'This is my child, he said. I wash a dead man's brainsout of his hair. That is my job'
This quote from The Road tells the reader that there is a father and a son. He calls his son 'child' instead of his name or son this shows the distance between them. The father does'nt want to get to close to him. He is washing his sons hair because it has 'dead man's' brains in it. This could tell the audience that the novel is a horror as someone has been shot the same way zombie's are killed, in the head. Somebody has been shot and his father is only just washing the hair out of his sons heads which shows that it is more imprtant to get away from the dead man rather than stand around and wash themselves.The short sentences get staright to the point this could show the man is ashamed of himsef and doesnt want the reader to know what he has done.
'
yes i am, he said. I am the one'
The man is stating he is 'the one' this could be contsrued as arrogance from him.When we think back to the novel he is the main character in the story and he controls all of the actions.He makes sure his son is taken care or and he protects them both and will do anything to keep them alive.Although the things he does like stealing food and killing men could be misread as him being mean and selfish to ther people in the book really he is showing heroism as he is protecting his son, if he didnt have this kind of persona he and his son would defiantly be dead by now.
'tamatoes,peaches,beans,apricots.Canned hams.Corned beef'
This quote from the novel just lists types of food. At first reading this line the reader would think nothing of it just a simple list of food however to the father and son this simple list of food is their lifeline.Which makes the food is important to the story. We now get the impression that the characters dont have much food and they rely on the simple food they do get.This simple list shows imagery of vivid colours and happiness this contrasts with the rest of the story as the snow is grey and slushy and the weather is wet and miserable.
'Are we still the good guys, he said'
The novel shows a theme of good and evil. The quote is more of a statment from the young boy it shows that the characters are still hoping there is good in the world and they are still good. I get the impression that the character could be very innocent as they want to remain pure and good.We get the impression that the character saying this may not trust the others actions.There maybe no trust in their relationship but they have to stick together. From this quote we could imagine that the novel may be a story where good triumphs bad.
'We should go, papa, he said. Yes the man said. But he didnt'
The son tries to steer away from danger, throughout the whole of the novel. I get the impression that the son thinks he knows best and he wasnts his father to listen to what he has to say. However the fact that he doesnt argue with his father at this point could show that he trusts his father and knows that he would never purposley let him get hurt physically or mentally. The father is called 'papa' in the novel this shows that the soon wants to be close to his father. It could also show that he is a young boy and he has'nt grown up fully yet to understand the things his father does. The father's character is called 'the man' this shows the distance between the two and how the father doesnt want to get to close to his son. We get an idea of the story during this quote as the son seems to be scared and wants to leave however his father seems to be entised by something and he wants to stay and maybe check what ever is fixating him.
'The snow fell nor did it cease to fall'
Pathetic fallacy is used in this quote to show that the book could have a cold and sad feeling to it. The snow is a never ending nightmare throughout the novel it is repetative in the past of the book and the present. This shows imagery of the snow pouring fast and heavy and trapping the father and son so that they cant leave the cruel part of the world they are in.
'Okay? Okay.'
The first okay is a question like the boy needs reassurance from his father.I get the impression that he doesnt understand what has happened to the world and he wants his father to explain everything to him however that would corupt his mind and maybe he wouldnt want to keep trying to survive with his father.The full stop at the end shows that the man is confdent about his final answer and he is using a full stop so that the boy knows not to ask again. The full stop could symbolise how the world has suddenly ended, although we dont know how it ended it has an abrupt ending and the full stop is representive of that as it shows that the simple sentence has ended quickly.
'They
sat on the edge of the tub and pulled their shoes on and them he handed
the boy the pan and soap and he took the stove and the little bottle of
gas and the pistol and wrapped in their blankets and they went back
across the yard to the bunker.'
This must be the longest sentece McCarthy writes throughout the novel.This shows its improtance to the story.the word and is repeated eight times this shows the reader that the actions the man and his son are undertaking could be very repetative like it is a daily routine for them. It is like they have done it so much now the young boy doesnt even need to question why or what they are going to do next.
'Tolling in the silence the minutes of the earth'
Tolling makes the sentence seem longer than it is as when it is read aloud so it draws out the chilling and simple sentence.It makes time seem like its everlasting, its just standing still.The world is described as silent, this is a dark thought as the world will never be silent with people living on it. Clearly the world has been wiped out so now it is reality for the son and his father, they now live in silence.This sentence again expresses the main theme of the book, horror. We get the impression that now the world is silent you would have to keep an out at every where. No one would be trusted, its every man for himself.
'She was gone and the silence of it was her final gift'
Coldness is described as a gift in this sentence. But how can sorrow be a gift? The man clearly has no sense of happiness left, we can see that now he feels nothing. All he does everyday is try and attempt to survive. The final gift is the coldness she left behind, i think that the man needed this coldness to let go of his past life. He needed closure to forget about what he used to have and now focus on what he does have. His son. The man didnt ask for this gift so it was sprung on him and now he has to deal with it and help his boy get through this difficult situation.Throughout the book we realise that neither the father or his son ever have any happiness they are filled with this cold spirit they were left with.
