Examples Of Archetypes In The Road By Cormac Mccarthy

Richard Le

Jeremy Zitter

English A101

May 19, 2023

The Hero’s Hero Many fictional stories are articulated using formulas that help the author develop their stories and characters. One blueprint that is often used is the archetype. Archetypes are like the prototypes for narratives, characters, and themes. Archetypes are comparable to mythology, in the sense that they are essentially recurring themes that are integrated in human culture. This theory is used in many readings, and has an integral role in sharing a life lesson and theme in Cormac McCarthy’s novel, The Road–a post-apocalyptic fiction story of a man and his son’s treacherous journey to live through a fallen civilization. Born from the ideas of psychologist Carl Jung, the Jungian

(Devika) Literature is a popular medium for the expression of an author, which, in the process, also allows for the expression of the author’s unconscious as well. According to Theory Into Practice: An Introduction to Literary Criticism by Ann Dobie, “Archetypes appear in our dreams and religious rituals, as well as in our art and literature.” This collective unconscious is used throughout literature and manifests itself as characters, morals, and themes which we can relate to stories we’ve heard before. Because this unconscious is a part of everyone, it is inevitably translated into writings, and we can find parallels between many stories. For example, the main archetype of William Golding’s novel, Lord of the Flies is good vs. evil, because one of the main characters, Jack (who was once innocent), eventually becomes consumed by evil due to his selfish needs for power. In a similar sense, The Road by Cormac McCarthy also expresses this good vs. evil archetype, because the story depicts the father and son as good guys who are against a world of savages and evil. This is just one example of how archetypes are used in literature, but there are many more aspects of archetypes that emerge through writings, specifically the use of character

According to writer Kaelyn Barron’s article titled, “Archetypes: Definitions and Examples from Literature,” the hero is defined as, “the good guy of the story, often as the protagonist, who struggles against some evil force … The hero seeks to bring justice and harmony to the situation.” On the other hand, the innocent is defined as, “the youth or naive, this archetype character is usually inexperienced … Their main goal is happiness, and they want the same for others. They are usually very trusting (though that trust is sometimes misplaced).” (Barron)

Using these definitions, readers can assume that the father in The Road by Cormac McCarthy is the hero while the son is the innocent. However, although this may seem like another simple and generic archetype on the surface, Cormac McCarthy embeds a deeper meaning through his restructuring of the archetypes, where he slowly portrays the son as the hero to the father and humanity instead. Essentially, the innocent becomes the hero’s hero, and this play on archetypes shares the theme that helping others is the first step to rebuilding