The Meaning Behind "The Road"

As I progress "along" The Road, I continue to enjoy it for its story elements and brilliantly written characters.  However, does Cormac McCarthy's book about two survivors struggling to stay alive in a post apocalyptic world have a deeper meaning behind it?  Put simply, yes; McCarthy inputs small messages throughout the novel which all relate to the bigger meaning as a whole.  Clearly, the strong message behind The Road is that survival must not take away our humanity.  Let's break this down a bit more so that that vague message can make more sense.

First of all, McCarthy incorporates two types of characters in the novel - good guys and bad guys, both having the same goal of survival.  Good guys are people like the man and the boy (obviously).  The man makes it clear to his son that they are in fact different from the savage cannibals they run into.  There are also those who are helpless in the story, like the prisoners in the cannibals' basement, and the man who was struck by lightning, who are all also good guys as they do not cause harm to others in order to complete their goal.  That is the key and defining trait of these good guys - they all want to survive, but these people still have values from a previous world and do not cause harm to others in order to live.  

On the other hand, the bad guys are those like the cannibals, who will ruthlessly murder people and eat them to survive.  Of course, it is morally wrong, but their goal of survival is just as important to them as it is to the good guys.  

The boy and the man, who are good guys, cannot necessarily help the helpless people because they know doing so could jeopardize their own survival.  The decision to leave behind the man who was struck by lightning upsets the boy, but the man knows helping out may require that they give up some of their precious supplies.  

Therefore, where does one cross the line between good guy and bad guy?  McCarthy's point in the story is that survival can bring out the worst in people, but people must retain their humanity.  He uses the main characters to explain his message.  Throughout the novel, the boy constantly makes sure his papa is doing the right thing.  He constantly asks him if they are doing what the good guys would do.  For example, on page 128, he says, "We would never eat anybody, would we?" to which his father responds "No.  Of course not."  The man even makes it clear that even if they were starving they would not eat anyone, which reassures his son, and shows that these two characters retain their morals even though they are faced with the challenge of survival.  When they find the food in the bunker, the boy gives thanks to those who left the food there, saying, "Dear people, thank you for all this food and stuff.  We know that you saved it for yourself and if you were here we woudnt eat it no matter how hungry we were" (146).  This shows that he still cares for other people despite how horrible most people in that world are. Additionally, we see the struggle that the man goes through with morals.  He thinks about killing his son in order to protect him from the bad guys who would seek to use him as a source of food.  He horribly asks himself, "Could you crush that beloved skull with a rock?  Is there such a being within you of which you know nothing?"  (114).  The man cannot conceive the idea because he feels it would not be morally right.  Therefore, the man is able to keep his morals, definitely making him one of the good guys.  

By including people in the story who share the same goal, yet go about completing that goal differently, McCarthy is able to show his point.  Survival is a dangerous goal, and The Road displays how far people will go just to stay alive.  However, there are some who survive while keeping their morals, like the man and the boy, who are our main protagonists.  Because we follow their story, we are able to see the struggles with crossing the line between good guy and bad guy, but overall, they are able to keep their humanity and morals.