Chigurh: Chapter Summary And Review

The scene I am choosing to write about is the gas station scene. This scene takes place in chapter two of this book. In this scene Chigurh arrives at a filling station, fills his tank and proceeds to go inside and pay. The proprietor asks “You all getting any rain up your way?” (page 52) since he had noticed his Dallas license plate. To this Chigurh responds by asking if it’s any of his business and the proprietor answers by explaining he didn’t mean anything by it. After this short exchange Chigurh buys a bag of cashews. The man places his change on the counter the way a dealer in a casino would place chips. This is a gambling reference, and alludes to the idea the chance in each moment of our life. Chigurh intently stares the proprietor down as he eats away his cashews. The proprietor begins to feel a sense of

From this we are able to deduce that Chigurh completely ignores “social norms”. This also shows Chigurh’s ominous power, just his presence gives you a sense of fear. After this Chigurh asks “What’s the most you ever saw lost on a coin toss?” (page 55). The proprietor responds with “I don 't know. Folks don 't generally bet on a coin toss. It’s usually more like just to settle somethin.” (page 55). Chigurh then takes out a coin and flicks it into the air, landing it on his hand. He tells the man to call it. The proprietor asks with fear what he stands to win or lose, Chigurh explains that it wouldn 't change anything and that he must call it. The coin is a symbol of chance and free will in the determination of our faith. We know that Chigurh is trying to settle whether the proprietor will live or die, but he does not know that. This can be connected to the idea of fate on a larger scale. With every decision we make, we are gambling for our lives, even if we don’t realize it. Even though Chigurh is allowing the man to call the coin toss, he is still playing by his rules, so all free will is