“There is a powerfully poetic effect in the simplicity of the language, by avoiding rhetorical flourish, and elaborate language McCarthy makes a stronger impact’
McCarthy’s simplistic language reflects the lack of emotion expressed from the characters, this is evident in key scenes, such as; when the mother leaves them. Her inconsiderate attitude towards her husband could be interpreted to her trying to make it easier for him, his memory of her is bitter and therefore less painful. By not trying to encourage the reader to empathise with any characters and rather have a negative perception towards them the reader also is made to find building relations difficult- as so do the characters in such a ‘gloomy world, which is slowly dimming’.
The slow, bleak rhythm highlights the never ending road in which they must follow, the monosyllabic tone encourages this and any increase in pace is therefore highlighted.
However, these ‘climax’s’ are extremely brief, for example; when the father is shot in the leg and we follow him into the house, the excitement is over within a few paragraphs, this ensures they make no emotional attachment and do not dwell on the past as we must not do also.
When emotion is portrayed and we experience rhetorical flourishes, the simplistic language only further reminds us that they are ‘the living in a dead world’, whilst they are alive they still feel emotions, but once this emotional expression has been shown, e.g. finding the mutilated, naked bodies and the father’s fear and desperation to leave, our sympathy lasts until it is resolved and we are back to simplistic and monosyllabic tone, where we are reminded the road must continue.
McCarthy’s blunt description highlights the reality as he does not try to hide it under complex language, and rhetorical flourishes.
The father and son’s conversations express a slight poetic rhythm; this is constant and remains throughout their conversations through the novel, ‘What if somebody finds it? They won’t find it. I hope they don’t. They won’t. ’ this is also evident through McCarthy’s narration; ‘The hour. There is no later. This is later’ again the use of blunt simplistic language emphases their reality, achieved by the short, clear points and this poetic rhythm almost creates empathy ‘all things of grace and beauty such that one holds them to one’s heart have a common provenance in pain. Their birth in grief and ashes. So, he whispered to the sleeping boy. I have you.’ The moments of elaborate, expressive language are rare and therefore create a greater impact.
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