The Respective leader ship qualities of Ralph, Piggy, Jack and Simon.

Authors Avatar
'The Lord of the Flies'

The Respective leader ship qualities of Ralph, Piggy, Jack and Simon.

On the island, all four candidates possess different leadership qualities. Although the group elected Ralph as leader, he may not be the ideal boy for the job. The fact that Ralph was holding the conch was one of the main reasons why the group chose him. They had no idea what he would be like as a leader.

At first Ralph seems just like any other eleven or twelve year old, just out to have fun. He is excited by the fact that there are no grown-ups on the island, and is not bothered by it at all. Another example of his childish side is where he repeatedly cries 'Piggy', if only to annoy Piggy. Until Piggy correctly informed him, Ralph was oblivious to the fact that the plane they were in had crashed. This is perhaps a sign that Ralph is not as clever or as alert as other people on the island are. Soon after he is told about the plane crash, Ralph is happily and joyfully interpreting the noise of a fighter plane as it glides through the sky, shooting down its opposition.

At first, Ralph is not bothered about how they will be rescued, and claims that his dad (commander in the army) will undoubtedly come and rescue them. However, Piggy soon proves Ralph wrong, and suddenly Ralph feels very uneasy and vulnerable about the situation their in. It's at this point that we see a small element of leadership in Ralph, when he orders Piggy to get his clothes for him. Like piggy, Ralph came up with some good ideas that may help them towards being rescued. He was the one who suggested they build a fire on the mountaintop. The intention was that passing boats, or even aircraft, might see the smoke rising from the island.

When Ralph and Piggy found the conch in the sand, Ralph just wanted to play with it happily. He didn't realise that it could be used to round up all the people on the island. When piggy and himself gather everyone on the island together, the topic of being rescued becomes even more important. Ralph became much more concerned and less fun loving. In terms of appearance, Ralph is physically quite strong and energetic, which is a worthwhile quality for leadership. Straight away, it gained him a fair amount of respect and authority within the group, which in turn gave him more control over the group.

Piggy, straight away appears a sensible and somewhat mature child. He doesn't possess the element of carelessness that exists in Ralph. Quote: 'searching out safe lodgements for his feet', 'My auntie told me not to run on account of my asthma'. When most people would have run ridiculously through the creepers, Piggy takes his time and thinks about his actions. Piggy is very persisting which is a good leadership skill. He asks the same question to Ralph twice. Quote: 'How does he know we're here?' Then Piggy persists in hammering it in to Ralph, that they won't be rescued very soon. Piggy was also clever enough to realise that their had been a plane crash, and that the remains had been washed out to sea. This shows how alert Piggy is, which is another important leadership quality. In fact during the novel, Piggy is nearly always alert and responsive.
Join now!


It soon becomes clear that Piggy is very friendly and sociable, and he is quick to ask Ralph his name. He congratulates Ralph on his unique ability to swim. Quote: 'You can't half swim well'. This quality is in some ways a good leadership quality, because the group will feel warmed towards him. However, if Piggy was the leader, the group might end up treating him more like a friend than a leader, and might start disobeying his orders. Because Piggy is so kind and caring, he might be a bit reluctant to stand up to people and ...

This is a preview of the whole essay