Today in class we took some time to discuss group characteristics, how one behaves in and outside of a group, and what qualities form a group. We also discussed the leadership qualities needed to "control" a group. The word charisma was brought up among other ideas of openness and understanding. Reflect upon today's discussion and respond to the following:
How does a group leader manipulate or control others? Make a connection to Ralph in The Lord of the Flies by William Golding. How does Ralph manipulated others, how is he manipulated? How does Ralph interact with others to keep control of the group? Who else is fighting for control? Why? Use specific examples from Chapters one, two and three to support your ideas.
Some qualities of a leader are humor, good looks, athletic. Qualities that other people desire to have. Leaders also tend to have a meaner side then most people but get away with it because either they are attractive funny or something else which helps them gain power within their group. For example if someone who was funny was being mean would say that they were only being mean because they were kidding so the people would forgive them thus making them have more power then most. In the book the lord of the flies the protagonist, Ralph gains control in his group because he is athletic and he is willing to kill the pig in chapter 1 unlike Jack who is too afraid to kill the pig. In chapter 2 Ralph comes up with a form of social control using the conch shell, you can only talk when you have the conch. Finally in chapter 3 Ralph talks to everyone about how they need to get stuff done on the island. Jack keeps fighting for control but getting denied because he isn't looking out for the interest of the group he is only interested in having the power for himself.
ReplyDeleteToday in class we talked about friend groups and how all of them are different. In some of them you had to be a certain way to even be in the group, but every group is different. Group leaders something think they have complete power over everyone and can do whatever they want. In other cases, someone might now even know they are a leader, which is where we started to talk about charisma. In the Lord of the Flies, Ralph manipulated Piggy. When they first ran into each other, Ralph was kind of rude and did not care about anything Piggy was talking about. When Piggy asked Ralph not to call him Piggy because he does not like it, Ralph made fun of him and continues to call him Piggy throughout the story. Also Ralph feels like he has the power over the island and Jack does not really like it but there is not much he can do. Jack wants power but can not recieve it. I think throughout the novel Jack and Ralph will have a conflict over power
ReplyDeleteThe leader of a group controls others by taking initiative and making decisions that may not have otherwise been made. Depending on the person and situation, they may treat others very well in order to gain their respect and trust, while others may treat others poorly in order to gain control by fear. In The Lord of the Flies, Ralph showed his power when he introduced Piggy as Piggy after being specifically told not to. This showed that he will not listen to others and thus made a reserved Piggy fear and respect him. Jack is trying to take control of the boys on the island by challenging Ralph. Some boys may see this as strength and bravery on Jack's part. Because of this, he may gain the support of others. In chapter 3 for example, Jack refuses to help Ralph building the shelters not because he does not want a roof over his head, but because he feels it is necessary to go against "authority". Similar examples will most likely arise later in the novel because of Jacks power hungry personality and Ralph's persistence.
ReplyDeleteA leader often manipulates others indirectly, rather than being straight out bossy. They usually are very charismatic, which makes it easy for others to naturally follow and listen without feeling like they are being bossed around. If a "leader" were to be blatantly demanding, most people wouldn't want to listen. But it is those who are gifted with the ability to attract people and make them form an admiration of the leader who become true leaders. We can easily see in Lord of the Flies how Ralph manipulates others in ways such as making Piggy's official name "Piggy" and calling the shots. However a reason he is able to call the shots of the group is actually because Ralph himself is manipulated by the pressures to take care of the younger boys and help the situation. His leadership momentum is further stimulated by Jack's competitiveness because now that Ralph has someone to compete with, it makes him want to lead even more.
ReplyDeleteA group leader may manipulate others by using peer pressure. This is similar to Ralph because in the island he is kind of pressured by the other older boys to make the choices they want.
ReplyDeleteRalph manipulate other mainly the younger kids because he is considered the leader of them in my point of view. He is manipulated by the other boys because their use of peer pressure makes Ralph indecisive of what he is going to do.
Ralph talks to every body on the island and try to keep every body “happy” and under control but when it comes to decision making he mainly listens to the older boys ostracizing the younger kids.In this island Ralph is the leader but during the vote jack wanted leadership in this island. Jack wanted leadership in the island because he was the chorus leader and the most “qualified” for the job.
A group leader does not have to manipulate his followers through any means. They may just follow him because he ties together their common interests. However this is a different story in the novel we are reading. In the novel, Ralph uses his age, charisma and a helpful conch shell to assume control over the island and its inhabitants. Ralph is manipulated by the situation, the responsibility of the lives and well being of all the children and by Jack. Jack so far seems like the antagonist and he seems to not care about the group, only himself.
ReplyDeleteI agree to the classmate’s opinion that the charisma manipulates people and a personality that attracts people. In this noble Ralph is the leader because he speaks up his idea and seems reliable. Also there is a different type of manipulation which cannot be found in modern life. The conch shell which Ralph has represents leadership similar to king's crown, cane, necklace and a scar. This has the visual point of a leader. Jack is the one who wants to take part of what Ralph has because he wants the power to move the group.
ReplyDeleteLeader of a group can easily manipulate other people by their charisma and personality. Some group tend to do things that are inappropriate while some other groups tend to do better work, if your leader is a trouble maker then you do things that are inappropriate but if not you do better work. In the novel Lord of the Flies, Ralph is the leader of their group because they are stranded in an island he tries to make their own rules in the island in order to survive. Ralph personality as a leader is persuasive, he persuade the other kids to follow the rules.
ReplyDeleteTh group leader often manipulates or controls others with fear or love. The other group members will obey him because they are scared of him or they love him, in chapter 3 we see Ralph start to really emerge as a leader when he establishes a set of rules for the boys to follow. The reason that he is able to manipulate some of the others is because they are affraid of being removed from the group and because he speaks with confidence and has good charisma.Jack is also fighting for control we know this because he often goes back and forth with ralph about important matters as seen in chapters 2 and 3
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