what had happened he could not stop talking about his hunt and did not seem to care that they could have got off the island. Being leader, Ralph should have given consequences and been stricter with rules towards Jack, showing his authority over him. Even at the beginning Ralph let Jack have control and did not stand up to him: