GOVERNMENT IN LORD OF THE FLIES

No man is good enough to govern another man without that other's consent. Abraham Lincoln

INTRODUCTION Government: an organization that

governs the citizens of that nation We found flaws in both Fascism and

Democracy So we turned to an alternative:

Consociationalism

FASCISM According to the Oxford Dictionary, the

definition of fascism is "a system of extreme right-wing dictatorial government

Power Hungry! Not Hitler

TOTALITARIANISM According to the Oxford Dictionary, it's "a

form of government in which no rival parties or loyalties are permitted, usually demanding total submission of the individual to the requirements of the state.“

E.g. Hitler

FASCISM IN LOTF

When Jack takes over in the latter stages of the novel, he certainly represents a fascism: He rules with an iron fist and everything is under his command. He takes orders from no one. His government starts the transition into totalitarianism by either convincing the boys to join his side or by killing them

FASCISM IN LOTF CONT’D Fascism are useful for changing things around in a

hurry. Jack certainly changed the island quickly. We could tell, from the start, that Jack was a force to be reckoned with: "[Piggy] was intimidated by this uniformed superiority and the offhand authority in Merridew's voice" (Golding, 22). This foreshadowed what was to come. When he left Ralph's group, it was to attempt to win back the boys' respect by offering them fun activities, such as hunting. The thought of fun vs. escape swayed the boys (were they really going to escape anyway?) into joining on with Jack

DEMOCRACY "Democracy is two wolves and a lamb

voting on what to have for lunch.“ Benjamin Franklin

Democracy: Political organization which is made by the people and for the people

Democracy: Pure or representative

DEMOCRACY IN LOTF Ralph was the primary symbol of

democracy Golding displayed a sense of pure

democracy Numerous assemblies were sense of

pure democracy Many flaws and benefits of democracy

in this situation

FLAWS OF DEMOCRACY Lack of cohesion among the group “They looked at each other, in love and hate”

(Golding, 56) *Unable to reach out to everyone“But we want meat!” (Golding, 54)

FLAWS OF DEMOCRACY CONT.D Lack of enforcement to the rules“That’s really dirty. If you’re taken short you

got to right along the beach to the rock. See?” (86)

Where as Jack’s rules: “Jack spoke again, impatiently, ‘Has everyone

eaten as much as they wanted?’” (165)“Jack spoke again, impatiently, ‘Has everyone eaten as much as they wanted?’” (165)

BENEFITS OF DEMOCRACY Freedom of speech: “I’ll give the conch to the next person to

speak” (31)“I was asleep when the twisty things were frightening

and when they went away I was awake, and I saw something big and horrid moving in the trees” (91)

Safety with different view points: “We want meat!’ ‘Well, we haven't got any yet.

And we want shelters’” (51)

DEMOCRACY CONCLUSION Flaws: Lack of cohesion amongst group Not pertaining to whole group No reinforcement on rulesBenefits: Freedom of speech Safety with different viewpoints Overall, Democracy is unsuccessful in this

situation.

CONSOCIATIONALISM Definition: Power SharingTo elaborate: A systematic government that has

representatives based on groups of many similarities.

-Seen in NigeriaSwitzerland, and Netherlands

FAVOUR TO CONSOCIATIONALISM Diverse perspectives and priorities. -In LOTF: Ralph and Jack have dissimilar

priorities “I [Ralph] was talking about smoke. Don’t you

want to be rescued? All you [Jack] can talk about is pig, pig, pig!” (Golding, 55).

Violence amongst the groupIn LOTF: Jack is usually violent:“I thought I might kill him” (51)

FAVOURS TO CONSOCIATIONALISM CONTD

Small and underdeveloped and isolated group:

In LOTF: The boys are isolated and are few.

“We’re on an inhabited island with no other people on it” (31)

CONCLUSION As Lord of the Flies is an allegorical novel, consider this

metaphor:Ralph is a government.

Piggy is what the people need. Jack is what the people want. Ralph must maintain a constant balance of appealing both. If Ralph chooses what people want, nothing will ever get done,

and they'll be stuck on the island forever. If Ralph chooses what people need (which he does in the

novel), the people start to protest, rebel, and eventually, leave.

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