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Power and leadership in the lord of the flies
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Ralph lord of the flies character analysis
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In the story Lord of the Flies, written by William Golding is a boy named Ralph. Ralph is 12 years old and is stranded on an island. Ralph and other boys from a British Prep school were being evacuated by plane because there was a war going on around them. Upon mid flight, their plane was shot down and the boys had ended up on this uninhabited island. Ralph is determined to get off of the island with his friends.
Ever so often we are faced with the horrendous acts humankind is capable of. The Lord of the Flies written by William Golding is a fictional book about a group of british school boys who get stranded on an island which showcases the savagery we are all capable of. They lose their civility and become savages, and as a result some die such as Simon, Piggy and the boy with the birthmark. Until they are saved at last by a naval officer. All in all Ralph’s poor leadership and Jack’s unrestrained brutality were the ultimate reason for the islands demise.
Have you ever noticed the tension between Tom and Jerry that was unspoken on but acted on ? Lord of the Flies , written by William Golding was written during The Cold War when revival bobbing started children where moved to rural areas to protect future generations of citizens . Ralph was a character from Lord of the Flies , he was approximately 12 years old and was the chief of the group . Britain tried to avoid a war with Germany ; Hitler broke the treaty agreement and war was set in motion around 3.5 million people were relocated . Ralph believes in order , uses his aggression to manipulate piggy , and controls things around him with common sense without the input of anyone else .
“The Word, that understandable and lawful Word, was slipping away.” (Golding 82). Ralph, the original leader of the boys in the Lord of The Flies, is initially a great leader and person. Ralph soon becomes pulled by his desires, a recurring theme of human nature seen frequently. Ralph experiences a man vs. societal conflict due to Jack’s influence but is resolved through the arrival of the long-awaited Naval officer.
When the presence of the beast was confirmed, the older boys had different opinions about how the problem should be handled. All of them approached this problem in different ways. Some ideas were brave, while others were realistic or idiotic. In this chapter, the ideas proposed by the boys express their personalities and show how the boys have changed. The first boy to announce their idea was Simon, and he suggested that they all go up to the mountain and face the beast once in for all, since he thinks that there is not anything else to do anyway.
All of the boys in Lord of the Flies had life changing experiences. Throughout the course of this book they became dynamic characters. Ralph as the first chosen leader of a group of young boys had a lot to take on. He couldn’t have done any of it without his friend and voice of reason, which was in fact Piggy. In Lord of the Flies by William Golding, Ralph’s experiences represent civilization vs. savagery as he fights for leadership, loses a close friend, and then fights for his life.
Ralph’s vision is more logical unlike Jack’s vision. For example, when Ralph was yelling at Jack he states “I was talking about smoke! Don’t you want to be rescue? All you can talk about is pig, pig, pig!”(55).Evidently this is an example of Ralph’s vision to get off the island. Ralph tells Jack that he doesn’t have the conch.
William Golding’s Ralph: Most Power to Least Power One of the greatest struggles past, present, and future as well as in literary works is power. In the book Lord of the Flies, by William Golding, approximately every character is in difficult relation with the power held in their group.
In the novel, Lord of the flies written by William Golding, a group of boys get stranded on an island. The group of boys has to overcome obstacles that the island brings them. The boys elected their chief, Ralph during the first assembly that Ralph called. Then the boys split apart making Jack's tribe which focuses mainly on hunting, while Ralph's tribe's priorities are making shelter. The boys become civilized to savage when they create rules for each other when the hunters brutally slaughter a pig, and when they kill Simon.
Throughout Lord of The Flies, written by William Golding, a group of young boys who crash land on the island start off as innocent and peaceful people, some even Catholics. But as everyone's inner demons arose, all hope for civilization was lost and the boys descended into chaos. With this chaos came their loss of morals, values, and laws. Examples of these were when Jack disobeyed Ralph's rules, when Simon was brutally stabbed to death by Jack's group and how the story portrays Jack as starting from a Catholic choir boy to turning into the "devil" of the island. Starting with the loss of laws, at first Ralph was elected leader because he was seen as the most fit and strongest compared to everyone else.
Just about every character in Golding’s novel Lord of the Flies has a coming of age moment. But the protagonist, Ralph, has the most revealing placement in their society. From the beginning Ralph has been the leader, even before the other boys voted for him. Ralph uses a conch shell to call all the boys on the island for a meeting. Throughout the book there is some conflicts with others when Ralph gives orders and makes rules.
Democratic power can be used to control a society, as well as establish a closeness as civilians. To lose sight of this can mean the corruption of a civilization caused by the lack of order. One’s choice of independence in order to better the chances of their survival requires complete dedication and willingness to risk. In William Golding’s Lord of the Flies, Ralph loses his democratic power due to his failure to ensure survival and protect the boys as a leader. Ralph’s failure to lead the group is due to his initial and chronic independence and inability to compete with Jack’s followers, accounted for mainly by fear.
At first glance, Ralph is a central character who starts and completes William Golding novel The Lord of the Flies. From the onset of the novel, he is described as a “fair boy” with an “attractive appearance” (p7, 29). The author compares his stature as that of a boxer, “as far as width and heaviness of shoulders went, but there was a mildness about his mouth and eyes that proclaimed no devil” (p11). He has the physique and presence of a typical leader – strong but with a kind heart that makes him trustworthy.
In a novel written by William Golding, Lord of the Flies, a group of boys were on a plane and it crashed on an island. Trying to survive, the young boys had turned into savage animals. They murdered animals and even a young boy. For control and power they fought, they split into two groups and fought. Much like Grendel whom after observing behaviours he had turned savage.
I do believe that the main character changed by the end of the book, although some other characters changed a bit more, I still believe that Ralph changed drastically during the entire span of the book. Ralph, I believe that he starts out as an optimistic and calm boy, and with confidence in himself and that they are going to find a way off the island and a way back home. But, during chapter nine, a savage side shows while he joins the boys chanting about the pig. He only realizes, that later, he never should have participated in the cruel and horrifying act, because of how frightened the whole scene made him. As for what kind of character I believe Ralph is, I believe he is a dynamic character because he does change in his physical appearance(being
