A discussion of a reflective analysis on the alternative ending to Cormac Mc Carthy PDF

Preview

Summary

The Road essay....

Description

A discussion of a reflective analysis on the alternative ending to Cormac McCarthy’s novel, The Road, which is a reflection on the Postmodern writing process. McCarthy’s novel is about a man and his son who walk through the dilapidated American soil, where there is no hope left yet the father and son are sustained through the love that they have for one another (McCarthy, 2006). A reflective analysis of an alternative ending of McCarthy’s novel will be discussed in detail. The objectives of this academic piece will be to reflect on the use of language and symbolism that was used in the alternative ending that reflects on relevant postmodern themes, narrative voice and narratological theory will be discussed, how the ending engages with the novel’s themes and why this ending is a much suitable ending to the novel will be discussed. Postmodernism is a late twentieth century movement that is categorised by scepticism, subjectivism, and contingency and has a critical sensitivity to the role of ideology in proclaiming and upholding political and economic power (Duignan, 2018). The themes and tropes of postmodernism that are present in The Road, is the existential angst which applies to the man in McCarthy’s novel. The man feels that his existence is pointless, yet still had the hope to continue walking to the coast. When the boy begins to lose hope and lets his father know about this, the man informs him that they will find people out there. The man does not give up hope in his life although he faces existential angst (McCarthy, 2006, p.261) (The Independent Institute of Education Module Guide, 2018, p.68). Secondly, the questioning of morals such as good versus evil is present, because the boy represents all the pure, innocent and good in the world, he tells his father to help the person, whether it is Ely, the man struck by lightning, the people in the basement or even the thief that stole from them. The boy does not like the pistol, does not like killing or stealing and he has robust feelings about helping other people. However, the father tries to protect the boy from all the evil, such as the cannibals, he wishes to keep the pure and the good but instead he resorts to violence and theft which is seen as evil. The father wishes to protect his son from the evil people of the world such as the cannibals because the man and the boy fall under the good people (The Independent Institute of Education Module Guide, 2018, p.69). McCarthy is stating that through difficult situations, what it means to have morals in a post-apocalyptic world which is exposed of social modesty and law and

order is essential for survival (The Independent Institute of Education Module Guide, 2018, p.69). Thirdly, the questioning of morals from the uncertainty of faith all pertains to what the man and boy believe it to be, the boy’s understanding of faith comes from what he views in the post-apocalyptic world. Ely suggests that the boy believes in God, but the man replies that he does not know what the boy believes in (McCarthy, 2006, 174) (Wielenberg, 2010, p.14). The boy simply believes in humanity; therefore, the man keeps the boy’s faith in humanity alive. This faith in humanity then allows the boy to trust the veteran who approaches him after his father dies, which allows the boy to gain salvation and provides the boy to have meaningful connections with other people (Wielenberg, 2010, p.14). The boy eventually seeks God with the help of the woman who would talk to him about God (McCarthy, 2006, p.286). The language that was used in the author’s alternative ending story of The Road, was syntactic fragmentation which depicted the landscape, after the death of the father, such as, “everything was silent, and he could only hear the gusting wind rustling the leaves slowly” (Chetty, 2018). This is also referred to in McCarthy’s novel. These statements suggest that due to the lack of verbs, there is no life or action left in the world (The Independent Institute of Education Module Guide, 2018, p.72). Namelessness is another use of language within the postmodern context of the alternative ending, as the protagonist is never named or never refers to anybody by their names. In McCarthy’s novel, the man and the boy are referred to as just that, however only Ely has a name within the novel (McCarthy, 2006). Symbolism is used in the alternative ending by the use of the road which is a symbol of the journey through life, just as the man and his son had travelled along the road in search of a better life, the readers trace their developments as human beings (The Independent Institute of Education Module Guide, 2018, p.70). Fire is also a symbol within the alternative ending and McCarthy’s novel, it is used in many instances within McCarthy’s novel, it is a representation of protection from the cold of the postapocalyptic world. in the alternative ending, the boy uses fire to warm himself up as well as cook the flesh of the man he had shot, in an attempt to feast on his flesh. Narrative voice within the alternative ending is written in the third-person narrative voice. The focalization is set on the boy and how he goes about with his life after the

death of his father. The use of memory is often used within the alternative ending as the boy remembers what his father had told and taught him. The analepses occur outside the timespan of the primary fabula, and provide “indications about the backgrounds, so far as that past can be relevant for the interpretation of events” (Bal, 2009, p.89). This relates to the recurrent memories the boy has of his father. The narration allows the reader to know exactly what is transpiring with the boy, as it focalises on him. The alternative ending engages with the themes of McCarthy’s novel by making reference that the boy is now alone due to his father’s death, he feels as if he is in existential angst, prior to this the boy did not feel that way because he had his father protecting him and providing for him. His father was the figure that he looked up to for guidance, but now that his father is dead, he feels alone and as if there is no meaning to life anymore. However, just like his father he initially holds on to the hope he has and the fire inside him, which is what keeps him going and aids him in protecting himself with the use of the pistol that his father gave to him. After the boy starts to shoot the evil people who are after him and who want to eat him, he soon discovers his purpose is that he enjoys eating human flesh. The questioning of morals in the alternative ending is that the boy tried to be good and keep his morals but after his father died he enjoyed violence and shooting his attackers and feasting on them. The boy became a cannibal, what his father had prevented him from ever being, as his father knew it was the wrong to eat another human being no matter how hungry you are. However, the boy felt that without his father he could experience what he wanted to, in order to survive, so therefore from being good, the boy transformed into evil. The uncertainty of faith within the alternative ending stipulated that the boy did not believe in God, yet he believes in humanity and the evils of the apocalyptic world, such as devouring human flesh. The alternative ending is suitable for this novel because it ends the novel wondering why and how the boy changed from having good morals to being evil and corrupt and indulging in violence, killing and cannibalism, the things that his father prevented him from getting into. This ending ends the novel in a more dark, suspensive manner than the original novel’s ending and gives the reader a shock of what has just

transpired in the boy’s life and makes the reader wonder what will happen to the boy in the future when he eventually runs out of bullets for his pistol. The reflective analysis of the alternative ending to The Road informs the reader about what transpires after the boy’s father dies and what events happen in the boy’s life thereafter. Using language, symbolism, narrative voice, narratological theory and the themes and tropes of this novel, the alternative ending captivates, intrigues and elicits fear into the reader regarding the boy. (1270 words)....