Character Analysis Of Jack And Jack In Lord Of The Flies

963 Words4 Pages
In the novel, Jack is seen to be more capable at taking control and advantage of situations, whilst Ralph is sometimes even incapable to grasping the situation. After his failure to maintain order on the island, with them almost setting it on fire and their talks of fear, he becomes confused and unclear. He voices his uncertainty audibly to the group, saying, “Things are breaking up. I don’t understand why.” This shows that he is not mature enough fully understand what is happening to the boys. His inability to grasp the situation parallels his short and broken sentences, making it seem like he is not in control of the situation. He further weakens his position as chief amongst the boys by sharing his intimate concerns about their situation…show more content…
Throughout the novel, we see how Jack is depicted as a power-hungry and opressive leader whilst Ralph maintains his democratic and impartial disposition. Jack is a charismatic leader unable to accept a subservient role under Ralph’s rule. He revels in hunting and the power and control it gives him, and relishes in the anarchy within the group in the absence of adult supervision. He uses fear, ritual, and violence to secure the blind obedience of the other boys. One event that showed this is Roger and Robert’s conversation, where Robert tells Roger that Jack is “going to beat Wilfred”, he states that he does not know the reason, only that Jack “got angry and made us tie Wilfred up”. In the later chapters of the novel, the reason behind Jack’s wrath was not revealed. This shows Jack’s abuse of his authority by punishing one of his followers without justification, hence is an example of his irresponsible authority. Also, Jack resorts to dictatorship in order to maintain order within his group. He refuses to let anything or anyone get in the way of his way and wants total power without the opinion of others, as seen from “we don’t need the conch anymore. We know who ought to say things”. This shows that he deems his opinions and thoughts to be more important than those of the other boys’, enforcing his absolute rule. In contrast, Ralph gives everyone an equal voice through the conch, and the person holding the conch “won’t be interrupted”. This shows his democratic method of handling situations on the island and his willingness to listen to and respect suggestions, ideas or opinions from all the boys. From this, it can be seen that he thinks of himself and all the boys as equals and therefore has authority without being a
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