Phi Theta Kappa’s Leadership Development Studies curriculum is grounded in the humanities, including excerpts from great works of literature. Why does this work for emerging or existing leaders to advance their development as leaders?
Literature is powerful in two ways. First, while the setting or perspective may be new or different, literature resonates with us when someone has put something of our own experience into words; we can identify and empathize with the characters. Second, literature expands our horizons when someone brings an experience to us that we cannot otherwise have. These are also successful ways to develop as leaders — reflecting on experiences we have had and learning from them, and thinking and preparing for experiences we have not had and/or learning from the experiences of others.
Accessing this power of literature for leadership development, or any kind of development for that matter (as a thinker, an analyst, a friend, a professional, etc.), requires two broad steps. Receiving, or understanding something of what the author wants to convey and how he/she conveys it is important for determining the theme of the work. Attention to many things about a work of literature can help an individual or group “get better reception” and reflect on the theme: characters, setting, point of view, language, imagery. Sending, or describing what you think of the theme, how it relates to your experience, to other things you have read, and then further describing any ways you can use these opinions, connections, and insights to help you in thought or action is the second big step for true development. This article suggests an excerpt from Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women to develop an understanding of a model for leading through conflicts within a group.
Louisa May Alcott was raised in a unique period of the United States’ history when intellectual growth and change were occurring at a rapid pace similar to the expanding knowledge universe today. She grew up in Concord, Massachusetts during the Transcendental Movement with the likes of Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau, Margaret Fuller and Nathaniel Hawthorne as her neighbors. Little Women is an autobiographical novel about Louisa May Alcott’s childhood experiences. Published in 1868-69, this “domestic” novel became extremely popular and developed into a series of books following the characters, the March daughters, through adulthood. Meg, Amy, Jo and Beth and their mother, Mrs. March, form the center of the text and address situations that confront universal dilemmas that still resonate.
Alcott’s family joined into the intellectual spirit of the time and even participated in social experiments such as group living. At the heart of the movement was a question, articulated by Ann Douglas, the author of the introduction to the 1983 edition of Little Women. The compelling issue of the time was: “Can democracy remain stable without threatening the creativity of the most talented members?” Douglas discusses the conflict of that age in which “the celebration” of self-reliance clashed with the need for a stable family and society. The question touches upon the management of conflict within individuals and groups both then and now; the debates on health care in 2009 ultimately boil down to a similar clash.
Douglas calls Little Women, “a fictive world in which conflict must be faced and transformed into newly energized cooperation…in a union that is neither capitalistic nor male dominated.” In Chapter 21, “Laurie Makes Mischief and Jo Makes Peace,” Alcott provides the reader with clear examples of techniques for leading through conflict within a group. It may seem like a quarrel among sisters, but close attention to the role of Mrs. March can be instructive for anyone seeking an example of effective leadership in a group conflict. Rather than operating from a position of authority and power and seeking to direct the action, Mrs. March allows each daughter to determine what to do through persuasion, guidance, and clear communication as she deftly negotiates the impasse within the group. Key among her considerations and goals in navigating the conflict is maintaining the cohesion of the group and she is successful in encouraging each daughter to be conciliatory.
The March daughters concede, and as Douglas suggests, “possess strong identities, yet must limit the expression of these identities for the self-preservation of the group.” The self-preservation of the group is important to each March daughter and to modern groups as diverse as gangs and student organizations because it is based on the love and approval of the other members — upon community in other words, and not .just the issue at hand or the project they are working on at that moment in time.
By understanding Little Women, aspiring leaders learn that the building of concern, trust, respect, loyalty and yes, in some cases, love for other members of the group is a precursor to the successful management of intragroup conflict later and creating the group strength necessary for positive impact and success. Mrs. March’s role as the mediator clearly provides a model for leadership in conflicts that is group-centered rather than issue-oriented or task-focused, which can be transformational for the people involved and produce amazing strength in a group.
Adapted from a Humanities Classic Leadership Case by Dr. Michael Engs (first appearing in The Leader Newsletter, Summer 1999 Issue, a resource for Phi Theta Kappa Certified Leadership Instructors)
[Monika Byrd, September 2009]
Questions or Comments about Phi Theta Kappa Leadership Briefs may be directed to Monika Byrd, Dean of Leadership Development for the Honors Program Department.
