Watership Down Compare And Contrast Essay

Giving rabbits human qualities is a curious idea for a book. Nonetheless, Richard Adams took this idea and wrote Watership Down, a novel that follows a group of rabbits as they flee their warren. The band of misfits is led by a rabbit named Hazel who, at the encouragement of his brother, takes his people out of their old warren and leaving the promise of upcoming danger behind. They travel across farmland until they reach the downs and build their own warren, safe from the looming danger of men. However, the need to keep the warren going strives the rabbits to reach out and search for other warrens for assistance. They meet the Efrafa warren, lead General Woundwort, and immediately the two parties are at odds and find they are more opposite than black and white. One of the most noticeable differences is between the leaders of the two warrens: Hazel and General Woundwort. Hazel and General Woundwort differ as leaders through how they reach power, their styles of leadership, and how they view themselves as leaders.

The first difference between General Woundwort and Hazel is how they come to be the leaders of their respective …show more content…
He sees himself as their equal, not their superior. In stark contrast, General Woundwort takes a wild and more feral approach - killing leaders and foes so he can rise to power. He is ruthless and oppressive to his people, constantly encouraging them to live in fear and submit to him as their superior. General Woundwort rules with violence and tyranny, making himself king of all the others. Almost like oil and water, or black and white, Hazel and General Woundwort seem to be opposites on all