Essay

2009. A symbol is an object, action, or event that represents something or that creates a range of associations beyond itself. In literary works a symbol can express an idea, clarify meaning, or enlarge literal meaning. Select a novel or play and, focusing on one symbol, write an essay analyzing how that symbol functions in the work and what it reveals about the characters or themes of the work as a whole. Do not merely summarize the plot.

Symbolism plays many roles in almost every novel. Having symbols in the novel is very important it makes the reader think more into the book and analyze it more. Symbolism can turn something into a total different thing then what it was to being with. You might think that something is just one thing until you realize the symbolism in it and it makes you think. In No Country for Old Men one of the symbols is a coin.  Anton Chigurh uses this coin in the novel to decide your destiny, whether you are going to live or be killed.

How this symbol functions in the work is very simple. This novel is about a drug deal gone wrong. The coin toss represents chance a random chance at that. A simple coin deciding your fate, a fifty/fifty chance of life. In this book the characters take a lot of chances and they have to deal with a ton of really bad luck. It really reveals a lot about Anton and what kind of person he is. He is a hired hit man to bring back the money from the drug deal. So, he is not the greatest guy in the world to begin with he kills people just because. Then to top it off he uses a coin to decide their fate.

Expressing an idea is what this symbol of the coin toss is doing in the novel No Country for Old Men. The main idea in this novel is evil and greed, and violence. All these main ideas are having something to do with chance and bad luck, like its bad luck that the drug deal went bad, and it’s a crazy chance that you are going to find 2.4 million dollars in a satchel. The coin and the coin toss itself could possibly symbolize a lot of different things in this novel. From the bad luck some of the characters have to the great chances of something great happening to some of the characters.

All in all, the coin symbolizes chance and bad luck. Symbolism is used quite often in novels and plays and movies, it just helps with the depth of the novel. Makes the readers understand where the author is coming from and what he was trying to get across when he said this, or that. Sometimes the author doesn’t just write that something happened just to make the story more exciting it happens for a reason, and symbolism is a great way to show that. 

Evil

Evil is another major theme in this novel, probably the most important theme there is. Evil exist throughout the narrative and the characters seem powerless to do anything about it. Anton is evil personified, Bells actions, words, and reflections constantly remind the reader of evil and its powerful force in our world.

Bad Luck

“You never know what worse luck your bad luck has saved you from.” - Cormac McCarthy


This is a very interesting quote, I believe this is saying that you could have never known how much more worse you could have had it that your bad luck saved you from. Such as, you think you might have it bad, or you have the worse luck, but you could have it a lot worse if your bad luck hadn't saved you. I just think this quote makes you think a lot. I have never thought about bad luck like this until now. 
Bad luck seems to be a major theme in this novel with the coin toss and everything. 

Symbolism

There are some symbols in No Country For Old Men such as; the coin Anton Chigurh uses to determine whether a victim will live or die. It symbols chance, their deaths reduced to a coin toss, its as random as if they got hit by a bus or killed in a war.
The next big symbol in this novel is the bolt gun used by Anton Chigurh as well. This was used to kill cattle, but instead he uses it to murder people. This is a symbol of slaughter in this case humans not cows. It dehumanized their value, like they were like cattle.

Yesterday

"You think when you wake up in the mornin yesterday don't count. But yesterday is all that does count. What else is there? Your life is made out of the days it’s made out of. Nothin else.” -Cormac McCarthy 


This quote stood out to me a lot. When you think about it, no one thinks about yesterday its in the past and today is just another day that your glad to be alive. What Cormac McCarthy is saying is that yesterday is all that matters without yesterday you wouldn't have today. Its so true you life is made up of a bunch of yesterdays. If you didn't have yesterday then you wouldn't have today. 

Violence, Murder, Greed, Drugs

Violence, murder, greed, and drugs all play a major part in No Country For Old Men. But the one theme that ties them all together is the belief that a little amount anyone can do when it comes to any of these negative sides to human nature. All of those things is a part of human nature, yes its a very negative side but thats apart of life. Some people might all not participate in those things, but you would be surprised to what some people will do when a situation occurs.

Book2Media

No Country For Old Men was adapted into a movie in 2007. It won 4 academy awards, including best picture.

Publication Blurb

Published by Alfred A. Knopf. A limited signed edition has been published by B.E. Trice Publishing, New Orleans.

Author Bio Blurb

Cormac McCarthy was born in Rhode Island on June 20, 1933. He is the third of 6 children, the oldest boy. While at the university, he won the Ingram-Merril Award for creative writing in 1959 and 1960.