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I truly believe The Road is an outstanding book. McCarthy's style of writing dialogue lends itself perfectly to display the themes of loneliness and purpose presented by the book. The only reason I did not give it a perfect score is because the way of writing can make it hard to follow conversations at times. If you can get past that, I definitely think it epitomizes the themes of the novel, as not only the situations and events are empty, but the dialogue, and characters by extension.

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While reading the book, I had a hard time making any connections. It is so different than anything else I have ever read that I honestly could not think of anything other than No Country For Old Men, another book of Cormac McCarthy. I assure you I am not just being lazy by connecting a book to another by the same author. Regardless, I thought both books had very similar themes. They both lead the reader on a journey that shows the true, cruel nature of the world, albeit in very unique circumstances. Both deal with the absence of God as a theme, although in The Road, it takes a much lesser thematic role than No Country. They both have similar scenes to clue the reader in, with an older, wiser character extracting the sense of Godlessness from a main character. In The Road, this comes in the scene where Papa give the old man travelling the road some food, and he says "Where men can't live, Gods fare no better,"(McCarthy, 172). This also ties into the emptiness Papa feels without the Boy. In No Country, the Sheriff Bell feels alone without God, and in The Road, Papa feels alone without the Boy, showing that the Boy is truly extremely important to him.

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The Road is very complex, and incorporates themes about purpose, emotional connections and unwavering love. Papa is obviously extremely connected to the Boy, and protects him until his death. However, his love is not easily conveyed by either of them. Papa does not show love easily, or normally, because of the trauma he went through when the collapse of society happened. It is known  that his wife died, presumably in the early days. Anyone else he loved is certainly dead, or at least so far changed to the point of unfamiliarity. The Boy does not show his love naturally for similar reasons. All the terrible things he has seen, such as the people in the basement, and the baby roasted over the fire, have led him to be extremely traumatized. Pair that with an unintentionally cold and emotionally depleted father, it is no surprise their love for each other does not display similar to ours. To add to this, The Boy has no other socialization, meaning he does not know how to express himself to a normal extent. Purpose is another major theme. It is obvious from the outset that Papa's single purpose is to protect his Boy. it is either though or said outright by him countless times. There is also an abundance of symbolism to represent this. Many dreams Papa has are either metaphors for his loneliness, such as the dream where he finds the toy walking on with no winder, or nightmares about what would happen if they are taken by other survivors.

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"On the mattress lay a man with his legs gone to the hip and the stumps of them blackened and burnt... Help us, they whispered." (McCarthy, 110)

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"On the mattress lay a man with his legs gone to the hip and the stumps of them blackened and burnt... Help us, they whispered." (McCarthy, 110)

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This quote shows how terrible the remaining survivors are. Papa and the Boy were scavenging through the house for food, which they thought was in the basement. They were right in thinking that the survivor's food was in there, but did not think their food would be other survivors. This obviously gave the both of them the hint to get as far away as quickly as possible, which they did. This encounter made quite the impression on the Boy. Throughout the rest of the book, he is much quieter and talks much less to Papa, although he does still talk to him. This segment truly exemplifies how twisted and ungodly the remaining survivors are. Both the Boy and Papa were aware of the Cannibal tribes, but this seems to be their first run-in with them, although it will not be their last, as seen later and to a lesser extent.

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"If You Died, I would want to die too." (McCarthy, 11)

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"If You Died, I would want to die too." (McCarthy, 11)

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This quote is said by Papa to the Boy after the Boy asks him what he would do if he died. This sets up the emotional connection between them for the rest of the novel. This also introduces the reader to Papa's mental state.  It shows how is one and only driving force is his boy. He is only concerned with his own self preservation because the Boy would die without him. His love for the Boy is definitely different because of their environment. He makes sure the Boy knows how to kill himself with the revolver they have, because he fears what other people would do to him if they were captured. He is constantly shown putting himself in hazardous or uncomfortable positions for the Boy's well-being. Such as the time he swims through the freezing ocean to the ship to find supplies for them. He also tries to shield the Boy from the terrible and horrific things the other survivors do, although his attempts are not always successful.

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The Road Takes place after a great catastrophe unknown to the reader. It is suggested that this catastrophe is man-made, and not some sort of natural disaster. It is also not known when the story takes place, although it is assumed it is modern at the time of writing, being 2006 or thereabouts. Keeping in tune with the rest of the book, there is no indicator of where the story takes place, although it does start somewhere rural, and inland. Throughout the duration of the book, they gradually head South and reach the ocean, although it is not known which ocean or coast. It is also assumed it takes place in the Continental United States. Socially, there are very few survivors left, and those that are are extremely cruel and unforgiving, many having lost their humanity.

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The Boy is Papa's child. He is much more merciful and hopeful for people's goodness than Papa. He tries to help most of the people they come across on their journey, and even a dog. He has no doubt seen horrific things that the survivors have done, but he still believes in humanity's goodness. It is never told exactly how old he is, although it can be inferred he is roughly 10 years old, maybe younger.

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Papa, who is never given a real name, is the protector of his boy. His only purpose for his life, as he says, is to make sure his boy lives. He has no other motivations to live other than the survival of his child. He does not go through any real transformation. His guiding force throughout the book is his boy. Some may say he transforms when he tries to spare some stranger's lives along the way, but his mercy is only at the request of the boy.

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By Cormac McCarthy, Post Apocalyptic/Fiction