The Road: Part 1

AP Lit. HW, 8/30/2011

Begin reading Cormac McCarthy’s The Road. Read approx. pgs. 1-35 (up until the passage that ends “If you break little promises you’ll break big ones…”).

Look on Wikipedia and read the entire entry for “Apocalyptic and Post-Apocalyptic Literature.” Follow some of the links at the bottom and read about this subgenre in other media.

Read the entire Wikipedia entry for “Cormac McCarthy.”

Blog a response to The Road and the Wikipedia entries. In your entry answer the following questions:

1.  How could this novel be considered a work of post-apocalyptic literature? What are some other films or novels you’ve seen/read that come to mind after reading the Wikipedia entry?
2. How is this subgenre of sci-fi similar to dystopian fiction? How is it different? Can you think of any films or novels that combine the two subgenres? Are there particular comments/values/philosophies/politics that one could address better than the other? Explain.
3. McCarthy is both celebrated and derided (and sometimes even ridiculed) for employing a VERY distinctive prose style. How would you describe the style in which The Road is written? Why do you think it’s written this way? Do you like this style of writing? Why or why not?

 This novel is considered a work of post-apocalyptic literature because it is set after an event that left the world in a desolate and cold state where even the sun is unable to shine and leaves a lackluster sky. Everything is described as monochromatic. Ash and dust is ubiquitous and there is almost no sign of life. After reading the Wikipedia entry, I'm reminded of the following films/novels: Resident Evil, Invasion of the Body Snatchers, Daybreakers, Legion, 2012, Dawn of the Dead, The Core, The Day After Tomorrow, Dreamcatcher, I Am Legend, Terminator, Wall-E, War of the Worlds, Zombieland, Ender's Game, and Alas, Babylon,.

Apocalyptic and Post-Apocalyptic and Dystopian are similar in that they take place in a time ahead of our's. It seems like they provide scenarios for what might happen in our future and what becomes of it. Dystopian novels can also be seen as apocalyptic because they have taken over our sense of human civilization. Maybe the government will be the cause of our doom. After all, look at the history of nuclear warfare. The novel seems to take place after an extreme nuclear warfare.  They're different because apocalyptic fiction lacks a society unlike dystopian fiction. There's an absence of a populace unlike the other. I think AEon Flux would be a good representation of both genres. It features a main character who questions her environment and discovers that all is not what it seems to be. The city is closed off from nature and a giant wall is built to separate them because it threatened their survival. Both subgenres can address certain issues better. Because there is a lack of society, there is no law to keep the people from doing what they want. They do not get punished for the crimes they commit. Without society, the moral and ethic codes are broken. Some will honor it and some won't. In novel, many people resort to cannibalism whereas the father and son doesn't. It puts into question the meaning and the lack thereof of life. The father explicitly states that the only thing that separates him form death is his son. They are each other's world. The father could easily use the revolver to kill both himself and his son (resembles "Beloved") if they continue to live this rather meaningless and cumbersome lifestyle. Oh, but what if it only has one bullet? The survivor could also easily surrender himself to the cannibals  or surrender both himself and his son if their death could be made use of (what would be so cruel). As for dystopian fiction, it's forte is more inclined towards our stance on ethics and morals, conformity, and individualism. In general, dystopian fiction caters to society's questions where apocalyptic fiction, the individual. 

The Road is written with a serious lack of punctuation and probably grammar. I think it's written that way to represent our thoughts. I doubt many of us think with punctuation and grammar (Oh, I need to stop for a period or quote what I'm thinking). If we put our thoughts on paper it would seem similar to McCarthy's writing. I am rather piqued at his writing because he is the only author I'm aware of who writes like he does. It certainly gives you a new way to read a novel albeit that it is a bit difficult with the lack of punctuation. It also gives the novel a sense of breathlessness (which I certainly would have if I've read out loud) which actuates the novel's setting; it's very lonely and desolate. I certainly do not mind reading like this despite it may violate what I have learned as a student, but it's unconventional and unique.