A Study On The Protagonist's Ethical Selections In Blood Meridian

Cormac McCarthy,one of the most famous contemporary American novelists,has published 10 novels and won a series of awards,including the Pulitzer Prize.The extensive attention he has attracted from a strong core of critics and readers affirms his contribution to American literature.Cormac McCarthy has always been concerned about the human society and dedicated to exploring the issues of human nature,which thus endows his works with a strong ethical profundity.Blood Meridian is one of McCarthy's darkest and bloodiest novels,which mainly describes the kid's bloody journey to U.S.-Mexico border in the 1850 s.There are heated arguments on the ethical references in the novel.Some critics suggest that the novel presents a rather complicated ethics,but they are all apt to explore the antagonist,Judge Holden and his philosophy of violence,few scholars pay attention to the protagonist,the unnamed kid and his ethical significance.After reading the novel in detail,I find that the protagonist's ethical selections are of great significance.This paper will apply the ethical literary criticism to the analysis of the protagonist's complicate ethical selections and the exploration of the theme of humanity in Blood Meridian.This thesis consists of three parts,the first part is a brief introduction to the author Cormac McCarthy and the novel Blood Meridian.Based on the domestic and foreign researches,the paper is going to study the novel from the perspective of ethical literary criticism.The second part is the main part consists of three chapters.The first chapter indicates that because of the kid's losses of the identity as a son and the identity as a soldier,the animal factor in the kid is gradually stirred,which leads the kid to the immoral selections.The kid's wrong selections will definitely cause the kid's transgression that cannot be reversed.The second chapter analyzes the kid's awakening of the ethical consciousness on the premises of his inquiry into the evilness of the Judge and his awareness of the futility of violence.Under the domination of the human factor,the kid begins to make moral selections.The universal truths of compassion,sacrifice and sharing contained in the kid's moral selections also reflect the author's moral stance.The third chapter mainly analyzes the kid's failure in finding a new moral ground.In spite of the failed attempts,the kid,who is under the control of the human factor,refuses to abandon his moral stance.He chooses to confront the Judge,deny the Judge,and complete his ethical selection through death.McCarthy reveals the reality that the kid could not survive in a society of moral decay,but the author also affirms the kid's persistence by using images of light and fire.The third part of the thesis is the conclusion part.The conclusion part will reaffirm the research focus and research methods,draw conclusions and excavate some ethical edifications.The protagonist makes the ethical selections continuously,after experiencing the degeneration,the awakening and the failed pursuit of the new life,finally completes his ethical selection through defending his moral stance with death and becomes morally mature.Through the detailed delineation of the kid's ethical selections,McCarthy reveals that there is a constant possibility of depravity in the world of violence and moral decay.However,by penetrating the violence,adhering to moral beliefs,and promoting universal spiritual orders such as compassion,sharing and sacrifice,one can complete one's own ethical selection and thus become an ethical being.McCarthy's thoughtful insight of human nature,violence,and morality is instructive for humans who are confronting moral crisis nowadays.