Cormac McCarthy writes prose as poetry. He is a man with a
purpose, or, at least, a man that writes with a purpose. McCarthy’s The Road
published by Vintage Books is a powerful gripping tale of the relationship of a
man with his son that just so happens to be set in a post-apocalyptic world.
The Setting: McCarthy constructs a depressing future-scape
as his setting. The world of the Man and the Boy, the two unnamed protagonists
of the story, is as lacking in identity as the names not given to the
characters. The author gives the reader just enough to know that the world his
characters inhabit is terrible beyond imagination, devoid of almost all life
and resources, and moved on from civilized order. Utilizing sparse details and
even sparser hints and glimpses at a backstory to his holocaust of future destruction,
McCarthy invites his reader into a world of loss, fear and utter depravity of
humanity and hope. The scarcity of details, though exasperating at times, provides
an unsettling element throughout and helps to build, instead of hinder, the
gripping suspense, fear, and uncertainty of the time, space, and plot of the
novel.
The Story: The
story wraps itself in the journey along an unnamed road towards an unnamed destination,
somewhere on the coast. The road the father and son travel in the wasteland of
what appears to be the ruins of the United States is at once both the one referenced
in the title and yet simply a mirror, an allusion, of the real ‘road’ traversed
in the work: the relationship between the man and his son. The real story spends itself here with the boy
and his father and their struggles to communicate and to not give up: on life, on
each other, and, ultimately, on hope.
The Reason to Read:
McCarthy is the master illusionist. The smoke and mirrors of his apocalyptic
world tantalize and intrigue, but, in the end, are meant only to draw the
reader in further along the ‘road’ to the real heart of the story, the humanity
and love shared between a father and his son. At times, the story advances slowly.
Sometimes days pass for the protagonists, pages for the reader, without any
movement in any direction besides the slow prodding progress through the
traumatized countryside. The dearth of action and even dialogue, though at
first frustrating, brings the reader, in the end, to appreciate the value in
what is provided. In this, the momentary flashes of dialogue and action carry a
greater weight and significance for their brevity. The power of the story is
found in valuing the gems of humanity in the relationship of the father and son
found covered throughout beneath the ashes of the subtle details of McCarthy’s
world.
The Reason Not to
Read: McCarthy does not give the reader everything the reader wants. He
believes in the idea that anything worth having or learning must be fought for.
Without taking this into account, some readers undoubtedly will be discouraged
by what McCarthy does not answer or does not address. What happened to the
world? How did the man and the boy get to where they are? Why are they
traveling this road and to where are they headed? The big questions of the
setting and the impetus for the action are never answered. However, what is answered is so much more powerful.
Most readers will surely not care in the end what happened to the world or why,
but rather find satisfaction in uncovering what happened to the boy and his
father in their journey together.
Conclusion: McCarthy
requires the reader to meet him in the story. He does not give the reader the
whole picture, but asks the reader to engage him and his characters in the
heartfelt struggle in their quest. The Road is a worthy and powerful
read, and, at a slim 287 pages, well worth the investment of time and energy of
the reader in the journey.
Recommendation: GREAT
Rubbish > Fair > Average > Great > Classic
Where to Find It: Amazon : Barnes and Noble
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