The+Quest+3



THE QUEST **As represented in the novel "The Road" **

The Man and the Boy, a father and son.
 * __OUR QUESTERS__ **

"They set out along the blacktop in the gunmetal light, shuffling through the ash, each the other's world entire." p. 6 __A PLACE TO GO:__

To Travel South to the Coast

"Where are we going? We're going South. Okay." p. 60

"There would be no surviving a winter here." P.4 __A STATED REASON TO GO THERE:__

1.TO SURVIVE. What else do you do when everything around you is nothing??

"The boy stood up and got his broom and put it over his shoulder. He looked at his father. What are our long term goals? he said. What? Our long term goals. Where did you hear that? I dont know. No, where did you? You said it. When? A long time ago. What was the answer? I dont know. Well. I dont either. Come on. It's getting dark." p. 160-161 2.TO FIND OTHER "GOOD GUYS." "The man started to answer. But he didnt. After a while he said: There are people. There are people and we'll find them. You'll see." p. 244 __CHALLENGES AND TRIALS:__

1. THE BAD GUYS. There are always bad guys. In this book though the bad guys aren't some power hungry villian set on world domination; they are hungry people set on eating other humans. They are a group of people who wear red scarves. They are those who have nothing left and instead of trying to survive under circumstances they know they can't beat they decide to overcome starvation and survive by eating the flesh of the people they encounter or that they know. Besides, all that really matters is that you make it, right?

"If it's a commune they'll have barricades. But it may just be refugees. Like us. Yes. Like us. What if it's the bad guys? We'll have to take a risk. We need to find something to eat." p. 79 2. THE WEATHER. How do you stay warm when the only warmth you have is on the few nights when you are able to make a fire? The man has to worry about staying dry in order for them to stay alive. Plus, the harsh wintery conditions make travel very difficult and they have no choice but to keep moving forward for survival.

3. STARVATION. There is nothing left that grows. Only various stores of canned goods that the man and the boy may find on rare occasions. The man and the boy constantly struggle to fight off death by starvation while still maintaining their humanity.

"Why do you think we're going to die? We dont have anything to eat. We'll find something." p. 101

"It's a dog, he said. A dog? Yes. Where did it come from? I dont know. We're not going to kill it, are we Papa? No. We're not going to kill it." p.82 4. STRANGERS. When traveling on the road the man and boy encounter a variety of strangers and the boys first wish is to help the strangers. To give them something even when the man and boy have next to nothing. Usually, the man ignores the boy's wishes and reasons with him however when they meet the old man named ELY, (though that is not his real name) the man fails to reason with the boy and they help the old man.



5. TIME. In all honesty, surviving without food and when you can not stop for a break will wear you down because in the end either death or the bad guys will catch you. Eventually it will come down to if you have enough time. It almost seems like the man and the boy are fighting against time, delaying the inevitable in their stuggle to survive.

6. LOSS OF INNOCENCE. How do you protect a young boy when all he ever sees is death and murder when all he ever feels is fear? When he grows up in a world where he has seen no other little boys? When his father puts the revolver in his hands so that he can be protected? "The man fell back instantly and lay with blood bubbling from the hole in his forehead. The boy was lying in his lap with no expression on his face at all." p. 66 7. DEATH. When everybody else is out to get you, the last thing you want to be worrying about is death. But it is something you must always be worried about. Because even if the bad guys don't get you, eventually when you run out of food then death will be paying you a visit. In this story, death is openly viewed as a part of life, even in the eyes of a child.

"Every day is a lie, he said. But you are dying. That is not a lie." p. 238 The man also struggles with the concept of staying alive. Without the boy, he probably would not. Sometimes he even ponders about putting the boy and himself out of their misery. He battles with these thoughts constantly. The boy also has death on his mind all of the time, having been exposed to it all his life, the threat of it being completely real.

"There were few nights lying in the dark that he did not envy the dead." p. 230

"But he knew that if he were a good father still it might well be as she had said. That the boy was all that stood between him and death." p. 29 __THE REAL REASON TO GO:__

To create meaning out of nothing. There is nothing else for the man to do. They cannot stay put due to weather and supplies, so they must travel south, but the man is also just moving forward, staying alive, keeping strong for his son. He is not going to give up so easily. He realizes that he probably will not outlive his son, so he is trying his best to not only show his son //how// to survive in this ravaged world but also to give him a reason to.

"I want to be with you. You cant. Please. You cant. You have to carry the fire. I dont know how to. Yes you do. It is real? The fire? Yes it is. Where is it? I dont know where it is. Yes you do. It's inside you. It was always there. I can see it." p. 279



__A few questions:__

1. How and why does The Road fit the quest archetype? How does it not?

2. Why do you think the man and the the boy are traveling South?

3. Does this story include concepts of gaining self-knowledge?

4. Could the man be characterized as a "hero"? Could the boy? Why?

The Road works as a quest story, for there are two people on a journey who face many challenges and seek a destination with purpose. Our theme functions as the general plotline of the story. It's what moves the story forward. We chose quotes and pictures that went along with each aspect of the quest model to show how it is represented in the novel. We also added a song to help set the mood that this story presents.

--- Music © To 10 Years Song playing: So Long Good-bye media type="custom" key="3478860"
 * Page by Michael, Clint, Maria, Paige, & Jillian**