Lord_of_the_Flies

Lord of the Flies Essay Question Q2: How does Golding present the character of Ralph in the first three chapters of Lord of the Flies' In the Lord of the Flies Golding presents Ralph as being fit and athletic. A quotation to support this is: “You could see now that he might make a boxer, as far as width and heaviness of shoulders went...” Golding is comparing Ralph to a “boxer” and as boxers are generally thought to be very fit, Golding is suggesting that Ralph is too. Also: “...there was a stillness about Ralph as he sat, that marked him out: there was his size and attractive appearance...” shows that he has an appealing and pleasant appearance, which suggests that he has an appealing and pleasant character too. As Ralph is portrayed like this, it also causes some of the other characters, such as Piggy, to be jealous of him. Therefore Ralph also symbolises someone to be envious of. For example: “Presently he was palely and fatly naked... he sat on the rocky ledge, and watched Ralph’s green and white body...” This quotation shows that Piggy is covetous of Ralph’s body as it is better than his “pale” and “fat” one. Also Golding uses the word “green” to describe Ralph’s body; this could be because a connotation of the word “green” is envy. Ralph is presented as altruistic compared to the other boys, as Golding wrote: “...there was a mildness about his mouth and eyes that proclaimed no devil.”