Key Episodes

 finding the cellar of naked and mutilated people (pp. 112-121)

 This episode is a build up of tension. McCarthy uses shock to engage the reader as we and the boy and man expect them to find food in the celler when infact we discover the mutilated people. The boy seems more wary and almost has a sense that they shouldn't venture to far "Papa, the boy said. We should go. Papa" the use of the word "Papa" indicates that the boy is pleading with his dad to leave, and that he is so desperate for his dad to listen to him. However the dad is the one how makes the decisions and he is very clear and factual about the reason why he makes the decisons "We've got to eat" is a short, simple response which contrasts to the boys pleads. The description of the house reveals that once there were people, families living "To the left through the doorway stood a large walnut buffet in what must have been the diningroom" This shows that normality had once taken place in this house, however this is contrasted by "Fine Morris paper on the walls, waterstained and sagging" this shows how the house is no longer a place of comfort but a place of survial "There were mattresses and bedding arranged on the floor in front of the hearth" The Idea of home or a house being a place of comfort and love is taken over by this image of a dirty place that is run down, and yet people are still willing to live in it. This highlights the deperateness of the situation. As they approach the cellar the man becomes increasingly impatient with the boy "He stopped. Listen to me, he said Just stop it" This could be seen as harsh and unloving of a father to be talking to his scared child in this way, but McCarthy does this to remind us as readers that the boy must be emotionally strong in order to survive and this emotional strength is shown through the dads often cold treatment of the boy. When they first enter the cellar it is a complete shock becasue they were expecting to find food for their survival, but instead the first thing they are confronted by are naked males and females. "On the mattress lay a man with his legs gone to the hip and the stumps of them blackened and burnt. The smell was hideous" This image given to the readers is horriffic as we did not expect this. It shows the awful sitaution the people are in as they have turned to cannabalism in order to survive. It also shows how civilization has turned back in time,as people are eating each other .The man is also very shocked "Jesus, he whispered" this tells us that the man is truely in awe of what he has seen. Once the shock has gone, panic then quickly takes over as he grabs the boy and they both run. Again they ignore the plea's of help, which may seem harsh, but the man knows that if they do not leave that they will soon join them. Many religious refrences are used "Christ" "Jesus" "God" but these are used in a negative way which could suggest that the man see's no hope in God or faith, and has given up/ has no faith in God's help. There is more panic and fear as the boy sees the "bad guys" coming back towards the house. This creates alarm as there is a threat that the boy and man could be caught and end up like the people in the cellar. This is shown when the dad asks the boy to shoot himself as he would rather them die then be in the cellar. This is an extremely unthinkable decison to ask of a young child, and is also a heartbreaking decision for a parent to have to make. "You put it in your mouth and point it up.....Do you understand? Stop crying" the dad is being heartless in the way he speaks because he tells his child to "Stop crying" when the boy is so scared and probarly doesn't understand the enormity of what his dad is asking him to do. The dad is trying to be strong for the both of them so he has to hold himself together. McCarthy does this to show the measures they were willing to go to and how bad their situation has become. There is a change of the style of writing when the dad is thinking to himself about what he should do. "Could you crush that beloved skull with a rock?" the dad here is questioning himself of how far he would go to prevent his child from harm, which would mean killing him himself. McCarthy does this to give the reader a insight into the mans thoughts, and to put the reader in the mans shoes "You" is directed at the reader, could you do this to your child? This is very personal as we as reader get to witness the true fear and normally hidden emotion of the man. The man realises that he could not do kill his son, so instead he does his beat to reassure him and to comfort him. "Kiss him" "I won't  leave you" this is a more caring, improved side to the relationship as we see the man try his best to make his son feel safe and secure. This episode disturbed me as the treatmeant of the people in the cellar was appaling, even though it is about survival of the fittest, the actions that people took shows the horror of the world they live in.

- the baby on the spit (pp. 210-215)
This episode is very distrubing as we see the harsh reality and lengths that people are going to in order to survive. The silence creates an eerie atmosphere and creates tension becasue we are waiting for something bad to happen, like the people cooking to come back and capture the man and boy. However we do see the dad actually listen to the boy this time "It could be a trap papa" "Okay lets wait a while" this shows that the dad is taking into consideration about how the boy feels in situations like this and to make him feel at ease, he agrees with him. The boy see's the baby first, but no description is given. This creates tension as the readers wonder what the boy has seen. The baby is described as "Headless and gutted and blackening on the spit" this image is dreadful and shocking. The treatment of adult like this would be seen as horrific, but it is so much worse that it is an infant. This infant is innocent, to young to do any wrong so the fact that an innocent baby would have been put through this torture is awful The readers would be disgusted by this image and would realise how bad humanity has become.  The man repeats "I'm sorry" this could suggest that he filled with guilt that the young boy has seen so much bad, becasue of him.This was too much for the little boy as he doesn't speak. When he does speak, it is about the baby which tells us that the image of the burnt infant has been playing on his mind. The does not seem to pushing to boy to talk, and its like he's realised that its alot for a young child to take in. The questions he asks show is innocence "Where did they find it? Could there be another one somewhere?" his questions show that he really is too young to be understand the complictions of the events. The odd things that are scattered by the side of the road show that life had once taken place, the abandoning of them shows that life itself has been abandoned, like there was no need for "tools" in the same way there is no need for life. This episode for me was very distressing as the idea witnessing that sight is too much. Its alot to take in for me as a reader, so its not possible to imagine what its like for the boy.


 - getting to the shore (pp. 227 - 230)

The arrival to the shore is built up as being something great, like theres hope at the shore. McCarthy does this to build up the hope of the father and son and the readers too as we don not know what to expect at the shore so its possible that something good could be there. Its does bring relief as the boy and man are able to stcok up on blankets and canned food which makes their chance of survival a little bit higher. "We did good, didnt we Papa?" this shows that the boy is proud of thier achivement together and perhaps he is seeing his father as a "good man finally" this suggests that the boy is a little happy which makes the reader feel happy that things are looking up for them. While the boy is more optomistic, the dad has doubts that good will come form the shore. "He knew he was placing hopes where he'd no reason to" this shows that man knows that the worst is still not over, this creates tension as the readers wonder what could possibly be worse than what has already happened to them. His doubts are shown through the description of the people that had died through the "cholera epidemic" McCarthy creates a grim atmosphere by desrcibing the dead "The dull green antique coppers spilled from out the tills of thier eyesockets onto the stained and rotted coffins" this suggests that the man can see himself becoming one these dead people, as he is described as "Like a man waking in a grave" this shows that death constantly surrounds them. Life is never described which makes the description of death appear to be normal. The actual finding of the shore is sudden, there is no dramatic build up. McCarthy does this to highlight how the shore brings no hope, its just the same as every location. The suddeness of it is a harsh reality to the man and boy that the shore brings no escape. "He could see the disappointment in his face" this shows that the idea of the shore had been so great, and brought hope that the boy was let down by it. "I'm sorry its not blue, he said" this tells us that the man feels guilty that he made this big build up to the shore, and he feels he has let the child down as it was not what they expected. "Cold. Desolate. Birdless" this description of the sea tells us that it was bleak and no different from the other places. The reader feels sorry for the man and the child as they thought that the shore would have brought some good to them, seeing as they traveled so far. This episode to me, although a the shore was a disappointment, brings a bit of relief as they find more food and supplies even though they soon run out. For me it shows that there really is no escape for these two people and I feel that they will be stuck in this situation.

- the theft of the man and boy's belongings (pp. 270-278)

The discovery of the theft of their belongings is sad as all their supplies that help them to survive have gone. This creates tension becasue we wonder if they what will happen to them without their belongings and if they can survive any longer. Anger takes over the man "You stupid ass" whilst the boy beings to cry. This shows that the man is capable of doing something bad, as he is very angry and would want revenge. There is a build up of tension as they go looking for the cart becasue they don't know if one man has taken it or there is a group of people which would be dangerous. The tension is built up further as the day is ending which creates panic as they are running out of time. The man has a weapon which could indicate that he is willing to murder them to take their belongings. This shows the desperateness of thier situation as people are willing to commit murder for a limitied supply of food. The thief is portrayed as the "bad guy" becasue he has taken thier food. However the role is reversed when the dad orders him to hand over his belongings. This is seen as harsh and unfair, but the man is trying to teach the man a lesson. The boy would see now see his dad as the bad guy becasue he pleads with his dad not to hurt the thief or take his clothes. "Papa please dont kill the man" but the man does not appear to take notice of the boys pleas which suggests that he is trying to appear strong infront of his son by not letting this man go without punishment. This again reinforces the message of "Every man for himself". The man does appear bad infront of his son becasue he "Steals" the thiefs clothes. The boy would not think that his father is a good guy anymore becasue he has himself commited a crime.The reader may see the stealing of the thiefs clothes by the man as harsh, but McCarthy does this to show that the bad guys must be punished for thier actions in order for the good guys to survive. The boy is more saddened by the action of his father than the theft of thier belongings which suggests that he expected better from his father as he thought they were the good guys. The man does not seem to realise that his actions affect the way his on thinks about him, becasue the boy probarly thinks the man is now bad, when infact he was just angry and wanted to punish the thief to ensure their personal safety. The convasation that takes place after they have retrived their belongings shows how the boy really feels about the relationship he has with his father. "Your not the one who has a worry about everything" "He looked up, his wet and grimy face. Yes I am, he said. I am the one" the boy thinks like this becasue his father acts quite reckless in the way he handles situations and the decisions he makes. Becasue the man never lets his emotions show, the boy thinks he is the one who worries the most about things. But the dad has to remain strong to get them through the tough times, so he feels like he can't let his son see him as weak otherwise they wouldn't survive. This episode made me feel anger towards the thief as he had no right to take their things. However I do not think it was fair for the man to take the thiefs clothes becasue he had already got his own belongings back  so why would he steal someone elses? This makes him, in my eyes, appear just as bad as the thief.



Remember to write about 


How the episode impacted on you?
What was the writer doing to evoke this response?
Plot progression (what will happen next?)
Your experience (change of mood? A ligher moment? Increase or release of tension?)
How does this develop character and their relationship?
The techniques employed by McCarthy. Is the language in keeping with the rest of the novel? Are there particular symbols or images that are foregrounded?
Is this in fact a key episode? What makes it important? How does it stand out in a novel without chapters or chapter titles?