Examining the historical context of the book, as well as two prominent characters, we can explore the effect of violence on the human condition. The high volume of graphic situations on television and in movies and video games seems to suggest that violence is a staple of human nature.īut are humans really violent creatures? Is it ingrained in our nature or a learned trait? Or is violence something we seek to understand in order to eliminate it? We can use Blood Meridian as a case study of extreme violence. We might wonder if humans are attracted to violence or have an innate propensity to engage in such acts. Readers often interpret symbols and themes in the hope that there is a larger picture to be seen. What many readers might try to do with Blood Meridian is rationalize the death, destruction, and chaos that pervades the novel. Bald and pale and bloated, larval to some unreckonable being.” (McCarthy 60) “These small victims, seven or eight of them, had holes punched in their underjaws and were hung so by their throats from the broken stobs of mesquite to stare eyeless at the naked sky. One of the most horrifying scenes in the book describes a bush with the corpses of dead babies impaled upon it: There are references to rape, and children are killed and go missing throughout the narrative. In tandem with countless descriptions of wounds and blood, the reader encounters a man who is burnt alive, a man with no ears, and plenty of people who wear necklaces made from body parts. Throughout the story, numerous scalpings are depicted in subtle but graphic detail. The novel takes place mainly in the western United States and Mexico during the mid-nineteenth century. In the many discussions there have been regarding the violence in the media and our society, books with violent content aren’t referenced nearly as frequently as TV shows, video games, and movies, though Cormac McCarthy’s novel Blood Meridian or The Evening Redness in the West might compete with them in terms of the disturbing and bloody imagery found in its pages. Scenes of torture and death are a common occurrence in the media, and we’re running the risk of becoming desensitized to it. Shows like this have a tendency to not only depict violent content but to normalize it. TV shows like Criminal Minds and Stalker are known to be hyper-violent and disturbing, although many others like C.S.I. The news always seems to be reporting on some violent events local stations and papers always hone in on the crimes happening right in our own communities. Violence is all around us and is ingrained in our society. There are car bombings, massacres, and beheadings happening in various parts of the world, and people are being gunned down by the police sworn to protect us. Even football is considered a violent sport, on and off the field. All we have to do is turn on the news or watch the latest horror film or play certain video games. Blood Meridian: Excessive Violence and Its Implications on the Human ConditionĪmong other things, the world is a violent place.
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