Book Review: 'Blood Meridian' by Cormac McCarthy

 

“War was always here. Before man was, war waited for him. The ultimate trade awaiting its ultimate practitioner.” 

― Cormac McCarthy, Blood Meridian, or, the Evening Redness in the West

 

This was something which I meant to publish a long time ago, and never quite got around to doing.

What can I say about "Blood Meridian?"

This is a book which was more of an experience than anything else. At times, it felt excessive, even grotesque at times. The level of violence can be shocking, and perhaps is not for everybody. At times, it seems almost senselessly violent.

And yet, it is at least loosely based on actual events, when a band of semi-renegade Americans went through what was then Mexican territory. 

The language is, at times, almost Biblical. Indeed, it has a quasi-religious feel to it. The character of "The Judge" is one of the most unforgettable and frightening characters in modern literature. The dialect is intense and draws you in. It reflects historical events, yet it is much more than just a dry or typical historical account. 

Inescapable is the violence. Relentless violence. And all of it revolving around the devilish character of The Judge, who literally dances to the violence which he orchestrates, pulling the strings seemingly in the background while allowing others to officially take the role of official leader, yet also the one at the very center of the violence, the one who both starts it and feeds off of it. The one who personally profits from it, is addicted to the violence. The one who feels himself grow more powerful from it. The one who unleashes it in others.

Violent this novel is. But it is also a uniquely American novel. A western, yet very different from other Westerns. Here, there really are no heroes. No glorified, mythologized figures of either cowboys or Indians. Here, all men - seemingly without exception - are bloodthirsty and violent. These are Americans engaged in a foreign campaign which winds up being so violent that it begets further violence. The men on the campaign are extremely violent, as are those they inevitably encounter.

The Kid is arguably the main character. We meet him before we really meet The Judge in any detail. In fact, the Kid finds himself in Mexico, and meets the Glanton gang - and of course, The Judge is with them - as a result of this earlier campaign. Yet it feels like it is The Judge is everywhere, even when he is not directly present in the events described. It is The Judge who really makes this book possible. The shadow behind the Western sun which shines on these events. The Judge is, in certain respects, like the Wizard behind the curtains, only almost in reverse, if possible. Unlike the wizard, The Judge proves to be more menacing than he might first seem, until you pull the curtain to reveal the truth about him and the man he is. What he is capable of. A shadowy sort of powerful man, relentlessly opportunistic and almost happy to profit from the violence and pain which he orchestrates. He feels like an American Ares, the American version of the God of War.

Could a novel be any more American than this?

It could be argued that nothing is gained, nothing is won. Nobody has gained glory from it. Still, it feels like these events, and the violence which they inevitably fuel, produces still more violence. Indeed, a very American novel in so many respects.

In the end, this book almost feels like a violent assault on our reading, for that matter. There really is nothing subtle here. It is harsh, it is relentless. And indeed, it is very, very American, without sugarcoating. 

A unique book, to say the least. I mentioned that this is not for everybody, and I mean that.

And yet, this is an important book, which deserves to be read. In some respects, it truly is the most American book which I have ever read.

Highly recommended.

A version of this article appears in print on April 28, 1985 of the National edition with the headline: 'Blood Meridian,' by Cormac McCarthy. Order Reprints | Today’s Paper | Subscribe

'Blood Meridian,' by Cormac McCarthy Give this article   Review by Review by Caryn James April 28, 1985:

https://www.nytimes.com/1985/04/28/books/blood-meridian-by-cormac-mccarthy.html?unlocked_article_code=EDpg2j55FXU5LJPyQdydHGG0szNUThfOpsuOpqD7xxrwr33640JZ9g7lELUSVDZyIlH6ZDhJDX9zYpQ5EpEVMiVrj28uuvH0r2PXIGH--_S00rQAp7I148i1lBWZjvIuQcnwhbJoRnS1pvsNEk30zpM-fa2u27J-NaXvQkjZAB9-OVwJuS9ZLqg8iJO9ZsQEjC1FxG0Zt_FXC3x3q89WhN0sZ5idFLHs-tup2S9gSfDv0a61cm2x-pgRltGDhigtlFe6us19cPhyJm1gJVtj7_3-KrLU1sKfqEuD8FSk_pPbXMhuDsFYn0t0de3AiOUyiOHp3mdonu1d-353DMsLm2y0etfBHt49oQ&smid=share-url&fbclid=IwAR0HhDY_Nmzsmi0fIbSawKfO35YY8Q5TdKfNEWGCa4SeTbC5ZxYOCR5R7rY