The Character Of Ralph In Lord Of The Flies

Ralph can easily be described as the protagonist of the novel. As the leader in the beginning of the story, Ralph constantly reminds the boys of their primary goal, which is to be rescued. When Ralph becomes frustrated with the attitudes of the other boys, he reprimands, “I was chief, and you were going to do what I said. You talk. But you can 't even build huts--then you go off hunting and let out the fire--” (Golding 54). Because of his strong voice of reason and his representation of civilization and organization in a savage environment, Ralph exhibits the character traits of orderliness, responsibility, resourcefulness, and leadership. On the other hand, Jack can be described as the antagonist of the novel. To put it simply, Jack displays …show more content…
Jack and the other savages kill a pig and leave its head on a stake as a type of offering for the supposed beast. As the novel progresses, Simon comes across the head. Simon hallucinates that the head is speaking to him and refers to it as the “Lord of the Flies.” As mentioned above, the head reveals some key information to Simon, such as how the beast is not a tangible threat, but is inside of them. Because of the evil nature that the pigs head shows toward Simon, it can come to symbolize the evil nature that the boys progressively show throughout the story as well. Just as the flies gradually swarm to the pig’s head, the boys gradually revert to their evil and savage ways when they are on the island. At one point, Ralph takes action against the evil “Lord of the Flies.” “Fiercely he hit out at the filthy thing in front of him that bobbed like a toy and came back, still grinning into his face, so that he lashed and cried out in loathing. Then he was licking his bruised knuckles and looking at the bare stick, while the skull lay in two pieces, its grin now six feet across” (Golding 144). This incident symbolizes Ralph’s attempts to try to battle against the evil and savage attitudes that the “Lord of the Flies” represents. Therefore, the title Lord of the Flies is significant because it shows the manner in which the majority of the boys cling to their savage instincts like flies, …show more content…
However, since the island isolates the boys so much, it is more of a hindrance than a benefit. Because the boys are able to make decisions for themselves without fear of punishment from authority, their wild sides are revealed. Only a few characters seem to consider the consequences of their actions, as adults normally would have done for them. As Piggy tries to think things through, he states, “Grownups know things. They ain 't afraid of the dark. They 'd meet and have tea and discuss. Then things 'ud be all right-” (Golding 72). However, since the setting seems so far away from the world full of adults and responsibilities, most of the boys do not care. The sheer isolation that the island provides really causes the boys to spiral more and more out of control. The setting also appears to change based on the events in the novel. During the day, there are usually not many disagreements among the boys. Therefore, it is always bright and the ocean is often described as calm and serene. However, at night, the darkness and uncertainty of the setting makes the boys much more on edge. On one particular night, the boys are especially protective. As a result, they kill Simon because they associate him with the beast. After Simon is killed, the setting changes even more drastically. “Then the clouds opened and let