Who is Ralph?
Ralph is a protagonist of great significance in Golfing's novel, Lord of the Flies. He is a boy of twelve years who is selected as a leader of the other boys who were cast upon the unknown island. He is wise, brave and somewhat authoritative. As far as his physical traits are concerned, he has 'fair hair' and is physically 'attractive'. His character has been used as a symbol of law and order in the civilized world.
A Fine Leader
Ralph emerges as a fine leader of the boys when the leadership is thrust upon him (due to his good looks?). As he himself thinks, his concept of leadership goes like this:
if you [are] a chief, you [have] to think, you [have] to be wise […] you [have] to grab at a decision.
Under his leadership, Ralph strives to unite every boy under his umbrella. As soon as he gets the charge, he orders to build a shelter to protect the kids, to light up the fire at the top of the hill so that they might be rescued. He uses a conch shell to summon up other boys for a meeting. He befriends Piggy to seek intellectual guidance when it is needed. Thus, Ralph proves to be a fine leader but his leadership is constantly challenged by his antagonist, Jack.
A Courageous Child
Ralph is quite courageous when it is demanded by the occasion. His courage is shown by his authoritative confidence when the signal fire goes off and he chides the ones who are responsible for it. But he is a child with a mild temperament and he wants a peaceful community because peace is necessary for them to come out of the trouble of being separated. But his peaceful order is consistently challenged by the pack of Jack and consequently, Ralph is left alone because his mates are fond of primitive rituals.
A Savage from the Inside
Ralph, the apostle of civilization has some serious shortcomings. When time goes by, Ralph himself launches into the primitive mindsets when he is left alone. It is worth noting that when the boys were left scattered in the unknown island, Ralph was quite happy to find himself free to do "anything" but he was caged in the responsibilities of being a leader. But when he is free from the burden of the leadership, the first thing he accomplishes is to undress himself naked,
He became conscious of the weight of clothes, kicked his shoes off fiercely and ripped off each stocking with its elastic garter in a single movement. Then he leapt back on the terrace, pulled off his shirt, and stood there among the skull-like coconuts with green shadows from the palms and forest sliding over his skin. He undid the snake-clasp of his belt, lugged off his shorts and pants, and stood there naked, looking at the dazzling beach and the water.
Ralph's tearing of his wardrobes is the first step in savagery. But when Ralph's body is stained by the blood in the process of hunting, he finds pleasure in hunting.
Hunting was good after all.
The beast inside him lives in the full swing when he, along with the pack of Jack "hunts" Simon. After being acutely ashamed of his savagery, Ralph becomes aware of the fallen and primitive nature of the whole mankind and he thinks only the naval officer has the ability to rescue him and the other boys who are surrounded by the "Lord of the Flies".
Conclusion
Despite his serious flaws, Ralph is still an important personage who denotes the Kurtzian as well as Marlowian trait of humanity.
