He's even more of a metaphor for the problems of lack of government, or the issues whch arise when forming a new one. In a post-apocalyptic world where all governance structures have collapsed, he is the atavistic, aggressive person ok with using violence and cruelty to get his ways. The people who've become so accustomed to peace of civilization they start to blindly follow him out of fear, instinctively thinking he can better protect them than they can protect themselves.