Celia Curry

LOTF Essay
Ms. Downer
October 20, 2015
Strict v.s. Lenient
Lao-tzu once said, As for the best leaders, the people do not notice their existence. The
next best, the people honor and praise. The next, the people fear; and the next, the people hate
(McKinney). The most well-liked people are not necessarily the best leaders. If everybody liked
their ruler, then they would be lead to believe that there is more leniency as to which rules and
laws they must follow. In The Lord of the Flies by William Golding, Ralph was the more
favorable leader in the beginning because he was understanding and very peaceful in the way he
went about his authoritative position, but eventually the boys stopped listening to him and left his
tribe. Jack on the other hand seemed to be the stronger leader and the boys began to gravitate
towards him. As the story progressed Jack gained more and more power and became more and
more ruthless in his ruling, but no one left his tribe. Through Ralph and Jacks characters in The
Lord of the Flies, Golding showed that strict and malicious leaders are more effective than kind
and considerate leaders.
An article entitled Strict or Lenient Educator Personalities, discusses that educatorswho are seen as leaders of the classroom- are more effective in getting things done when strict.
When a teacher is lenient, it creates a diverse understanding of what is expected of the class due
to the lack of consequences for disregarding the rules in place; therefore, the teacher may not be
able to reach his or her ultimate objective of teaching the class all of the concepts they must

learn. Golding displays this concept linking leniency to failure through Ralphs leadership in The
Lord of the Flies.
In the novel, Ralph is the more likeable person over Jack due to his kind nature, but in the
end, his lenient rule is not enough to lead the boys effectively. Even though Ralph is initially
perceived as a likeable person and an obvious leader, things begin to go wrong under his
jurisdiction leaving the boys to question his authority. Golding writes, So remember. The rocks
for a lavatory. Keep the fire going and smoke showing as a signal. Dont take fire from the
mountain. Take your food up there (81). This shows that nobody listened to the rules that Ralph
had originally put in place and the island is slowly deteriorating because of it. Ralph had to call
an assembly to remind them of all of the things they were supposed to be doing that they werent.
The boys started to disobey Ralph because they knew that his leniency would not allow him to
enforce any consequences for their misdemeanors. If Ralph had instilled a little bit of fear in the
boys and left them to wonder what he may do to them if they were to disobey his orders, then the
boys would have done everything they should have and things would not have fallen apart under
Ralphs leadership.
In an article similar to Strict or Lenient Educator Personalities, the effectiveness of
likeable executives or leaders is proven to be lower than that of a strict or perceivably rude
authority figure. As discussed in 3 Things Effective Leaders Know About Being Likeable, it is
more important for a leader to speak his or her mind in order to accomplish what must be done,
than to be favored by those they are in charge of. Even in times when one is seen as being unkind
in the way they talk or act, it must be remembered that it is more effective when needing to
complete a task. Also, stricter authority figures are often much more highly respected than those
who only care about how kind they are (Spahr). Being a kind leader should come secondary to

achieving the goal that was set to be achieved by the group. A better understanding of this idea
can be reached by analyzing Goldings representation of unsympathetic leaders through the
character of Jack.
The boys in the novel often view Jack as unkind and cruel. This makes Jack an
undesirable leader in many readers eyes; however, his unsympathetic ruling is what makes him
successful in the long run. In the novel the boys wonder how they will have a fire after they no
longer have access to Piggys glasses to use as a lighter. Jack puts these questions to rest by
saying, We shall take fire from the others. Listen. Tomorrow well hunt and get meat. Tonight
Ill go along with two hunters (Golding 161). Jack is suggesting that he will steal from the
other tribe, which in society is seen as a wrongful act regardless of the type of item that is being
taken. The fact that theft is his first solution to this problem demonstrates that he is not of a kind
nature nor is he sympathetic to how this may affect the other tribe. Also, none of the boys
question his plan because he instills a sense of fear in his followers earlier on by making
examples of other boys. Even though this is not typically viewed as the right thing to do morally,
it does help Jacks tribe succeed immensely. Fire is necessary for the boys to use as a heat source
and for cooking their food. Without the fire the tribe would not likely survive more than a few
days. Jack was able to think of a quick and easy way to supply his tribe with fire in order to
ensure their survival. His effectiveness as a leader is very apparent throughout the book because
he puts his morals and kindness aside to make sure that the most important thing to most of the
boys comes first: survival.
All in all, it is clear that an effective leader is not always caring or sympathetic to others.
In order to accomplish anything that they need to get done as an authority figure, they must put
their emotions aside. In The Lord of the Flies, Jack was the more effective leader over Ralph

because he put the boys survival first and didnt care who he hurt in the process. Ralph on the
other hand focused too much on being liked and was not nearly harsh enough with his tribe,
which ended up being his ultimate downfall as a leader. Golding creates an understanding that in
order to be effective, a leader must possess strict and unsympathetic characteristics in the way
they rule those below them. As Felicia Spahr once stated, The social etiquette youd use at a
cocktail party doesnt translate to the board room.

Works Cited
Golding, William. Lord of the Flies. New York: Coward-McCann, 1962. Print.
McKinney, Michael. "Quotes on LEADERSHIP." Leadership Quotes. Leadership Now, n.d.
Web. 27 Oct. 2015.
Spahr, Felicia. "3 Things Effective Leaders Know About Being Likable." Fast Company. N.p.,
13 Aug. 2015. Web. 27 Oct. 2015.

"Strict or Lenient Educator Personalities." TESOL Class. N.p., 02 July 2013. Web. 27 Oct. 2015.