The Passenger
By Cormac McCarthy
Difficulty: 9/10
Length: 437 pages, paperback
Published: 2022
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/168677514-the-passenger
McCarthy’s penultimate work showcases astounding literary genius from an author who was first published 57 years before this book was. In McCarthy’s most famous work, The Road, the plot is determined not by what McCarthy includes in his dialogue, but by what he leaves out. In contrast to The Road’s implicit plot line, the plot of this novel is told mostly through the explicit dialogue presented by characters like John Sheddan and Oiler rather than Western himself. While McCarthy’s dialectic style is still brilliantly concise and succinct, in The Passenger, he seems to explore more of a monologue style than some of his previous novels. The dark humor present, primarily in Alicia’s hallucination of “The Kid” is something that I haven’t witnessed in other McCarthy works, but which I wish he’d implemented into his writing earlier in his career. The Passenger forays into so many disparate issues that each chapter, especially towards the beginning of the novel, seems to be written similarly to an anthology. Chapters delve into deep-rooted issues like transgender identity, the morality of the atomic bomb, mental illness, and incest. The result is a gripping novel that is constantly introducing something new. To complement the myriad of topic areas, McCarthy crafts extremely intelligent characters that push the plot forward. Through McCarthy’s descriptions alone, I was able to compare Bobby and Alicia’s respective intelligence and personalities even though they never directly interact in the book. I must admit, I most enjoyed the conversations between Alicia and “The Kid,” though Bobby’s interactions with John Sheddan were a close second.
The underlying theme that this book explores is what McCarthy calls the Kekulé problem(https://nautil.us/the-kekul-problem-236574/), which I understand to be an exploration of why the human subconscious expands on what basic information the brain is naturally allotted. McCarthy posits that the brain is naturally gifted with the ability to notice a literal definition of what an object is, but the brain develops the ability to add metaphor and expressive language to that basic definition. It is similar to a classic nature versus nurture argument of brain development. In the novel, the Kekulé problem is present in the existence of the “The Kid,” his flippers and flippant tone give life to a character that is nothing more than a chimera. To Alicia, “The Kid” is real.
Overall, I think that this is one of the better McCarthy works that I’ve read so far. The narrative is told in a much different manner than his usual; it’s more like a Hemingway novel in its slow-burn plot. I would not recommend this as a book for readers who have not read McCarthy before, I believe it’s beneficial to read some of his classics first before moving on to this more experimental novel.
Final Rating: 5/5 stars
My Favorite Quotes: (WARNING: May contain spoilers)
“The man’s a seducer of prelates and a suborner of the judiciary. He’s an habitual mail candler and a practicing gelignitionary, a mathematical plutonist and a molester of domestic yardfowl. Principally of the dominecker persuasion. A chickenfucker, not to put too fine a point on it.”
“John”
“What”
“You’re describing yourself.”
(Page 159)
“Bib overalls to Time magazine in two generations. One more to Oblivion”
(Page 222)
“History is a collection of paper. A few fading recollections. After a while what is not written never happened.”
(Page 371)
“If you carry your past into battle you are riding to your death. Austerity lifts the heart and focuses the vision.”
(Page 433)