THE ROAD: Cormac McCarthy, Knopf, 1996, Fiction, 241 pgs.An unnamed father and son traverse the United States in McCarthy's postapocalyptic vision.
Nothing green remains after a nuclear holocaust; father and son live by finding overlooked caches of provision and by avoiding the bands of survivors who would kill them not only for the food they carry, but for their own carcases. To say The Road is grim would be a classic of understatement, but the beauties of the earth which no longer exist are a palpable and longed-for presence in the narrative. While reading The Road, one wants to hold the world close, and to nurture with all care and diligence the love between this father and his son.
LW
1 comment:
In this post-apocalyptic world, very little remains aside from ash. It’s never explicitly stated what caused the world to burn, but it destroys civilization and leaves few survivors. The reader follows along with the “the man” and “the boy” as they travel “the road” trying to escape the winter by getting to the milder climate by the ocean. Since many of the survivors at that point are dangerous, and possibly cannibals, the journey is dangerous and slow going. Food is hard to come by, and without modern medicine an illness can have dire consequences.
Because no information is given about life before or directly after the event, the novel forces the reader to be solidly in the present along with the man and the boy. While the man tries to be the best father he can, given the circumstances, he has become hardened by the struggle to live. The young boy has slightly more hope, wanting to believe there are some good people left in the world, but when your past experience suggests people are either thieves or cannibals, the future looks pretty bleak. This novel left me with a lot of thoughts and feelings. If your in the mood for something heavy and very atmospheric, THE ROAD fits the bill.
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