Why AP? (p148-215)

     Since this book was allowed for this assignment, I assumed that it was AP-worthy. However had it not been part of this class, I might not have figured it out so easily. This book is not difficult to read since the diction is more simplistic and clearer to understand. Therefore this book would qualify as an AP reading for different reasons.

    AP level novels are far less plot-based than other fiction books and focus more on developing literary elements and devices to form the story. These types of college-level books (or other readings) tend to focus on things such as character development, imagery, tone, repetition, and other literary devices. 

    The structure of The Road is very unique, but is unique enough to make it AP level?

    As discussed in previous posts, the point of view seems to be leaning more towards the man rather than the boy (but it is still in the third person). Therefore this structure seems to mirror the man's character and mindset: continuously thinking about what to do to stay alive, each thought jumping from one to the next, haunted by his wife's suicide.

    This connection McCarthy creates between the stucture and the characters takes this book to a higher level of literature. Even though, at first glance, it seems as though this journey is just event after event, seemingly a more plot-driven novel. But the simpler word choice also makes it more likely that much of the book is just the man's thoughts written on paper. 

    I will say that The Road seems to focus on the plot the most out of the books I have read this year in AP Literature, but I don't think it makes it any less of an AP-worthy novel.

    Another aspect that adds to its legitimacy as an AP book, would be the personal conflict within the characters. Both need to learn how to cope with the world around them even after having experienced massive trauma. The man is terrified of losing his son much like his wife, who was poisoned by fear to the point where she took her own life to escape.

    The flashbacks the man experiences about his wife (towards the beginning of the book and referenced more in my previous posts) show how that event is still impacting him today. While coping with that, he has to make snap decisions to keep them alive to the best of his ability. He's willing to do anything for his son, even kill someone else to do it, but his son also is what keeps him tethered to his humane side.

    The man's constant conflict between staying alive at all costs and staying one of the "good guys" is what makes this trip down the road both a physical and emotional journey.

    The imagery in this book can also be significant at times, since it often if decscribed in a way that connects the present world covered in ash, to the old world before tragedy struck. As they continue to travel, they come across houses where the man can see past the ash they are covered in and into what it must have once looked like:

"They entered the drawingroom. The shape of a carpet beneath the silty ask. Furniture shrouded in sheeting. Pale squares on the walls where paintings once had hung. In the room on the other side of the foyer stood a grand piano." (206)

    Despite the destruction, the man could put together how the room used to be when it was lived in, which is one of the ways that he stays connected to his past. 

    The road acts as a symbol of hope and the need to keep pushing on through even the darkest of times. Their constant return to the road to push on day after day no matter the circumstances develop this symbol further. No matter how cold or hungry they became, "they plodded on, thin and filthy as street addicts. Cowled in their blankets against the cold and their breath smoking, shuffing through the black and silky drifts," (177).

    McCarthy seems to believe that it's human nature to sometimes take extreme measures to stay alive. Even though these instincts aren't necessary in "normal" situations, they will always be present deep down in anyon'e soul. Since the road has been least effected by this tragedy on Earth and is still a solid foundation to travel on, it represents this dark side of the human race, which will always be there much like the road seems to be.

    A significant and deep symbol like this is not found in every fiction or young adult book you pick up, which makes The Road stand out even further.

    The boy is also a significant symbol for the man, since his innocence is the connection that keeps him from giving up. The boy's character is related to the inherent innocence of children, but also a result of his father. The way he always tries to do the "right thing" so that the boy continues to see that they are still the "good guys" reflects how the boy views others and life in general.

    The man sees his son as an innocent angel; a religious figure who can do no wrong. When talking with the old man they found on the road about whether or not you'd know if you were the last man on earth, the man casually says "I guess God would know it," (170). The old man then responds with "there is no God," which is an understandable when living is such a horrible situation. However the man still believes in a God, which is most likely because of his son.

    Since his son is like an angel to him, why wouldn't there be a God too? Deeper biblical references are often in more advanced literary work, such as in the Handmaid's Tale.

    Rather than qualify to be AP worthy through complex diction, The Road is at an AP level through the connection between characterization and structure, the man's inner conflict, imagery that reminds the man of his past, the symbol of the road, and religious references. All of which are developed thoroughly throughout the novel by McCarthy. Despite its seemingly simplistic appearence, The Road has depths to it that make it an appropriate AP Literature novel.

Characters (p72-147)

     Having read about half of the book now, it would seem that the only two main characters in this book are the man and the boy, both of which have not been given a name, at least at this point in the book. We learn briefly about the wife of the man/the mother of the son when there are a few flashbacks. However, there weren't any about this woman in this quarter of the book, but she may come up later as we learn more about the boy's and the man's past.

    We aren't told much, if anything, about the man's past, but since the book seems to be more from his point of view, we are able to know a bit more about what is going on in his head. As I said before, I believe the book is a reflection of the man's thoughts which is why the book seems a bit rushed through the lack of quotation marks, and there are no chapters because his mind never rests.

    Primarily, this man shows a devotion to his son while doing his best to keep them both alive. His son is the last thing to hold onto, the thing that seems to keep him going. When he wants to give up, the thought of himself dying isn't the thing that keeps him going. It's the thought of something terrible happening to his son. I think this love for his son strengthened after his wife committed suicide. He is traumatized to the point where he fears that his son might meet a similar fate if he were to become as hopeless as she had become.

    The longer they survive, they come across more horrible sights that frighten the boy to his core. One being a trapdoor that contains a bunch of people, stored away by the "bad guys" as a source of food. When the man and the boy discover it, the people beg them for help, but the risk was far too great. Terrified for both of their lives, the man "dropped the lighter... pushed the boy up the stairs... grabbed the boy by the hand," and made a run for it (111). Instances like this show how devoted he is to his son, getting them both out as soon as possible to protect him.

    However, there was a time when he considered leaving the boy, even after all they had been through. It was soon after they were almost found by "the bad guys" since the man thought he could survive on his own. Despite considering abandoning his son, he planned on leaving him the pistol, so that he could at least kill himself rather than be eaten alive or worse when found (113). This shows that even someone as devoted as the man would consider saving himself over the boy when in extreme circumstances.

    The man decides against leaving him, once his boy's look of terror snaps him back to what matters the most, and that is trying to keep his son alive and doing whatever he can to protect him. It is possible that he will be tempted to leave again later in the book if things get bad enough, but I don't think he ever will. The innocence of the boy makes it too terrible to leave him to the evil of this new world that they are currently living in.

    The boy also loves his father in return but in a different way. The man partly loves the boy since it gives him a reason to not give up and in some way is his connection to life before the apocalypse. But the boy was born right after whatever it was that happened, so this is the only life he knows: starving and struggling to stay alive. He never really knew his mother, so he relies heavily on his father to keep them alive and learn about what is going on around him.

    Despite living in such horrible circumstances, the innocence of the boy is what makes him compassionate towards anyone that his father has not marked as "a bad guy." Earlier in the book, the boy thought that he saw another little boy in the village (84). It is unclear whether or not this was real or if the boy was mistaken, but either way, it is important. As soon as the boy spotted him, he wanted to go and help, but his father said no and that they had to keep going.

    The boy was very adamant about bringing the boy with them, but of course, it would have been too great a burden on the man to be responsible for someone else too. Eventually, the boy stops complaining, but still mentions him a bit later in the book when they come across a town with seemingly no one in it since they are all dead. Instead of being relieved that this town might be safe for the time being, the boy tells his father that he "wish[ed] that little boy was with [them]," (131).

    The boy knows that the little boy is probably dead now, but if they had taken him with him then he might not be. However, the man knows that if the little boy were with them, it is possible that all three of them would be dead.

    Another instance when the boy's innocence shines is when they come across a cellar that is stock full of food, clean clothes, blankets, and water. The boy understands how valuable it all is and how it's essential for their survival, but, being the compassionate boy he is, he immediately questions if they should take any of it since it's not theirs. He feels guilty for taking advantage of the goods that were clearly stashed away by someone else for themselves. The man convinces him that is alright by telling the boy that these people were also "the good guys" so "they would want us to [have it]. Just like we would want them to," (139). The fact that the boy asked for permission and verified that he was allowed to eat this food again shows his innocence, rather than just taking it as a way to stay alive with no questions asked.

    Something else that connects the man and the boy is the constant need for reassurance by the man that they are still the "good guys." The boy knows there are bad men and women who will kill or eat them if they were to be caught. As they become more desperate, the boy continues to ask his father if they are still the "good guys" since it has most likely occurred to the man to do terrible things in order to keep them alive. Although he doesn't because of the boy, who acts as a reminder to keep his morals even in the more desperate of times. If he were to break these morals, the man fears that he would lose the boy in some way.

    The only other character that has spoken thus far in the novel is the first "bad guy" that they came across towards the beginning. Their interaction is brief, but it gives the reader a taste of the other side of the spectrum in this new world: the cannibals and murderers that will stop at absolutely nothing to stay alive. Even though it is not preferred, the man does not hesitate to choose violence if the boy is ever put in danger, since he shot this stranger as he attempted to harm his son (68).

    

    The man and the boy will have to continue down this road and survive in a way that still makes them "the good guys" in order to keep this connection between the two of them. 

Picture Citations:

"The Road (2009)." Pinterest,www.pinterest.com/pin/568579521701142455/. Accessed 7 Mar. 2021.

"The Will to Survive." Npr, 25 Nov. 2009, www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=120612276. Accessed 7 Mar. 2021.