The Horses in All the Pretty H
In his novel, All the Pretty Horses, Cormac McCarthy presents us with a young man's journey through the regions of the unknown into adulthood. This novel, at once a western, a coming of age story, and a picturesque adventure, gives the story of John Grady Cole, the last in a long line of west Texas ranchers. As McCarthy moves through this tale, one finds that humans do not remain its sole motivators. As the title suggests, horses play an intricate part in the development of the storyline. In fact, the novel is centered around horses. Throughout, one finds the characters riding horses, rescuing horses, catching horses, breeding horses, talking about horses and even pondering their nature. The horses in All the Pretty Horses serve as the center around which the novel grows and depends. McCarthy introduces John Grady Cole, 16, at his Grandfather's wake held at his family's small Texas ranch. In this first chapter, John finds that, despite numerous efforts on his part, his estranged mother intends to sell the family ranch that she has inherited from the grandfather. In addition, John's father, Cole, and his mother have recently divorced; thusly, Cole has given up any rights to the lan
d and is unable to keep the family's land. " John Grady Cole and his horses are one in the same. Horses provide a bond between the men of All the Pretty Horses. In the beginning, they connect John to his grandfather, his parents, and his ancestors. all of them pledged in blood and redeemable in blood only. In actuality, it is Alejandra's father who turns the three boys in to stop the relationship between his daughter and John. This is why the loss of the family ranch weighs so heavily upon John; he is losing his connection to the only way of life he, and generations before him, have ever known. Even Rawlins speaks of times he has seen his father "rattle a few times on a horse," indicating that he had most likely broken a horse or two, like him. Horses, coyotes, and human beings alike are permitted to traverse the country freely according to the laws of nature. Horses carry with them timeless meaning, ties to legends, romance, and battle. In relation to this book's romantic tendencies, the horses also seem to connect the past and the present. Eventually, we find that these star-crossed lovers are not meant to be. It is after one of these conversations that Don Hectors chooses to put John in charge of breeding his horses.
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Acceptance Essays
