Interpretation Of McCarthy’s Ecological Thought In The Road From The Perspective Of The Anthropocene

Cormac McCarthy is an outstanding American writer.The Road is the tenth work by McCarthy,which has been highly praised since its publication.The Anthropocene concept suggests that humans have become a decisive force affecting the earth system and that the earth’s environment is on the verge of collapse.The Road is a typical Anthropocene novel.Its focus is not to describe the spectacular disaster scene,but to show the whole world after the disaster.McCarthy makes people face the bloody doomsday world directly through sharp brushstrokes to show his ecological worries.Therefore,this thesis analyzes the novel’s environmental description and character dialogue based on Timothy Clark’s Anthropocene theory.Then,it explores the deep information conveyed by McCarthy through the novel and deepens the understanding of the current human and planetary situation.Specifically,this thesis analyzes the positive values that McCarthy conveys through his novel from three aspects: the arrival of the doomsday,the degeneration of mankind and the future and hope of mankind.First of all,McCarthy uses the apocalyptic world to force people to confront the dire consequences of allowing the Anthropocene to develop.This thesis shows the broken doomsday world from two aspects: the death of nature and the collapse of human civilization.The coming of the end is inextricably linked to mankind itself.This grim apocalyptic vision makes people aware of the seriousness of the ecological problems of the Anthropocene era.Secondly,McCarthy attempts to test humanity in virtue of the doomsday nature.This thesis discusses the great impact of doomsday on human survivors from three aspects.Doomsday brings great survival and spiritual crisis to human survivors,which also makes survivors make different choices.The behavior of suicides,“the good guys” and degenerates are condensed into the human scene in the doomsday world.And in a world where time,space and history have broken down,mankind has become a historical scale connecting the past and the future.Finally,McCarthy creates a world abandoned by God to show his reflection on technology,his thought on social ecology and his critique of Anthropocentrism.The open ending also shows that there are still infinite possibilities for the future of mankind.In short,this thesis interprets the ecological worries conveyed by McCarthy on the basis of Timothy Clark’s Anthropocene theory.McCarthy creates a world abandoned by God,making people aware of the seriousness of contemporary ecological problems.At the same time,he does not lose faith in the future of mankind.At the end of the novel,the boy embarks on a new journey implying that there are infinite possibilities for the future of mankind.Based on the analysis of McCarthy’s ecological worries,this thesis aims to provide a new research perspective for The Road and McCarthy’s ecological thought and to give a valid case for interpreting apocalyptic themes and the Anthropocene novels.