One of the major changes that Ralph undergoes over the course of the novel is his loss of innocence. This process begins as soon as he meets Piggy since Piggy is able to think more clearly and explain the reality of the situation. Ralph is confident that his father will come rescue him as soon as he gets leave. When Piggy asks him how he will know they are there, Ralph answers (in his mind), "Because, thought Ralph, because, because." He has a simplistic view of the world and of how things happen. His father will rescue him simply "because" that is how things work out.
Over the course of the story, however, Ralph sees the evil inside the boys and the terrible things they are capable of; he finishes the story weeping because of that loss of innocence.
Ralph also loses a great deal of confidence. At the beginning, when he is elected chief, there is a quiet and calm confidence about him that the boys recognize and are attracted to. But as the organization he attempts to set up falls apart and he calls more meetings and tries too hard to enforce rules, that confidence disappears; the boys notice it and are even more drawn to Jack.
At the end of the story, Ralph falls at the feet of the officer: "Ralph wept for the end of innocence, the darkness of man’s heart, and the fall through the air of the true, wise friend called Piggy." This describes all the ways that Ralph has changed. His mature perspective on life is so much more complicated and more sad than the boyish innocence he had at the beginning.
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