Characters

__Boy__--The innocent one of the duo, but then again, he //is// just a child. Throughout the novel, he asks his father repeatedly if they are "the good guys." Every time, the man replies that they are; yet when they meet a stranger along the road, the man wants to continue on their way and ignore the stranger. The boy, however, wants to help and share food with the other person, even though he doesn't have much to give. Therefore, when the man says that he and the boy are, in fact, "good guys," this causes some debate.

The boy has an innocence that comes with not living the average life. He has not experienced someone being rude toward him or unkind name calling. He has not been subjected to vulgar language or risque scenes. The fact that he is naive presents itself a lot during the novel. He uses simple language and conversation skills due to lack of education and culture. He knows no other world than the one condemned of tragedy that he was born into. He trusts too easily because he does not know the feeling of betrayal. His father persuades him easily because people do not show him other options. His innocence, in a way, makes him a better person. He's never been taunted therefore he doesn't know how to do so. The boy wants to give the strangers they come across chances to prove that they are trustworthy. He's poor, but wants to share. Growing up in this cruel atmosphere has left the boy with admiral traits. Also, the boy loves his father deeply. He only really knows that one particular person. He treats his father with more respect than most do in this modern culture because he sees the sacrifices that have been made. Most would assume that the boy is troubled due to the fact that he grew up without a mother. In this case though, he is used to only the attention and undivided love provided from a single person, which is enough. He does not ache for more members in his life because he doesn't know what it's like to have them. A person can't miss something he/she has never had.

__ Man __ --The father of the boy and therefore the tougher one. He tells the boy that they are both "carrying the fire," although what this means is unclear to the boy. He tries to hide the signs of death and destruction from the boy, most likely because he wants to protect him. Along their journey, it becomes quite obvious that the man will do just about anything to ensure that the boy survives, even if it ends the man's life. Although what is not understandable is the fact that the man does hide death from his son, when in reality, the man will not be around forever and the boy is bound to see his own father die.

The Man, or Papa, in The Road holds many traits. The elements that he has make him the complex and meaningful character that he is. The strongest attribute that he holds in his walk to trying to survive is his hopefulness. He is hopeful in finding a better place for him and the boy. That when they reach the coast, which was their main destination most of the story, there will be a improved world. He was also hopeful in surviving. If he would not have had hope of living through all the horrifying events they both would have died like a lot of the others. The man was also hardened. He was tough and acted as if he had a hard shell around his feelings. He acted like this because of the dark world he had to try and live in. There was nothing making him happy except for his son. Anyone would be hardened in that situation; there were no rainbows and skipping around. The man seemed to be always creating things, he made lanterns, fires, ways of carrying their food, and fixed the shopping cart numerous times. This makes the man clever and ingenious. It is hard to say if one can consider the man to be sentimental, caring, and compassionate or not. Toward his son he is, but toward the people they pass on the road not so much. The man cares for his son more than anything else. He does anything he has to for him. If it were not for the father caring for boy the mother would have taken him with her when she took her own life. He was also very concerned about the boy, in a caring way. He constantly was checking for his heart to still be beating at night and would always give the boy the first and last of anything. How much he cared and was compassionate toward the boy also showed how much he loved his son. The love he had is what kept them both alive and moving along the road everyday of their lives. Toward strangers that passed the boy always wanted to help, but the man continually refused to until the boy begged him enough that he almost had to due to the boy pestering him about it. The man was also internally strong. Physical he was strong but still weak due to not having the right nutrition. But internally his strength was persevering. He held the strength of surviving, and keeping his son alive. He was “carry the fire” the fire of wanting to stay alive and not die. Even his name held a sort of power to it. “The Man” when most hear the word man they think, older, mature, strong, educated, polite, and a leader. The father or man in The Road held those and many more.

===The "new mom" -It is hard to imagine just how exactly the boy feels about his mother. I am sure there is a natural love he feels towards her seeing as how he came from her, but I often wonder if he ever feels hatred towards her. His mother left him to suffer in the messed up world without her. Does he ever feel like she let him down? If I were to put myself in the boy’s position, I would most likely feel as though my mother wasn’t strong enough mentally to handle the struggles. Pondering on all the feelings that may be present in the boy’s mind, I wonder how he will handle the coming of a new mother-like figure. Is he going to be able to trust her? ===

===The young boys mother -I’m sure the boy feels several emotions towards his mother. To the normal reader, the mother might seem as though she is selfish and weak. Although I feel emotions similar to those, there is another view that could be taken from the actions that this woman made. Let’s pretend that the mother never walked away that cold night, and that she had no intension of killing herself. Would she have been strong enough emotionally and physically to carry on through the tough struggles she would face? If she would have carried on through life with her family, she would have had to see some pretty harsh things. If I were to watch one put a knife to my son’s neck, my first reaction would be to run to his rescue immediately. In a case like that, the mother probably would have watched her son die right before her; and then watch her husband shoot and kill the man who was holding the boy captive. That is just one of the many possibilities of distraught this woman would have gone through. === The mother in The Road to me was distasteful. She was hopeless and heartless. To add to her unattractiveness the mother was also self-absorbed. The mother did not want to be alive. She choose to take her own life instead of staying alive in the world that had turned harsh. Not only did she want to take her own life, she wanted to take her sons as well. She wanted this because she did not want the boy to be in the bad world, but that I believe is rude. The mother was eager to take care of herself and herself only. The man never crossed her mind, she considered the boy but it seemed like she did not care a single bit about her husband.