Leadership in The Wave

In the novel, Mr. Ross is shocked by how quickly and passionately the students embrace him as their leader––Robert even volunteers to act as his bodyguard. Strasser is ultimately very fatalistic about people's need for a leader. "Was it really true that the natural inclination of people was to look for a leader?" Mr. Ross thinks to himself. "If people were destined to be led ... this was something he must make sure they learned: to question thoroughly, never to put your faith in anyone's hands blindly." (133) Strasser accepts that people will always be passive and accept a leader easily. He insists that the best way to deal with this is not to try to change human nature, but rather to work around it by having people think critically about their leaders before accepting them.