Blood Meridian Blog 2: Themes from American Literature

Throughout the novel, McCarthy uses a variety of different themes to get across his point in the book.

Violence: The main reoccurring theme that runs rampant throughout the book. It is all described in very, very vivid detail which is the effect he's going for as this book is meant to be a brutally realistic rendition of a period in American History. It occurs throughout the book and everyone in the book is associated with it in some way. Ranging from hangings, shootings, massacres, scalping, etc it's details are stark and dark, this is of course not a book to read/undertaken lightly.

Nature: The natural world in Blood Meridian is very unforgiving and inhospitable to all who venture into it. A lot of deaths result in the wilderness somehow, in deserts, plains, etc. At the same time it offers a sort of transition as the characters who traverse through it leave (Civilised) towns to brave the savage wilds where savages linger, doting on the arm of death. It also offers refuge to a certain few characters and it represents beauty much less than other stories set in the wild west.

Religion: Religion is a constant and unwavering companion throughout the book, however, it is very stunted and warped as people like the Judge and the Ex-priest both preach frequently yet they're just as likely to commit murder just as quickly. It is flaunted and made fun of constantly and it doesn't play such a large role in the lives of Glanton and his gang. Despite this, it lingers constantly on the edge of human society.

The Nature of Man: Men play a large role in the book as they are the main characters throughout. Men deal with men, most often resulting in murder as the people in this book succumb to the more primal instincts of men  and commit various crimes, the most frequent and heinous being the murder of a fellow human being.