Lord of the Flies Project
Matt Frey
Types of Governments
Republic-A republic government is a government where the power is in the hands of the people, through elected representatives. These elected representatives vote on the behalf of their constituents. Examples of republican governments are Ancient Rome, the United States, and the Dominican Republic.
Monarchy- A monarchy is a form of government that is headed by a monarch. The monarch often has complete control of all facets of the government and acts as a totalitarian dictator. Totalitarian dictatorships often go hand-in-hand with monarchies, as it is a type of government that is headed by one person and uses fear and terror to control its population. Examples of this type of government would be Great Britain (monarchy), Nazi Germany (totalitarian dictatorship) and Soviet Russia (totalitarian dictatorship). This is the type of government that Jack's tribe uses. This is evident when Jack says, "we don't need the conch! We know who ought to say things" on page 101, ch.6.
What type of government would I choose for my island?
Democracy
Dominican Flag
Kim Jong Un
Constitution
2) Possession of any kind of weapon has to be approved by head of island.
3) Future Leaders of the Island will be elected via campaign and election.
4) Leader of the island will select 3 people to serve on punishment and arbitration board.
5) Arbitration and punishment board will decide on punishments for rogue island members.
6) All island members will be provided with right to free speech, religion, association.
7) Racial discrimination will not be tolerated on the island.
8) Gender discrimination will not be tolerated on the island.
9) There will be no killing of other humans on the island.
10) All hunting done on the island must be done for food and not for game.
11) Vice Leader of the Island will be voted on via direct democracy.
12) Vice Leader of the Island will assume leadership roles in the absence of the Leader.
Historical Infighting
How did the Civil War affect the population?
The population was very divided over this issue. After all, the war did pit "brothers against brothers." Even today, the Civil War can be a touchy subject for Southerners.
How did the Civil War affect the land?
Land was often torn up and ruined by battle. Today, Gettysburg, PA stands as an area that was torn up by battle.
How did the Civil War affect the government?
The American was divided into two parts, one for the remaining Union and one for the seceding south. The head of the Union's government remained as Abraham Lincoln, whereas the head of the south's Confederacy became Jefferson Davis.
LOTF Quote: "He discovered with a little fall of heart that these were conditions that he took as normal now and that he did not mind." - Narrator discussing Ralph, pg 126 ch 6. This quote parallels the Civil War because this quote describes how Ralph is becoming more used to his loss of identity, and the thousands of young men who fought in the Civil War also came to accept their loss of identity, as they were at war with childhood friends, brothers, etc and did not seem to be bothered.
Current Politcal Conflict
Stance taken
The stance taken by the Police of Baltimore is that the police force is NOT overly aggressive and is NOT specifically targeting young, African American males. The protestors believe that the Baltimore Police have been particularly aggressive with young, black males and that they have been made targets by the police.
Their reasoning
The police's reasoning is that that their job is to preserve justice, and that they have no other agenda other than this. The public, however, believes that the police have been targeting black youths in high crime areas and have been needlessly aggressive with them. The acts in Baltimore have also likely been influenced by similar riots and protests in places like Ferguson, MO.
Approach to solve the conflict
The Police chief of Baltimore has promised the people that a third-party investigator will look into the death of Freddie Gray and decide if there is any wrong-doing taking place. The police want to please the people as the label of a racist police department obviously looks awful. The public's approach to solving this conflict has been a mixture of destructive rioting and peaceful civil disobedience. It is being reported that there are even two factions of protestors, with a younger crowd being the destructive ones and an older crowd being a civilly disobedient one.
Strengths and Weaknesses of the police
Strengths of the police in this conflict include the fact that they most likely have the law on their side. Convicting an officer of wrongdoing seems to be becoming more and more difficult these days. Another strength of the police is that they have trained professionals to deal with the rioters and protestors. Weaknesses of the police include the fact that they are becoming increasingly viewed negatively by the public.
Strength and Weaknesses of the public
Strengths of the public include a large number of protestors and plentiful media attention. Both of these strengths have been causing the group to grow. Weaknesses of the group include the fact that the group is losing credibility due to its violent nature.
Who will win
I believe that a compromise will be reached between the police and the people. The people want to see more measures taken to ensure that justice is being properly served, such as body cameras on police officers. The American people are becoming increasingly more outraged about this issue as time passes, so I believe that a compromise with the police will be reached.
Works Cited
Coates, Ta-Nehisi. "Nonviolence as Compliance." The Atlantic. Atlantic Media Company, 27 Apr. 2015. Web. 30 Apr. 2015.
""Democracy" Definition." Dictionary.com. Dictionary.com, n.d. Web. 29 Apr. 2015.
Golding, William. Lord of the Flies. New York: Coward-McCann, 1962. Print.
McPherson, James. "Overview of the American Civil War." Council on Foreign Relations. Council on Foreign Relations, n.d. Web. 30 Apr. 2015