What is the last line of The Road?

“Once there were brook trouts in the streams in the mountains. You could see them standing in the amber current where the white edges of their fins wimpled softly in the flow. They smelled of moss in your hand.

What is surprising about the ending of The Road?

The ending of the novel is surprisingly hopeful. After 200-odd pages of gore and wandering, and after The Man dies, leaving The Boy all alone, some kind souls take in The Boy. Throughout the whole book The Man and The Boy have been on the lookout for the “good guys” but they never seem to find them.

What caused the end in The Road?

In The Road by Cormac McCarthy, the apocalypse in which the father and son try to survive was caused by a meteor strike.

What does the brook trout represent in The Road?

In his closing prophetic lines, McCarthy is reminding us about the fragility of life and the brook trout image represents man’s knowledge of the world; everything we know about time and evolution can be held in the palm of our hand, and is symbolised by the patterns on a trout’s back.

What does the end of The Road mean?

Definition of the end of the road

: the end (as of a condition or situation) A loss in the primary elections will mean the end of the road for his campaign. They reached the end of the road as a couple a long time ago.

Are they cannibals at the end of The Road?

It’s posited that Guy Pearce’s character and his companions are actually cannibals rather than the saviors they seem to be and have been following the boy until his father died in hopes of securing their next meal.

How did brook trout evolve?

For a little background info, the brook trout was thought to have evolved to adapt living in the meltwater coming from receding glaciers. … It has been found that the glacial melt would have risen the levels of the river enough for the brook trout easily swim through and access the lake.

What happens to the boy at the end of The Road?

The novel ends with the boy welcomed into a new family in this new world that he must learn to inhabit. The question of his future, and the future of humanity remains. The boy talks with the woman about God, and he admits to the woman that it’s easier for him to talk to his father instead of to God.

What does the boy represent in The Road?

The Boy represents kindness and innocence. The Boy symbolizes hope to the new world as well as holy figure in many ways. McCarthy often describes The Boy using religious symbols and language.

What does end of the line mean?

Definition of the end of the line

: the end (as of a condition or situation) It will be the end of the line for me unless there are some changes around here.

Who is Ely in The Road?

An old man the man and boy meet on the road. He says his name is Ely, but later admits that this isn’t his real name, as he doesn’t want people talking about him or knowing where he is. He says he has “lived like an animal,” and is struck by the sight of the boy.

Were carrying the fire The Road?

In The Road, ‘carrying the fire’ symbolizes making moral decisions and maintaining hope for the future. The man inspires his son to persist in these ideals by telling him that there is protection for those who ‘carry the fire.

What is the message of The Road?

The main themes in The Road are the challenges of survival, the importance of family, and father-son relationships. The challenges of survival: In the novel, McCarthy emphasizes the importance of not only bodily survival, but also the survival of human generosity and kindness.

What does the flute symbolize in the road?

At the end of this section, the father learns that the boy has thrown away his flute, which indicates that at some point along their journey, the boy determined that music no longer had value. The boy’s actions indicate that he, too, might feel as if there’s no hope left.

Does the boy in the road believe in God?

He says he doesn’t believe in God, stating “There is no God and we are his prophets.” It seems contradictory at first, but I believe it means that there is no god that still watches over Earth, meaning that God does exist but gave up on humankind, but that the “good guys” are His prophets because they strive to live in …

Why is Ely the only named character in the road?

This character isn’t really named Ely; that’s just the name he gives to The Man. … He shares his name with a biblical prophet (Eli) from the Book of Samuel. And he certainly looks and acts part: he’s old (how is he still alive?) and hobbles down the road.

What does the old man they meet on The Road say his name is?

Ely
The old man also confesses that no one wants to die, either. He says that his name is Ely, but also says that’s a lie. He doesn’t want to give away his real name because he doesn’t want people talking about him.

What does the gun represent in The Road?

The flare gun represents one more way in which the boy is trying to understand what it is he and his father are trying to do as some of the last remaining good guys on earth.

What do they find buried in the yard Why do you think the original owners did not use it?

What do they find buried in the yard? The man and the boy find the door to a bunker buried under the ground. Why do you think the original owners did not use it? The original owners weren’t able to use it because they had died.

What is ironic about the attitudes of the rioters and the old man toward death?

What is ironic about the attitudes of the rioters and the old man toward Death? Their attitudes are ironic because nobody would go look for death at all, they would usually stay away from death.

Why doesn the old man tell his name?

Why doesnʼt the old man tell them his real name? He doesn’t want them telling other people about him. … In various encounters with other travelers on the road, the boy continually displays his faith in humanity and his humbling trust in others.

Where men Cannot live Gods fare no better?

We think “where men cant live gods fare no better” means that men carry their gods within them. When men get broken by suffering, their gods also disappear. It’s kind of a novel statement – that our happiness and comfort allow our gods to exist.