English III Mrs. Green The Road In the novel “The Road” a man and his son fight for their survival on an ash covered wasteland of what is left of earth after what is thought to be an apocalypse. On their journey traveling south on the road, they search for any food and supplies they can find, while taking shelter anywhere that seems safe. After this apocalypse, much of the human race has lost their sense of right and wrong. This has led people to murder, stealing, and even cannibalism. Unlike these savage people, the man has held onto what he believes are good morals. Knowing the importance of these morals he raises his son to live by them as well. In doing so, the man calls himself and his son the “good guys” and anyone that doesn’t follow these morals the “bad guys”. The main morals that separated the “good guys” from the “bad guys” was no eating other people, no stealing, no lying, always keep your promise, always help others, and never give up, always keep fighting. Throughout the novel these morals were tested or even broken in order to survive. The first instance of this was at the beginning of the novel when the man and his son encounter a man who has been struck by lightning on the edge of the road. Instead of doing the morally right thing and helping the lightning victim, the man and his son keep walking as if he wasn’t there. To the son this seemed cruel and unjust, but the father had different thoughts. He believed it to be a waste of time and supplies to aid a man in such a critical condition. In many other situations the man struggles to help others as well. This is primarily... ... middle of paper ... ...vel is that the father will never leave or abandon him, even after death, but this promise is almost broken at the end of the novel when the father is close to death and his life is fading away. In order for the father to keep his promise he tells him that he will always be able to talk to him in his imagination and that he will be always watching over him even if he isn’t truly with him because he will always be with him in his heart. This promise allows his son to keep moving forward without him and allow him to finish their journey without him. Without the morals that the father and son shared they would have never felt or shared the bond they had between one another. Which is what truly kept them alive and kept them fighting for survival. These morals gave them are reason to live and with them they will always be able to call themselves the “good guys”.
morals are acquired, and conformity to a standard of right is attained. In the novel The
In the work The Road by Cormac McCarthy a father and son struggle to survive in a post-apocalyptic world with evil surrounding them. They always refer to themselves as, “The good guys,” (McCarthy 66) and try to not become evil. They see things like cannibalism as evil, and would rather go hungry than succumb to this evil. The father constantly tries to keep the child’s eyes away from the gruesome scenes that characterize this environment.
1. In the book, the father tries to help the son in the beginning but then throughout the book he stops trying to help and listens to the mother. If I had been in this same situation, I would have helped get the child away from his mother because nobody should have to live like that. The father was tired of having to watch his son get abused so eventually he just left and didn’t do anything. David thought that his father would help him but he did not.
Cormac McCarthy in The Road portrays the man and the boy as “good guys” throughout the book even with the world collapsing around them by their catchy phrase “carrying the fire”. They remained good guys by feeding off each other’s company which also helped contribute to their strong father-son bond despite all the tragic events along the road.
This story contains an almost equal balance of good and evil, though it also raises questions of what is truly good. It blurs the line between good and selfish or thoughtless. Characters’ actions sometimes appear impure, but in the long run, are good.
Morality is a culturally based idea of right and wrong. In The Road, due to the aftermath of the unspecified cataclysm, the land was left desolate and the survivors are desperate. The world no longer has any remnants of the past thus culture and ethics do not exist. As a result, the remaining majority trivializes the use of morals due to desperation and in an attempt to survive. However, the protagonists are able to find solace in the goodness of each other. They
In conclusion, we can see that there were various “bad guys” throughout this movie. In the minds of these “bad guys”, the image of what was truly right and wrong was clouded by policies and money. Without John’s actions these “bad guy” characters may have let an innocent eight year old boy die, due to pieces of paper and coins. On a positive note; more or less of these “bad guys” did end up doing the right thing at the end of the movie. This movie shows the viewers that though there are “bad guys” in the world with selfish and uncivil actions, there is potentially hope for them to correct themselves, if they are shown what is truly right and just.
To begin, “On Morality'; is an essay of a woman who travels to Death Valley on an assignment arranged by The American Scholar. “I have been trying to think, because The American Scholar asked me to, in some abstract way about ‘morality,’ a word I distrust more every day….'; Her task is to generate a piece of work on morality, with which she succeeds notably. She is placed in an area where morality and stories run rampant. Several reports are about; each carried by a beer toting chitchat. More importantly, the region that she is in gains her mind; it allows her to see issues of morality as a certain mindset. The idea she provides says, as human beings, we cannot distinguish “what is ‘good’ and what is ‘evil’';. Morality has been so distorted by television and press that the definition within the human conscience is lost. This being the case, the only way to distinguish between good or bad is: all actions are sound as long as they do not hurt another person or persons. This is similar to a widely known essay called “Utilitarianism'; [Morality and the Good Life] by J.S. Mills with which he quotes “… actions are right in the proportion as they tend to promote happiness, wrong as they tend to produce the reverse of happiness.';
The boy constantly begs his father to be sympathetic and charitable to the drifters that they encounter on the road, but the father usually refuses or either puts up an argument before finally giving into the boy, and handing over one or two cans of food to the stranger. Although “the man” is in survival mode, he expresses no compassion for humanity and therefore represents “the bad guys”. “They came upon him shuffling along the road before them, dragging one leg slightly and stopping from time to time to stand stooped and uncertain before setting out again.”(McCarthy 49). “They followed him a good ways but at his pace they were losing the day and finally he just sat down in the road and did not get up again.”(McCarthy 49). “He was burntlooking as the country, his clothing scorched and black.” “One of his eyes was burnt shut and his hair was but a nitty wig of ash upon his blackened skull.”(McCarthy 49, 50). “What is wrong with the man?” “He’s been struck by lightning.” “Can’t we help him?” “Papa?” “No.” “We cant help him.” “The boy kept pulling at his coat.” “Papa?” “Stop it.” “Cant we help him Papa?” “No.” “We can’t help him.” “There’s nothing to be done for him.” “They went on. “The boy was crying” “He kept looking back.” (McCarthy 50). I was agitated with “the man” during this part of the novel, because I feel that he should have at least stopped and checked on the fee...
The West Side Story portrays the lives of two different gangs living in America, as well as their beliefs and examples of living a good life. The expectations of what people consider the good life to be may vary on a person’s morals and their dreams of what life is truly about. In this movie, whether or not these characters were good people, lived a good life, or lived in a good society is a very controversial topic.
THEME: The line between good and evil is sometimes unclear, and as a result, people often think that they are doing the right thing when it is actually the wrong action, and vice versa.
In Jack Kerouac's novel On the Road, the author tries to convey to the audience that everybody is naturally dishonest and morally deceitful. Morals are defined by one's religion, the laws of the country, or some combination of the two. One's identity captures and plays out that individual’s moral. My morals follow the Christian beliefs, Texas state laws, and the laws of the United States. Although one's own morals can change, basic things such as stealing and murder are wrong and illegal by federal law. Numerous characters performed many acts proving this point such as Montana Slim, who says in order to get money, follow a man down an alley and rob him, or Dean, who never feels remorse for beating Mary Lou after a fight. These along with other characters display such actions that show that everyone is morally deceitful.
...ealization that he should live as an innocent, free from the evil burden of guilt, allow this novel to be called a morality tale. Not only good, but also evil are linked to the concept of morality. However, acts of good or evil doing depend on the views of the person making the decision. Understanding that each and every person does not have the same viewpoint is a valuable lesson that Mulisch presents in his novel. Another lesson is coming to the realization that there is no need to feel guilty for something that cannot be controlled. These two moral lessons, presented in the novel, suggest that people should live a prosperous life. Even though good and evil are opposing concepts, they are necessary to piece together the puzzle known as the universe.
The Road is a phenomenal example of how raw human nature shapes peoples’ decisions. It addresses the behaviors of people neither informed nor controlled by a social order. In the essence of The Road, people’s actions are highly dependent on the person’s basic needs. A lack of basic human needs often results in the more disturbing view of human nature. (Gilbert pg. 43) Betrayal, suicide, and cannibalism are all examples of behaviors that human nature can bring out of people.
It seems as though there is so much more evil than good in the world today. We hear of war and fighting 24/7 but we rarely hear about the good things that happen. Everyone is born with both good and bad within them. We, as humans, must choose which one we want to be. In The Lord of the Flies, Ralph is good while Jack is evil. Ralph represents the good side of us while Jack represents the evil side. Although sometimes it is easier to be evil, it pays off to be good. The novel is a perfect example of how all people are born with both sides. At the beginning, the boys choose the good side, with morals and civilization. But as the story moves on, the boys find it more exciting to be on the bad side. It shows that all the boys are torn between good and bad and there is a very thin line that separates both. We realize that people are born inherently good and bad because in life there are always right and wrong choices, children are born good but are easily influenced to do bad, and it is always harder to do what is right than what is wrong.