The Flying Machine 'And Where Have You Gone Charming Billy'

The characteristics of a capable leader vary drastically from person to person. For example if Franklin D. Roosevelt and Genghis Khan were compared to one another there’d be some pretty stark differences in the way the led, FDR led the American people through the great depression with a hard working and open minded agenda, whereas Genghis transformed Mongolia into one of the largest empires in history through organising a massive horde of horsemen which he wielded against the defenseless villagers of Eurasia, both arguably great leaders just went at it differently. This is true of all leaders, including those featured in “The Flying Machine” “Leiningen versus the ants” and “Where have you gone charming Billy”. Of the three characters featured in leadership roles or roles of power in these stories, The Emperor from “The Flying Machine” exhibits the
The Emperor clearly poses a very calculating and analytical mind this is shown in the way in which he deals with the fact one of his citizens has invented a flying machine. The Emperor reacts to the feat of technological advancement with a simple equation, he weighs the risk versus the reward. There are clearly many positives or rewards that come with the flying machine, but The Emperor fears the risks that it also brings with its existence, this is expressed when The Emperor says “Who is to say that someday just such a man, in just such an apparatus of paper and reed, might not fly in the sky and drop huge stones upon the Great Wall of China?” The Emperor appreciates and understands the benefits of a flying machine but deems the risk greater than the reward thus he in the interest of his people eliminates what he perceives to be a threat. The Emperor clearly demonstrates great interest in the well being of his people and in order to maintain their well being he stomps out the ashes of what he considers a potential