Death

“You cannot create experience, you must undergo it.” In the story The Crossing by Cormac McCarthy, the protagonist undergoes an experience in which he comes face to face with the inevitability of death. The piece is abundant with imagery, careful diction, and religious undertone. McCarthy employs these literary devices in order to convey the protagonist’s deep concern for a wounded wolf he encounters in the wilderness and his quiet sense of reverence, loss and even fear when confronted by the animal’s death.

This section of The Crossing begins in media res and the tone is one of frantic concern. Diction plays an enormous role in expressing the impression the wolf's death (and circumstances surrounding it) has on the subject. From the onset, the author establishes a dramatic mood by describing the scenery as having "talus sides" and "tall escarpments". The frantic tone is justified by the description of the wounded animal the protagonist discovers. The author demonstrates careful diction. The wolf is described as “stiff and cold” and her fur is “bristly with the blood dried upon it.” It can be inferred from this description that this wolf was not recently injured; rather it has been enduring the wound. She (the wolf) is not tossed over the back of the character or thrown to the side, but rather “cradled” by the protagonist. The connotation of this word implies that he cares for the wolf, since the word “cradle” is generally associated with the handling of a human infant. The second paragraph begins with “He got the fire going,” introducing the author’s contrasting images of darkness and light. Fire is usually associated with life, warmth, safety and comfort. In this case, it is a source of light which guides the main character whe...

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...made of but can themselves not make on any alter nor by any wound of war". Such a quote implies that the elemental make-up of a body can create the shell of a creature, but no act of man can bring back a soul to fill the casing. This intimate, first-hand experience with bereavement leads to the protagonist’s first taste of the fear of dying, and perhaps even ceasing to exist, that surrounds humanity.

In final analysis of this excerpt, Cormac McCarthy interlaces figurative language and religious allusions in his coming-of-age tale about mortality. He contrasts the tangible things that appeal to the protagonist’s senses with the intangibility of life. Thus, he illustrates that life is not something that can be controlled or held onto. McCarthy ultimately uses The Crossing to share a universal idea that is indubitably relevant to his audience: death is inescapable.