Question 27.
McCarthy tells the story between pages 56-81 of the road using an omniscient third person narrator, he uses a free indirect style in novel form.The first paragraph introduces the post apocalyptic style through the phrase 'birth in grief and ashes' this implies death, destruction and tragedy.McCarthy then goes on to talk about time within this section, he says 'there is no later. this is later' which implies ideas that time posses no significance now. As the reader could have implied that it is non-existent within the two character's lives. Time has effectively disappeared in the same way the world did.McCarthy opens with a reference to the mans wife, 'will you tell him goodbye' this let the reader know there is a flashback and a corrupt sense of time. We know it's a flashback as his wife is mentioned and as the section goes on further she isn't in their lives anymore. When the woman is gone the boy simply says 'she's gone isn't she?', it's as if he never cared for her much in the first place, he doesn't seem hurt by the news. Therefore the novel is known as being non-oedipal as the boy has no desire to still be with his mother when she leaves them. As the mother is not in the present we get the impression McCarthy used her death to symbolise the loss of hope within the world. McCarthy uses non-linear flashback's for example when the boy is born, this flashback is important as it is one of the only times McCarthy state's the boy as the man's 'son'.
Throughout the section McCarthy writes in a post modern effect, 'Her cries meant nothing to him. Beyond the window just the gathering cold, the fires on the horizon'. McCarthy deliberately uses short, simple sentences, by doing this he elevates the post modern style.The lack of punctuation gives an unsettling read, it is as if the lack of punctuation represents the lack of order within the world, everything is corrupt. McCarthy proceeds into a conversation between the man and the boy, 'did you have friends?' yes. i did.' He again uses the post modern style as the reader has to infer who is talking, we don't know for sure.He also has a low cultured style and makes references to the seventies zombie horror with 'were the walking dead in a horror film' this links to the classic horror film dawn of the dead.

As the road rat is introduced McCarthy expands their conversations and describing him to the reader. This shows the tension within the section as McCarthy uses long sentences and short sentences within different orders for example , 'he let go of the belt and it fell in the roadway with the gear hanging from it. A canteen'.. This may introduce a theme of horror and tension. The road rat is a key part within the novel  as we see the man go up against him and he becomes the hero within the novel. However we now see the man in a different way. We see a contrast within the mans character he becomes violent and dangerous, which could make the reader wonder how different the man is to the 'bad men'.We question his intentions does he just kill and hurt others to protect the boy or does he do it because now, he can?
At the end of this section there is a mention of 'the good guys' this shows a social divide even though there is no existence of society as we know it. However as we are still under the impression that there is 'good guys' and bad guys' it gives the reader the impression that there is still a society within the world, maybe it is not totally destroyed.