Long Term Goals In Lord Of The Flies Essay

William Golding's novel Lord of the Flies and Henrik Ibsen's play An Enemy of the People both contain societies with divergent sides. The sides are people who desire to have immediate gratification with short-term goals, and people who want what's best for the society with long-term goals. The single most important factor in the downfall of human societies is the conflict between short-term and long-term goals. In Lord of the Flies and An Enemy of the People, both societies have a potential to be a paradise, but in order to have a strong outcome they need to focus on long-term goals and what is optimal to the people. Both societies have a majority and a minority with two chiefs or leaders that have different views on one main problem. Most people will side with the short-term or majority because it involves immediate gratification, but that doesn't necessarily mean it's the most effective. Complications come about in societies, and in Lord of the Flies Ralph wants to solve the problem. A plane full of boys crashes on an
In Lord of the Flies, Jack insists on doing tasks that involve immediate gratification, but Ralph always focuses on the long-term priorities. “They’d work for five minutes, then wander off or go hunting… We want shelters. Besides, the rest of your hunters came back hours ago. They’ve been swimming” (Golding 51). When the boys on the island follow what Jack tells them to do, nothing gets done. Ralph wants Jack to tell the boys to do work that will benefit them in the long run, but Jack tells him that they need to go hunting. Jack tries to make hunting a goal for everyone, but it only benefits him. Ralph and Simon are the only boys building huts for shelter or in case of a storm. Ralph wants what’s best for the boys on the island, but under Jack’s appealing leadership, the boys continue to follow