Comments on: Discussing THE ROAD

By: Michele

Michele — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 21:05:35 +0000

It is one of the bleakest books, if not the bleakest, I’ve ever read. It has haunted me, so that is probably testament to its power. Right after I finished it, I hated it. I hated the ending. It has since grown on me a little. I didn’t and don’t see the “beauty” that other reviewers have written about. Yeah, the relationship between the father and son is nice, but it is expected, I think, from any parent. I didn’t see it as extraordinary, only the circumstances. I think I would have really liked it, if not for the end. I would not have left my son in that world alone without a stronger sense of hope. Something green. Some other living animal alive. Not with the cannibalistic crazies around. I would not have left him there. I would have at least given him a choice. He expressed desires to die throughout the story. He deserved a choice. Yeah, he seems to find other “good ones” after, but that seemed very contrived and convenient. If the man had met them BEFORE “leaving” then maybe. Plus, if there is no green life or animal life left, what is there to live for? I would not want him to become like the man in the cellar, and that is what was likely, a ten-year-old(ish) alone. But with the ocean seemingly dead and everything else… to me, it did not end hopefully, and I kept reading because I thought there would be some sense of possibility. Some little green bud, one little ray of sunshine breaking through, anything, but no. Just a memory, a thought of the past, not the future. I would have a hard time recommending it to anyone, though it was powerfully even in its starkness. It just did not enrich me as a human being, unless it made me more grateful for my life.

By: misha

misha — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 19:34:30 +0000

Thank you both for chiming in! I think there are valid reasons why these stories in literature and film are popular now and are popular in general, regardless of what’s going on at the time. These stories are definitely not new–Mad Max, The Stand, The Night of the Comet, etc. Part of the allure, I agree, seems to me comes from a cathartic place. Survival stories also capture the imagination and make a person wonder what they would do, how they would react in a given situation. In the same way that orphan stories are hugely popular (Harry Potter, anyone?), because we like to imagine ourselves rootless, adrift, alone, having to fend for ourselves, testing our mettle against the elements or those of lesser moral standing than ourselves. We love being the hero or heroine in our own stories.

See, you can take an hour to talk about this subject alone!

By: Cynthia

Cynthia — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 13:53:23 +0000

I read this book on the flight back from Chicago – very intense indeed! As to why this subject has become so popular in the last ten years – I disagree with that. Was not Stephen King’s “The Stand” a hit or Larry Niven’s “Lucifer’s Hammer” or David Brin’s “The Postman” – not to mention the movies like Mad Max, Waterworld, etc. I think the question isn’t why is it so popular NOW but why are we drawn to these types of stories at all? And I think it has the basis of a cathartic reaction – we feel better returning to our normalcy afterwards. Such as it is. That there is hope and there is a chance and that we will survive.
Having said that – I loved the story. I believe it finally topped ol’ Nevil Shute’s “On the Beach” as far as hopelessness. And I don’t necessarily disagree with the casting of Vigo as the father. However…they have also casted Charlize Theron as the wife. As you know – her part in the novel is very, very small….and by the casting of an “A-List” actress as this character – you already know they have tinkered with it – and so the story will not have the same impact. It’s a shame really.

By: Kristen

Kristen — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 21:05:40 +0000

I just finished The Road (and coincidentally posted it on it, too — check my blog tomorrow, if interested). I really enjoyed it…

I think we are so drawn to post-apocalyptical visions right now because we fear the repercussions of the past years of excess. Now that we are starting to wake up to the environmental effects of our current habits of consumption, we’re starting to freak out a bit. That’s one theory!