Novel studied-
The Road by Cormac McCarthy
Storytelling is a part of our lives
Every story has to have a point that is a why a number of children's book are widely read because they provide children with a good message, the stories put across a didactic point. A classic example of a children's book we studies in class was of Little Red Riding Hood. In the children's version the main message is not to trust strangers and stay on the right path however there are other meanings to the moral of the Red Riding Hood story, more adult interpretations could include; a mother worried about her daughter's chastity, the red on her cape symbolises a girl going through maturity or puberty (menstrual cycle), Charles Perrault the first publisher of the story shares a very alarming message at the end of his story to tell young girls how important it is for them to be aware of their surroundings and stay away from dangerous and strange men (the wolf represents a wrong man).
Use of stereotypes
Characters in the text we are studying steer away from stereotypes and usually in dystopian novels authors tend to break stereotypes and sculpt and present the characters in a nuanced style.
Authors create a voice for the characters and it can be either direct or reported.
Direct means to give a way to the narrative and move it forward by giving information and there is usually a point of view of the characters in the text wither third person or first person. In The Road, McCarthy mostly uses third person by referring to the characters as the 'the father' or 'the man' and 'the son' or 'the boy'.
Stories have elements and structure through which they flow and it becomes easier to tell the story-
Characters in the text we are studying steer away from stereotypes and usually in dystopian novels authors tend to break stereotypes and sculpt and present the characters in a nuanced style.
Authors create a voice for the characters and it can be either direct or reported.
Direct means to give a way to the narrative and move it forward by giving information and there is usually a point of view of the characters in the text wither third person or first person. In The Road, McCarthy mostly uses third person by referring to the characters as the 'the father' or 'the man' and 'the son' or 'the boy'.
Stories have elements and structure through which they flow and it becomes easier to tell the story-
A Dystopian novel other than The Road
The Maze Runner
When Thomas wakes up in the lift, the only thing he can remember
is his first name. His memory is blank. But he’s not alone. When the lift’s
doors open, Thomas finds himself surrounded by kids who welcome him to the
Glade—a large, open expanse surrounded by stone walls. Just like Thomas, the
Gladers don’t know why or how they got to the Glade. All they know is that every
morning the stone doors to the maze that surrounds them have opened. Every night
they’ve closed tight. And every 30 days a new boy has been delivered in the
lift.Thomas was expected. But the next day, a girl is sent up—the first girl to
ever arrive in the Glade. And more surprising yet is the message she
delivers.
The Maze Runner is a very famous dystopian novel by James Dashner which is now being made into a major motion
picture. The Maze Runner is tense and action-packed. The idea of being dropped somewhere really terrifying, with no
idea who you are or how you got there or how to get out, is so scary, and Dashner tells that story really well. He has a big ensemble cast full of really well drawn characters. They don’t all blend together, which could be a real threat in the world that he’s created. The one girl is strong and not frivolous
or a throw away.
As much as I liked this book, though, there were a couple of things that irritated me. I didn’t like the made up slang. Language takes a long time to change, and I didn’t believe that in two years these kids would have developed an entire replacement language for naughty words. Their slang is completely made up of clean replacements for dirty words. And they all use it. All of them. Even the new guy. Teenage boys aren’t going to stop using the F word because they’re dropped into a scary new world. In fact, they’d probably use it more. The slang was distracting to me. However, overall I enjoyed reading the book and I sincerely believe that James Dashner is a true storyteller.
The Maze Runner
When Thomas wakes up in the lift, the only thing he can remember
is his first name. His memory is blank. But he’s not alone. When the lift’s
doors open, Thomas finds himself surrounded by kids who welcome him to the
Glade—a large, open expanse surrounded by stone walls. Just like Thomas, the
Gladers don’t know why or how they got to the Glade. All they know is that every
morning the stone doors to the maze that surrounds them have opened. Every night
they’ve closed tight. And every 30 days a new boy has been delivered in the
lift.Thomas was expected. But the next day, a girl is sent up—the first girl to
ever arrive in the Glade. And more surprising yet is the message she
delivers.
The Maze Runner is a very famous dystopian novel by James Dashner which is now being made into a major motion
picture. The Maze Runner is tense and action-packed. The idea of being dropped somewhere really terrifying, with no
idea who you are or how you got there or how to get out, is so scary, and Dashner tells that story really well. He has a big ensemble cast full of really well drawn characters. They don’t all blend together, which could be a real threat in the world that he’s created. The one girl is strong and not frivolous
or a throw away.
As much as I liked this book, though, there were a couple of things that irritated me. I didn’t like the made up slang. Language takes a long time to change, and I didn’t believe that in two years these kids would have developed an entire replacement language for naughty words. Their slang is completely made up of clean replacements for dirty words. And they all use it. All of them. Even the new guy. Teenage boys aren’t going to stop using the F word because they’re dropped into a scary new world. In fact, they’d probably use it more. The slang was distracting to me. However, overall I enjoyed reading the book and I sincerely believe that James Dashner is a true storyteller.
The Road Synopsis
An apocalyptic event has struck and The
Road follows the journey of a father and son who struggle to survive with the
limited amount of food and supplies they have. They come across dangerous
situation in the form of cannibals who travel in a group and eat other people in
order to survive. The first dangerous situation they are put under is when the
man and the boy run into one of the cannibals who try to kill the boy but they
manage to escape when the man shoots the cannibal in the
head.
Due to the shortage of food and supplies the man and the boy look around a few houses and come across a basement in one of the houses full of captives that are to be harvested. The horrifying scene puts them in a dangerous place where the gang that lives in the house almost catches them, yet they manage to escape again. They continue their journey, on the verge of being starved, when they find a shelter filled with canned food and supplies. The duo stays there for three days but they hear a dog and in the fear of getting caught they run away from there. The man at this point begins to get very sick and starts coughing blood. The boy finds a house and they stay there for another few days with supplies like clothes and blankets.
They leave the house and start travelling towards the beach where they find a wrecked ship full of food and supplies such as a flare pistol and batteries. Their luck takes a wrong turn when the boy gets sick. The man is at his side trying to keep the boy alive and he soon recovers. However someone comes and steals their cart and supplies, they chase the thief down and catch up to him. The thief begs for mercy but the man makes him strip. The boy is upset with how his father treated the thief.
They continue to travel along the coastline when the man suddenly gets shot with an arrow that creates a nasty wound. Eventually the man suffers from severe illness and is not able to carry on due to his excessive loss of blood. He tells the boy to go on without him but the boy refuses and stays by his side. The man dies and the boy stays there for three days mourning his father’s death. A guy appears before the boy telling him to come with his family, there is a brief exchange, he says goodbye to his dad and goes with the guy. The family takes him and we discover that the dog that appeared before is the family’s dog. The novel ends on a note of hope: perhaps compassionate people are the ones that are able to survive in disastrous situations eventually re-building a tolerable world.
An apocalyptic event has struck and The
Road follows the journey of a father and son who struggle to survive with the
limited amount of food and supplies they have. They come across dangerous
situation in the form of cannibals who travel in a group and eat other people in
order to survive. The first dangerous situation they are put under is when the
man and the boy run into one of the cannibals who try to kill the boy but they
manage to escape when the man shoots the cannibal in the
head.
Due to the shortage of food and supplies the man and the boy look around a few houses and come across a basement in one of the houses full of captives that are to be harvested. The horrifying scene puts them in a dangerous place where the gang that lives in the house almost catches them, yet they manage to escape again. They continue their journey, on the verge of being starved, when they find a shelter filled with canned food and supplies. The duo stays there for three days but they hear a dog and in the fear of getting caught they run away from there. The man at this point begins to get very sick and starts coughing blood. The boy finds a house and they stay there for another few days with supplies like clothes and blankets.
They leave the house and start travelling towards the beach where they find a wrecked ship full of food and supplies such as a flare pistol and batteries. Their luck takes a wrong turn when the boy gets sick. The man is at his side trying to keep the boy alive and he soon recovers. However someone comes and steals their cart and supplies, they chase the thief down and catch up to him. The thief begs for mercy but the man makes him strip. The boy is upset with how his father treated the thief.
They continue to travel along the coastline when the man suddenly gets shot with an arrow that creates a nasty wound. Eventually the man suffers from severe illness and is not able to carry on due to his excessive loss of blood. He tells the boy to go on without him but the boy refuses and stays by his side. The man dies and the boy stays there for three days mourning his father’s death. A guy appears before the boy telling him to come with his family, there is a brief exchange, he says goodbye to his dad and goes with the guy. The family takes him and we discover that the dog that appeared before is the family’s dog. The novel ends on a note of hope: perhaps compassionate people are the ones that are able to survive in disastrous situations eventually re-building a tolerable world.
Narrative of setting