Jack And Ralph In Lord Of The Flies

All people would be doomed to complete destruction and destined to succumb to desperation if civilization were to crumble catastrophically. In Lord of the Flies by William Golding, a crowd of young boys experiences a mysterious plane crash that lands them on an almost completely deserted island to fend for themselves. From the start, the first introduced main character, Ralph, is seen as a strong, smart leader for the boys and brings them together. Two of the most rational main boys on the island, Simon and Piggy, are very close to Ralph and for this reason; both play a large part in his downfall. Within Lord of the Flies by William Golding, Ralph goes from a civilized leader to savage through Simon 's murder, Piggy 's death, and the constant rekindling and extinguishing of the fire. The murder of Simon is the most apparent evidence of Ralph becoming a savage. During the bonfire night, a stumbling Simon is attacked by the group accidently; the boys all thinking it was the beast (Golding 139-140). Ralph is a part of Simon’s …show more content…
The murder of Simon is caused by the overwhelming paranoia in Ralph and all the other boys about the beast. Without Piggy by his side, Ralph loses hope along with the last of his support, which could help him to make the best decision for everyone. When Ralph’s fire is abandoned in sight and mind by the other boys for Jack’s ideas, Ralph fears his own abandonment and impending death without any way to be rescued. In this work of William Goulding, Ralph’s transition from civilized leader to savage is accredited to Simon’s murder, Piggy’s death, and the constant rekindling and extinguishing of the fire. Ralph’s struggle in leadership and hope gives a peek at how quickly a civilization would crumble under a leader such as himself who does, in fact, mirror many real life leaders and authority