Kit Kit @ Yuen Rati Htet

English 10 - Block G
Mr. Martin Vickers
October 5th, 2016

The Chiefs
Compare Ralph and Jack with close reference to the text and discuss how each
changes within their relationship with the others.
In William Goldings Lord of the Flies, Jack and Ralph battle for a spot as
leader, however, their ways of leading the group of children differ drastically.
Whereas Ralph becomes leader by election, Jack becomes leader by force.
Although both are English schoolboys, who follow rules and be civilized, they are
left to themselves on a paradisiacal island, far from modern civilization, the welleducated children regress to a primitive state.
Ralph is a name that was known to represent a counsel leader; a leader
with wisdom, in the past. Ralph represents leadership, a socialized and civilized
young man. Ralph is charismatic, and intelligent, and demonstrates obvious
common sense. However, the character, Ralph, in the Lord of the Flies shows
lack of demonstrable leadership skills. Jack, however, has experience as the
established leader of a choir.
The boy who controlled them was dressed in the same way though his
cap badge was golden. When his party was about ten yards from the platform
he shouted an order and they halted, gasping, sweating, swaying in the fierce
light. (Chapter 1: The Sound of the Shell)
Despite the lack of leadership skills, Ralph improves his skills as a leader
throughout the novel, and he earns the trust of the group of young boys. Since
Ralph blew the conch, the little boys sees him as leader. Because Ralph
becomes an effective leader, Jack hates him for it. Jacks choir on the other
hand, follows their leader, but prefer Ralph as a leader since the way Ralph
treats the other children is less savagely. As the boys face obstacles on the
island, Ralphs consistent desire to do the right things get stronger even when it
is unbearably hard and he fights for his life, which on the other hand, is in
constant conflict with Jacks overwhelming selfish desires. When Jack paints his
face and become worse in being uncivilized, Ralph has no other way, but to fight
for his life.
He capered toward bill, and the mask was a thing on its own, behind
which Jack hid, liberated from shame and self consciousness (Chapter 4:

Painted Faces and Long Hair)

Whereas Ralph weeps for what has been lost at the end, Jack does not appear to
know there has been a loss at all.
Jack is a male given name, and it can also sometimes be a nickname for
Jacob. Jack represents evil and violence, the dark side of human nature. As a
former choirmaster and head boy at his school, he arrives on the island
having experienced success in controlling boys of his age or younger by
dominating the choir with his militaristic attitude. Jacks eagerness to punish
those who disobey his rules reflects on the emotion of the children towards him.
Since he is rude and very dominating towards people, the children vote for
Ralph, someone who is more civilized.
He held the conch against his chest with one hand and stabbed the air
with his index finger. (Chapter 8: Gift for the Darkness)
Who thinks Ralph oughtnt to be chief?
The silence continued, breathless and heavy and full of shame. Slowly the
red drained from Jacks cheeks, then came back with a painful rush.
Ralph still continues to be leader even though Jack tries to degrade Ralphs
position as leader. Ralph consistently tries to maintain order and civilization
behavior, while Jack is consumed by hunting and meat. Jack puts paint on his
face to help him hide in the bushes as he hunts for pigs. Its a way to
camouflage himself, however, jack puts paint on his face to hide his true
identity as a civilized human. The painting of his face is like putting a mask to
hide the part of himself that used to function in society. The effect of it is that
Jack is able to let more of his uncivilized and savage side out and he becomes
more wild and vicious. While Ralph selflessly works on shelters for all, Jack hunts
on his own because he is obsessed with killing a pig. Jacks personality changed
ferociously during his stay on the island. Because there is no authority over his
actions, he transforms into a devil from a saint. His vicious personality has been
brought out of him because at the church, he acts very innocent, however, on
the island, Jack wants to kill everything he sees.
When things begin to fall apart, Ralph grows wiser but Jack grows stronger.
Ralph wants to talk and be reasonable, but Jack only wants to use violence and
force to maintain his power as chief over a tribe of "savages." Jacks dictatorship
does what so many others did, killed off the educated, the thoughtful, the
priests and the intellectuals to destroy the courage and faith of the ordinary
people. For example, Jack and his tribe killed Simon and religiously, Simons
death is like how many of prophets of peace and truce died because they

believed in goodness. In addition, because of Jacks obsession with hunting, it

caused the only opportunity of being rescued. Jack wanted all the hunters to go
with him to catch the pig because they needed enough people to make a circle
around it. Jack prioritizes his bloodlust over the one thing that could have saved
everyone from the island, and he has a thing for violence which keeps him sane
whereas others have humane reasons which keeps them sane.
Neither Ralph nor Jack cares for Piggy in the beginning, though Ralph is
certainly more tolerant of him than Jack. Jack's hatred of Piggy only increases as
the novel progresses and ends in Piggy's murder. Ralph, on the other hand,
comes to appreciate Piggy's wisdom and at the end of the novel, and he is the
only one left standing with Piggy. When the naval officer arrives to rescue them,
Ralph weeps for the fall through the air of the true, wise friend called Piggy.
When the naval commander arrives, the reader gets a clear reminder about who
Ralph and Jack really are: two scruffy-looking little boys. The officer sees Jack
this way:
A little boy who wore the remains of an extraordinary black cap on his red
hair and who carried the remains of a pair of spectacles at his waist, started
forward, then changed his mind and stood still. (Chapter 12)
This is not a savage chief of a tribe of savages but a hesitant young boy. The
officer sees Ralph in the middle of the other boys:
And in the middle of them, with filthy body, matted hair, and unwiped
nose, Ralph wept for the end of innocence, the darkness of mans heart, and the
fall through the air of the true, wise friend called Piggy. (Chapter 12)
Ralph and Piggy were not always the best of friends, but Ralph still cares for
Piggy in the end. Jack on the other hand always bullies Piggy and treats him like
an outcast. In this novel, it shows how the paradisiacal island changes the lives
of every child, and although Simon thought of the island as hell with Ralph and
Jack, the other boys thought that the island was an adult-free location, a
paradise and a place where they could show their true colors-how civilized or
uncivilized they were, and how their actions affected others. Ralph and jack
fought on about the position for leader, however only one maintains the spot
throughout the novel.