More often than not in Jimmy’s case it seems like he remembers more of the bad times, for example his parents never remembered his birthday, “his father would put them all through an awkward excuse about this really, really special and important date had somehow just slid out of his head (50).” “His mother on the other hand could never seem to recall how old Jimmy was or what day he was born (50).” I think “Snowman” yells out “I am not my childhood,” because he just wants to forget all the times his parents had forgotten his birthday. In a child’s life the date of your birth is such a big deal and Jimmy felt by his parents always forgetting, meant they didn’t care about him. He felt alienated and just wanted to forget everything in his past including them because after all his miserable childhood was their faults. But “Snowman” just couldn’t forget his past because he couldn’t stop his memories from taking control, it’s like he had them on replay. “He hates these replays. He can’t turn them off, he cant change the subject, he cant leave the room (68).” Snowman’s memories control his everyday life and don’t let him enjoy the world around him putting him in a state of depression.
B1) “The man” and “the boy” in “The Road” have no one else but each other, so their reliance upon each other is to the fullest. To be able to play a role of a parent, one must be both emotionally and mentally strong. “The man,” not only has to keep his morale up and will to survive, but also has to convince the boy that there’s a reason to keep going despite the struggles for survival they are faced with time and time again. To be a parent means to be a protector, even if that means killing someone who is a threat to your child. “The man” shows he is capable of this duty by doing just that. “This is my child, he said. I wash a dead man’s brains out of his hair. That is my job (74).”
This book teaches the reader that a parent has to be able to put their child’s needs and wants before their own. Throughout “The Road,” “the man” shows various examples of this. Giving the boy more food then he gives himself and making sure the boy is covered up enough so he doesn’t freeze to death, this all before he worries about covering himself up. He also does some things the boy wants that could have been potentially detrimental to their survival such as not killing the dog when it is obvious that they need the food. “He looked down at the boy. Shivering in his coats. He bent over and kissed him on the gritty brow. We won't hurt the dog, he said. I promise (82).” Also, “the man” helps out others, giving them food, when they barely have enough for themselves, but that’s what “the boy” wants and “the man” no matter how unhappy, usually obliges.
Another thing that “The Road” teaches the reader about being a parent, is that a parent needs to be both the teacher and the student. “The man” in “The Road,” especially has to be the teacher in the circumstances they find themselves in. “The boy” only knows the world they live in now and not the world he was conceived in. Also, “the man” is his only companion, so “the man” has to take on many different roles. He does things he wouldn’t otherwise have to do such as being the teacher, the friend, the mentor, and the guardian. “The boy” is thirsty for knowledge and it’s easy to tell in the story that he’s very curious about the world that use to be. I think it sometimes frustrates the man when the boy continuously asks questions, but nevertheless, he still answers to the best of his ability. One example of the boy being completely unfamiliar with the previous world is: “He withdrew his hand slowly and sat looking at a Coca Cola.”
“What is it papa?”
“It’s a treat. For you.”
“What is it?” (23)
“The boy” doesn't know what a simple Coca Cola is. It's hard to imagine living in a world where children or grandchildren don't know what simple luxuries are that are taken for granted. “The boy” has so much faith in his father that he would believe almost anything he says, but it’s not like he really has a choice not too; it’s the only thing he knows. “The boy” teaches the man what it is to love and care for someone with a whole heart and to live fully for that person.
B2) Everyone has their own definition of hope. Depending on the person’s predicament, struggle, or situation they find themselves in, that’s what shapes their definition. I personally would say that I saw hope in “The Road”. It’s not the kind of hope I would have in my life, but if I were to put myself in their shoes, it’s what their hope would look like. The whole book is about a man and his son’s journey to find something better, a better life and a better surrounding. “You forget what you want to remember, and you remember what you want to forget (12).” I think “the man” is trying to tell his son that all the stuff he’s seen in the past, good or bad will always be with him and make him stronger because throughout the book they are faced with so many life-threatening obstacles, from almost starving on multiple occasions to crossing roads with the “bad guys”, but yet they never gave up, they never decided that death would be a better alternative. For example, “the man” says to “the boy,” “When your dreams are of some world that never was or of some world that will never be and you are happy again then you will have given up. Do you understand? And you can’t give up. I wont let you (189).” The father is telling his son never to settle for less because when you do then your life might as well be over, there’s nothing left to live for once you give up.
They could have given up, just like the man’s wife and the son’s mother, but what would that prove? What if there was actually something better at the end of the journey that was worth living for? Although they were put into some severe situations, they always found a way out or always found something to keep them surviving for a few more days. They were the lucky ones, they were better off than the blind man in the road they came across or the poor family they found in the cellar of an abandoned house, who’s body parts had been cut off. They had each other and that’s all they needed.
The boy and father may not be hopeful of finding a brand new world full of life, color, and beauty, but they are hopeful in finding something, anything, better than where they are at now. The book is solely based on hope. A small family journeys across America in hopes to find something better. A dark desolate world, how could anyone not be hopeful that they find a better place? Also, they are in such a state that if they can get through each day, not many of us have to worry about getting through our day-to-day lives while facing our everyday problems. The book makes our problems insignificant and easy to overcome and to deal with.
Although, “the man” stays hopeful throughout the book, he knows not to hope for things that just can’t be. For example, “he knew that he was placing hopes where he’d no reason to. He hoped it would be brighter where for all he knew the world grew darker daily (213).” Here “the man” is talking about going to the coast in hopes to find a better place, but he realizes that it’s not really worth getting his hopes up for because the coast is potentially going to look just like, or maybe even worse than, everywhere they have been.
Another way this book is hopeful is thinking that if more and more read this they may have an idea what the world may look like if we continue to treat it and abuse it the way we have been. If they realize that our actions are the main cause of our world potentially looking like that, I really think they would rethink some of the choices they make when it comes to the environment. It may be hopeful thinking to believe that this book could have such an impact, but I believe that might be one of the points to “The Road.”
Works Cited
Atwood, Margaret. Oryx and Crake: a Novel. New York: Anchor, 2004.
McCarthy, Cormac. The Road. New York: Vintage, 2006.
