Introduction
Cormac McCarthy’s novel, “Blood meridian”, or “The Evening Redness in the West” recounts the adventures of an unnamed young kid who finds himself in the company of the Glanton Gang. The purpose of this outlawed gang of scalp hunters is to kill Indians in the Texas –Mexico Border, a contract accorded to them by territorial governors.
Most of the book is devoted to revealing the kid’s experiences with the Glanton gang. The author story therefore presents the account from the viewpoint of the young kid who leaves his father at the tender age of fourteen and wanders about all by himself.
As this paper unfolds, the kid stands out as naïve and indecisive despite having taken part in high profile atrocities, which include gang raids, genocide and other crimes against humanity.
An analysis of the Kid’s Character
Naivety is among the characters depicted by the young kid. Throughout the novel, the kid finds himself in situations not because he chooses it, but simply because he finds himself at the wrong place at the right time. Most of the decisions that shape the kid’s experiences are not because of his personal decisions but those of another person.
For instance, in order to join the Glanton gang, the kid’s cellmate Toadvine influences him after the capture in Mexico.
Just like the congregation in Nacogdoches, Texas, is incited by judge Holden against their preacher and eventually murdering him, the kid’s decisions are influenced by either the judge or the ex priest whom they meet in the Glanton gang (McCarthy 342).
Many decades later, the judge further influences the kid to continue with his evil ways where he takes part in the abduction of a young girl. At this point, the kid becomes as evil as the judge does. The judge proves to be an influence that the kid finds so hard to escape and has to rely when making decisions.
The kid is involved in a moral battle with the ex priest Tobin and the evil Judge fighting over his destiny. The ex priest of never tells lies inspires the kid to do the right at times when it is only the good that would save him while the judge from his introduction in the kid’s life is a source of lies and constant search of sadistic pleasure. Brevity further stands out as part of the kid’s characters.
Despite being young, the kid is involved in numerous scenarios that reveal him as very courageous. This starts from the initial point where he leaves his father behind after realizing that his presence was only a reminder of his mother’s death to the father.
He takes off thereby exposing himself to many dangerous situations, which do not deter him from going further. He engages a grown up bartender in a fight and wins which reveals his ability and strength in fighting.
He joins the U.S Army irregulars and escapes narrowly after the murder of his comrades by a band of marauding Indian Comanche warriors. In several other occasions, while as a member of the Glanton gang, he escapes death in incidences, which leave most of his friends dead.
He escapes death while the judge in the desert, who preys, pursues him for his life. Despite having chances of killing the judge, he chooses not to. Eventually most of the gang members die except for the kid, the judge and the ex priest Tobin who disappears at the end of the story.
This is a clear indication that the kid is brave since despite being the youngest in the gang he escapes death most times compared to others who have ample experiences in war.
The novel features the Kid as a conspirator of his personal desires. Given the right circumstances, the kid proves to be as evil as the judge in the novel is. This is in consideration to some of the mysterious deaths and abductions that take place in the story.
This means that given the cover of anonymity and added with the power of alcohol, the kid is capable of doing equal evil as the Judge. Revelations stands out for instance most of the deaths such as that of the twelve-year-old half-breed boy and the case of the missing girl after the feast of Animas as well as the missing Mexican girl.
With much violence happening at the same time, it seems difficult to relate the kid to these atrocities which reveal themselves later as the shadow of the genocide becomes thin with passing time. It is only then that the kid really reveals himself as a murderer, a vice initially tied only to the judge.
Yet in the story, the kid has the ability of forging innocence in the minds of the readers and escaping any judgment or accusations of any of the evil deeds as those committed in collaboration with the judge.
Later as a man, the kid kills a boy named Elrod after he realizes that Griffin is ‘the biggest town for sin’ (McCarthy 342). This contributes further to his indecisiveness. Clemency further reveals itself as one of the Kid’s characters.
The fact that the kid has several chances to kill the judge and instead chooses against it shows that despite his later revelation as being a murderer, the kid is capable of showing clemency. This is in consideration that at that particular moment the kid’s life as well as that of ex priest Tobin is in danger.
He gets an upper hand over his enemy as he comes into a position to get rid of his enemy but still chooses not to do it. The judge tells the kid to reveal himself and hand over his weapon a thing that the kid defies doing and instead keeps on hiding. In that single scene, the Kid dishonors the Judge through quite a number of ways.
When the kid refuses to kill the judge, it is contemplated as what is indeed the main motive since he is a real enemy. It is only late in the novel that the truth reveals itself that the kid is an accomplice in the judge’s evil deeds, which include abducting and murdering young children.
The question of whether the kid’s act is real or a sign of inability stands out at this particular point. The kid seems not firm in terms of decision-making.
All through the novel, the kid is in constant search of the right way of life. He fights a bartender earlier on in the story to help a fellow young man which led to the bar being set ablaze. This made him a fugitive and further contributed to his joining the gangs that threatened his life from a tender age.
According to Daugherty, the fight shaped the kid’s life, as it led to his adopting of violent ways of life later on in life (122). This makes the kid only a victim of circumstances and deprives him the ability to shape his life independently.
When he encounters good people, the kid does well and when he meets the wrong people, he seems carried away in evil without having a say for himself. This is evident in the way the people shape his behavior and destiny.
For instance, the kid is advised by the ex priest Tobin while they are on the run in the desert to get rid of the judge and he hesitates. The reason why he does this is not clear since he later says that he should have killed him when he got the chance.
After his release from the prison, the kid cannot think for himself and goes on to look for the priest but eventually encounters the judge again who influences him into becoming a pedophile and a murderer as the story ends.
The ex priest who is supposed to be the moral guide to the kid is nowhere to be seen and the kid now “the man” is influenced by the judge to continue doing evil even as the society had embraced change over the decades.
Conclusion
The kid as portrayed in the novel “Blood meridian” by Comarc McCarthy seems not as established as the other characters in the story such as the Judge and the Ex priest (Owens 94).
These are the two forces that influence this character despite the fact that they are introduced to the story through their contact with the kid.
It is therefore important to note that the kid’s character traits are no more than the reflections of the two influential characters in the story: the Judge and the Ex-priest.
Works Cited
Daugherty, Leo. Gravers False and True: Blood Meridian as Gnostic Tragedy. Southern Quarterly 30.4 (1992):122-133.
McCarthy, Comarc. Blood Meridian. New York: Random House, 1985. Print.
Owens, Barcley. Cormac McCarthy’s Western Novels. Arizona: University of Arizona Press, 2000.