The post-apocalyptic novel, The Road, is one of the most depressing novels I have read. Thankfully, McCarthy’s spartan writing style, with its short, broken-up paragraphs, made it a page-turner, despite the bleak content. The style suited well to portray the desperate situation of the two characters, the man and his son, in a decaying world.
Thematically, The Road is a powerful story. It says how hope helps endure human suffering and despair. Even in the face of death, knowing the futility of the struggle to live, hope strengthens human courage to withstand all suffering. This is the story of the man who journeys with his son to find a safe place in an almost dead world. He is sick, and he knows his end is near. But he fights with all his remaining strength to find a better world for his son. Despite the evidence to the contrary, with ash and dust everywhere, he firmly holds on to the belief that such a place exists. His belief doesn’t come from an inner knowledge, for deep inside, he knows he clings to a falsity. Nevertheless, he holds on to it because of the love he bears to his son. For his sake, the man has faith in a higher superior being who will make everything alright.
The boy is the symbol of innocence and purity. At a time when preserving human morality is not easy, the boy stands by the good and right, even when the man fails. The boy is the “carrier of fire”, the keeper of humanity. The story also slightly touches on a nihilism and existentialism debate. A short flashback shows that the wife of the man (the mother of the child) has abandoned the journey in the middle. It is implied that she has chosen self-destruction rather than going through this futile labour to find a better existence. The woman passively accepts the futility of life in a post-apocalyptic world and chooses to embrace nothingness. But the man perseveres. Because of his deep love for his son, he shoulders the responsibility to find a better life for his son. And through his choices and actions, he keeps to his duty.
The story of The Road can be read as an allegory for our journey in life. Like the man and the boy in the story, we journey through a long, suffering road till we depart from the world. In that journey, we face both the good and the bad. Humans cannot divorce their lives from suffering. Life is like a rollercoaster. There are moments of joy and moments of despair. The Road says that even when we despair, we must hold on to the light of hope. We must love ourselves, and if that’s difficult in the circumstance, we must love someone, and for that someone’s sake, we must persevere. Self-destruction is no answer, even when the end looks completely black. Hope and love are what move us forward. And faith helps to keep them alive. Two quotations struck me as significant.
Borrowed time and borrowed world and borrowed eyes with which to sorrow it.
People were always getting ready for tomorrow…Tomorrow wasn’t getting ready for them. It didn’t even know they were there.
McCarthy utilizes powerful imagery to tell his story. He constantly refers to grey, dust, and ashes, establishing in the reader’s mind the desolations and despair of the characters. The tone is cold and detached, which I thought was good because it helped the reader not engage with the characters and their bleak position but to watch them from a distance. McCarthy’s language is metaphoric, and despite his spartan style, it brought a sort of haunting and dreamlike quality.
All these good aspects of The Road didn’t make it less depressing. This is my first time reading Cormac McCarthy. I don’t think I’d have picked this up as my first read, even though it won the Pulitzer Prize in 2007 and is considered his masterpiece. Some of its experts were recommended reading for my MA course. It was part of our study to understand different styles of writing, but it struck me as an appropriate read for the post-COVID world. Looking at what’s happening in the world, perhaps we ourselves are heading for an apocalyptic world.
Rating: 3/5
