Death In Cormac Mccarthy's No Country For Old Men

“...but in this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.”

-Benjamin Franklin

In theory, the concept of death has always been a very accepted idea; people are born, and people will die. But, when the Grim Reaper comes knocking at everyone’s door, most people fight dying, which is a natural until it jeopardizes their loved ones. Death used to be a celebration for a new beginning, but in the modern age, death has become an end to a long journey, instead of the beginning of a new one. While the present day society fears death, human characteristics, such as greed and free will, often causes the loss of life. The personal choices people make in their daily lives leads to their different fates, good or ill. These choices will also impact the lives of everyone around them. Cormac McCarthy's No Country for Old Men illustrates that human greed will lead to destruction and that the idea of fate is often influenced by personal decisions.

The timeless human flaw, greed, has led to the downfall of stable relationships, strong families, and great nations. Greed leads people to forget about their previous moral standards simply so that they can acquire greater quantities of wealth, popularity, and power. Often, greed also leads people to be very sloppy in their endeavours. A prime example of this is the Roman Empire. During Rome’s rise to power, “restraint, honesty, and fairness” were the core values of Roman culture, and this helped ensure that “Rome’s ‘best men’” would lead the rising world power (“Greed, Power, and Prestige”).

They ignore how their actions impacted their fates. Throughout No Country for Old Men, Llewelyn never stops and thinks about why he has this spell of bad luck; he does not think that he should return the money to save his wife. Llewellyn tries to play hero when he was simply a