“I have a different vision of leadership. A leader is someone who brings people together.” -George W. Bush.
This novel is called Lord of the Flies by William Golding. The struggle for power is a constant theme throughout Lord of the Flies because two boys are fighting for the position of leader on the island. Ralph shows more initiative and proves that he is a more responsible leader than Jack. Ralph’s concept of leadership is more democratic and makes sure everyone has a voice. Ralph is a good leader because of these three qualities; he invents the idea of the conch shell, he wants everyone to be in one big society, and he guides those who are younger than him.
Ralph is the one who invents the conch shell because he wants everyone to have a voice. When the boys have their first meeting, Ralph states, “ ‘That’s what this shell is called. I’ll give the conch to the next person to speak. He can hold it when he’s speaking.’ ” (33) The conch shell represents power and a voice. When one of the boys is given the conch shell they are given extra power than they normally posses. The conch gives a voice to boys who usually don’t have one and get teased a lot. One of those boys is Piggy, Piggy states, “ ‘I got the conch,” said Piggy in a hurt voice. “I got the right to speak.’ ” Having the conch is a symbol of authority and power. This proves that even though you may not be the most athletic or popular person you are guaranteed to have a voice. The conch shell proves that a person is given more power and voice just by holding it.
Unlike Jack, Ralph is willing to take the initiative. He ensures that everyone on the island is safe. “ ‘You hunters! You can laugh! But I tell you to smoke is more important than the pig, however often you kill one. Do all of you see?’ He spread his arms wide and turned to the whole triangle. ‘We’ve got to make smoke up there – or die.’ ” (81) This quote shows how he wants everyone to stay civilized and in order instead of becoming barbaric and savage. He sets rules for the boys to follow and he also shows solutions on what to do when you are trying to get rescued. While all of the other boys are playing and goofing around he wants to take the initiative to help build huts, contemplating how to get off of the island, and how to light signal fires. Ralph states, “ ‘ We need an assembly. Not for fun. Not for laughing and falling off the log” – the group of littluns on the twister giggled and looked at each other – “not for making jokes, or for” – he lifted the conch in an effort to find the compelling word – “for cleverness. Not for these things. But to put things straight.’ ” (79) He shows a tremendous amount of initiative and even though he is scaring the little nuns because they aren’t used to situations like this he is being serious. This shows Ralph slowly maturing throughout this novel. He is becoming very persistent to because he is always trying to find ways to get saved. In chapter 4, he and Piggy see a ship somewhere in the distance and Ralph sprints up to try and light the signal fire, but it was too late. It still shows his initiative on how he literally sprinted up a mountain to try and get saved. Basically, his one and only goal is to get off this island.
As a leader, Ralph shows a large amount of responsibility throughout this novel. “The storm broke. “ ‘Sit down!’, ‘Shut up!’, Take the conch!’, ‘Sod you!’, ‘Shut up!’ Ralph shouted.’
” (89) This quote shows that even in hard situations he has to make sure everyone listens carefully and feels calm and protected. He also wants to create a society by setting rules for the boys to follow. For example, he creates a designated toilet area and he also lets the boys know that the signal fire can’t go out. Also, gathering water for drinking and building huts as shelters. Also, Ralph arranges meetings to make sure everything is running smoothly on the island, along with making safety a priority for the boys. The kids fear the beasties and have nightmares about the beastie a lot of the nights. Ralph has the idea that the kids should wait until the morning to climb the mountain because it will be difficult to destroy the monster at night. This shows that he has the capability of making sure everyone on the island feels safe.