Essay On Lord Of The Flies Democracy Vs Dictatorship

723 Words3 Pages
In William Golding’s The Lord of the Flies a group of young English boys are deserted on an uninhabited island in the middle of the world war. The group has two leaders, one who represents democracy, Ralph, and the other, Jack, who represents a dictatorship. While Ralph believes that each member should have a vote, Jack believes that he should be the only person in charge. The conflict between Jack and Ralph represents the different government types: dictatorship versus democracy. William Golding uses his protagonist, Ralph, as a symbol of democracy. Ralph is described in the book as “chief” and the “leader”. When all of boys initially meet to form a group Ralph decides that there needs to be a chief in charge. Already this early in the novel, Ralph demonstrates his personality of fair and equal leadership; “‘Seems to me we ought to have a chief to describe things’” (Golding 22). His natural leadership grants him a position…show more content…
But the conflict in the novel is a direct effect of the two very different types of government styles clashing, democracy versus dictatorship. While Ralph represents the government of America, Jack represents the government of North Korea. This novel proves to us what history has told us many times, different governing styles have different effects. When the Korean War in 1950 occurs there was conflict on America trying to implement democracy in North Korea (Unknown). In the novel, there is conflict when Ralph tries to control Jack’s tribe. And as North Korea fought back by declaring war, Jack Merridew did the same: “Viciously, with full intention, he hurled his spear at Ralph. The pint tore the skin and flesh over Ralph’s limbs. . .” (181). As stated before, many issues in the novel arise a direct effect of the different governing

    More about Essay On Lord Of The Flies Democracy Vs Dictatorship

      Open Document