Flaws of authoritarianism in Lord of the Flies?

Answer 1

The major flaw of authoritarianism is that it sows seeds of dissent. In a system were all power is concentrated in the hands of just one person eventually someone else will challenge that person in an attempt to gain dominance for themselves. In Lord of the Flies Jack apparently holds total and unchallenged power over his tribe but Roger manages to instill fear in boys who are older than himself (Roger is mentioned in the book as being in the disputed area between biguns and littluns so he is probably only aged 8, 9 or 10). It would be logical to assume that at some point, if the boys had not been rescued, that Jack would have been forced to kill Roger, for his own protection, or Roger would have disposed of Jack. Authoritarianism also hampers progress and creativity. When all power is vested in one person the ideas and contributions of others are overlooked or ignored. The decisions of the leader are followed blindly, whether they are good decisions or bad decisions.