Cormac Mc Carthy’s science fiction novel ‘The Road’ illustrates an eventful journey of an unnamed father and his young son. The background of the novel is a barren land in which an unexplained catastrophe has declined civilization and all life on earth. Existing creatures show their barbarous scavenging and destroy living things. The father and son feel ultimate destructiveness and total devastation. In the middle of the journey, they meet an old man named Ely, who suffers from blindness. In their conversation, the old man comments about the existence of God. The father says to his son; “there is no God and we are his prophets” (McCarthy 5). Through these words, author shows his struggle with the existence of god and it means that the existing sufferings and devastating atmosphere reveals the absence of a heavenly power. The father and his son or all human beings on the earth are mere prophets. The cursed people on this earth imagine or expect the arrival of an unknown savior. Father sees only the signs of mass destruction, unending sufferings, barrenness and fire which create fear and commotion. Through the question, father tries to show his fear about the existing darkness or gruesome. Cormac Mc Carthy presents the father and son as survivors who struggle to live in a land that has been abolished by fire. The father worries with severe cough and also afflicts with the fear about their life. Embalmed corpses displayed on the doorways of automobiles make agony and horror into the minds of the father and his son. Father does not feel comfortable and perfect and he fails to believe in the presence of God in that world. The online article entitled The Road by Cormac McCarthy by John Holt helps the reader to think about the barrenness of the land. The author mentions that; “The pair is heading for the Eastern cost with little hope of finding anything” (Holt).The word prophet means a person who has the ability to speak or imagine something about future and both the father and son expect the arrival of God, even though they live in chaos. Referring to his son the father says, “What if! said he’s a god?” (McCarthy 6) which means everybody in this world lies alone and the son is the only living creature who gives inspiration and hope for him. Father thinks that the boy has a divine stature like an angel. The boy gives food and makes a fire to protect life from dreadful cold. The father and his son expect the arrival of God and they see a final destination on God’s side. Here the novelist spells the capital letter. In the case of the blind man he refuses his belief in God, here the word ‘god’ is spelled in a lower case letter.
Cormac Mc Carthy presents the character Ely, a blind and old wanderer as a prophet. He is the only person in the novel that has a name. The old man stands near the road for a long time and he is the only person who knows the existence of God in this world. He sacrifices his flesh and blood for the suffering people. He is the only man in this world who never welcomes tomorrow. He reveals that tomorrow is never ready for the people; the horrendous reality is that people did not even know they were there. The father and the boy represent a group but the blind man stands an isolated status.
Works Cited
Holt, John. “The road by Cormac McCarthy.” Rev. of The Road, Cormac McCarthy. California Literary Review. 2007. Web.
McCarthy, Cormac. “The road.” 1-8. (Provided by the customer).