Ralph's Leadership In Lord Of The Flies

German journalist John Zenger once stated, “Great leaders are not defined by the absence of weakness, but rather by the presence of clear strengths”. When one is in a situation where a person who can delegate adequately is necessary, one that displays the fundamental qualities will successfully guide the society. Throughout the novel Lord of the Flies, the boys on the island represent various aspects of leadership, characterized by differing strengths. However, the protagonist, Ralph, undoubtedly triumphs in this position over others because his idiosyncrasies allow him to be a powerful leader on the island. Throughout William Golding’s novel, he clearly depicts Ralph as an effective leader through his desire for the survival of everyone,

While on the island, Ralph consistently focuses on the greater good of the boys, which is survival. For instance, Ralph continually emphasizes the importance of cultivating a signal fire that grants the possibility of being rescued by a nearby ship. When asserting this necessity to sustain the fire during an assembly, Ralph interrogates the other children who disagree on the importance of the fire by asking, “How can we ever be rescued except by luck, if we don't keep a fire going?” (80). Ralph’s obligation to preserve the fire details his desire to ensure that there is a chance of rescue from the island. His inclination to guarantee the prosperity of everyone implies that he is a valuable leader because he hopes for the best situation for his followers. Moreover, Ralph dwells on what to discuss during an assembly, after the savage boys directly

For example, as the children are exploring the island, they encounter a mysterious rock on a cliff. Since Ralph oversees the community early in the novel, “Something deep in Ralph spoke for him”, causing him to naturally state, “I’m chief. I’ll go. Don’t argue” (104). An element ingrained in Ralph’s character causes him to risk his safety and face the present challenge, Castle Rock, directly as an attempt to protect the other adolescents from the possibility of impending danger. Since Ralph selflessly endangers himself to shelter the other boys from harm, Ralph demonstrates his valiance and ability to handle a scenario given a particular circumstance. Further in the novel, Jack forms a separate tribe centered around savagery and steals Piggy’s specs in order to make a fire, causing Ralph, with his tribe’s approval, to decide to face Jack’s tribe directly to acquire the stolen glasses. Ralph elects to confront savagery, the element he is seeking to avoid, instead of cowering and giving in to it, like many others had. Since savagery is the main opponent to civilization, Ralph evinces extremely gallant behavior by directly opposing Jack. Ralph accosts his primary opponent, savagery embodied through Jack, confirming him to be an intrepid character, which is a critical element to advance the primary cause of a group. Hence, throughout the novel, Ralph proves