Too Much Desperation

Cormac McCarthy's The Road, is much more than a story of a man and his child trying to survive. McCarthy introduces us to the future world, one full of corruption and desperation. As he focuses on the relationship of father and son, he walks us through a path of darkness, bigger than just what he literally describes. Together, both characters travel south throughout the road just like the other few survivors. Along the way, they encounter many difficulties such as lonileness, fear, and hunger. However, behind each of these complications there is a bigger story. At this point people are running out of options, making cannabalism an alternative to face hunger. The father has known this trouble all along, but it is now time that the youngster understands the bigger picture. The child has always known they have been running away, but as  they move forward, they have been forced to see the real situation.

Cannabalism is a scary word. When thought of it, most of us think it only happens in movies. However, this is not true.  As I read The Road and learned about this subject, I remembered a book I had read in the past, Milagro En Los Andes. The book written by Nando Parrado, narrates a true story of a plane crash, where at a certain point cannabalism was also an option. After the tragic accident of the famous rugby team, the few survivors had to deal with hunger, therefore decided to eat their teammates. Despite how cold it sounds to eat another human being, sometimes its the only way out in order to survive. Even though The Road is a ficticious novel, it deals with bigger aspects that one could have thought.

Living similar situations dealing with survival, cannabalism is present in both stories. However, this option is banned for some as they think it won't be a remedy for their survival struggle. This is the thought of the father in The Road, who transmits the same message to his son. When the child realizes the people they had seen in the house were going to be eaten by others, he is concerned and asks his father if they would too. However, since they are "the good guys" (77), the father decisively responds, "No. Of course not... We are starving now"(128). The drastic decision of eating someone else, is not the one adopted by this small family.