The Father In Cormac Mccarthy's The Road

Cormac McCarthy’s novel, The Road, is appropriately named one of the best works of literature from the twenty first century due to how well the readers can relate to the social standings of the boy and his father. Throughout the entirety of the novel, the young boy is willing to help those who've gone astray along the dilapidated road, whereas the father is hesitant to protect anyone other than his family. Society, in the twenty-first century, is similar to the post apocalyptic world that McCarthy describes. The father symbolizes society acting upon convenience and selfishness, while the boy embodies the hope and optimism that is also present within society.
Living in an environment that is inhabited with constant danger is not a viable lifestyle for a father and his young child, yet the two main characters push to increase their chances of survival. The two meet various travelers along the …show more content…
The son has a keen eye for finding people or objects that most people would overlook, including his father. The fog and ash along the road makes it difficult for both of the characters to clearly see oncoming obstacles. The child, however, peers through the mist in attempt to see another little boy wandering across the decrepit landscape. The son alerts his father about this other child and adamantly cries that he “doesn't care [if helping the boy endangers them]” (87), but the father dismisses the existence of the other child that he is unable to see. The world is currently divided between those who acknowledge that there are ways in which society can improve and benefit others, and those who deny the existence of problems that are yearning for a solution. There are people who look for ways in which they can bring attention to major issues, but the real problem is trying to convince others that they can assist with the changes that need to