Good Guys and Bad Guys

The dire circumstances the survivors of the society in The Road are presented with, molds them into ruthless people who are frequently described as animalistic. On page 63, a man who is a part of the truck people has eyes that are described as “Eyes collared in cups of grime and deeply sunk. Like an animal inside a skull looking out the eyeholes."  The truck person is described as having an animal stuck inside of his skull looking out on the world. The harsh environment of the world is causing people to resort to inhumane survival tactics which result in them taking on an animal-like mentality. On page 98 it states "He trudged out through the drifts leaving The Boy to sleep under the tree like some hibernating animal." At the boy's young age, he should look peaceful, young and childlike while sleeping. He should not resemble a hibernating animal while asleep. The society of The Road  has marred the morality of humanity and the line between good and bad had been drawn paper thin. In the novel The Boy constantly asks his father if they are the good guys. On page 137 The Man reassures the boy that they are the good guys and says, "Okay. This is what the good guys do. They keep trying. They dont give up." With circumstances of living in a post-apocalyptic world the citizens are forced to make hard choices and their faith in humanity wavers. Is it okay for someone to kill another person in order for them to live? It it okay for a person to give into their animalistic urges and  become heartless all in the name of survival? The truck people kill others and eat them to stay alive and The Man is willing to kill people to protect his son. The choices that are made in The Road  causes The Boy to question whether they really are good people and if what they have done to survive is acceptable.