Ralph's Leadership: Lord of the Flies

Throughout the book, Ralph stands for democracy, ‘we’ll have to have hands up like at school’ 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 as the leader on the island shows much initiative. He takes a great deal of control and is usually the first to step up in a situation to benefit the safety of everyone on the island. ’You hunters! You can laugh! But I tell you 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.’ This quote displays how Ralph is attempting to maintain order and civilized behavior. By being the first to tell them what to do and by showing initiative and by setting goals for the boys to follow, he prepares practical plans that will help the boys get rescued. He is trying to tell them what do to help save them so they will not die. Ralph also shows an immense amount of initiative when most of the other boys are concerned