Hope And Humanity In The Road By Cormac Mccarthy
In The Road by Cormac McCarthy, the "fire" is a very powerful symbol of both hope and humanity. In a bleak world with no hope or morals, the remaining humans are forced into scavenging and hiding; other human beings have nothing to offer but cruelty and danger through cannibalism. Although the mankind loses touch with its humanity, the man and the boy offer some kind of hope for humanity, and it is captured through the phrase, "carrying the fire" (83). Although it seems that "fire" was the main cause of the destruction of civilization, after some kind of unidentified catastrophe that has overtaken the world, in my opinion, it is also the foundation of humanity. Perhaps to carry the fire brings the redemption of hope and the remaining grains
of humanity in the world. And if humanity is to return to the world, it will be through the efforts of the “good guys” like the man and the boy. Earlier in the book, when the boy is scared, the man assures him that they will be okay and “nothing bad is going to happen [them]” because they are ”carrying the fire” (83). And as long as they carry this symbolic "fire" and it still burns, there is still hope for life's redemption and there are still pieces of humanity left in such a bleak world.
of humanity in the world. And if humanity is to return to the world, it will be through the efforts of the “good guys” like the man and the boy. Earlier in the book, when the boy is scared, the man assures him that they will be okay and “nothing bad is going to happen [them]” because they are ”carrying the fire” (83). And as long as they carry this symbolic "fire" and it still burns, there is still hope for life's redemption and there are still pieces of humanity left in such a bleak world.