Meanings.

1	This is a novel less about survival than about the relationship between a father and his son.
2	McCarthy needed something that is no longer present to represent life as it used to be in the time before.
3	The man and woman represent the different ways in which humanity might react to such a situation.
4	This is a novel about minute by minute survival. Showing the man resisting the temptation of his memories brings this home to the reader.
5	The woman has a powerful and ambiguous symbolic function in the novel: she represents both the giving of life and the temptation of death.
6	There is no space in this pared back narrative of survival for a third main character.
7	The vulnerability of the boy would seem far less evident if his mother were there as well.
8	For the man, the woman’s absence is a constant reminder of the alternative to struggling to survive.

Most important to least, 5, 8, 3, 2, 4, 7, 1, 6

6.Least-  "there is no space in this pared back narrative of survival for a third main character " 

Since the novel is not solely based upon the relationship between the man and the boy ( as there is a clear purposeful lack of emotion shared between them, until the end ) another character would not dramatically change the novels main objective which is to survive and reach the end of the road, yes the character would impact their survival chances being they would consume their food but the woman would still be submissive and obey to the mans control and direction so the journey and paths taken would not dramatically change.

Important

The woman has a powerful and ambiguous symbolic function in the novel: she represents both the giving of life and the temptation of death.

" in dreams pale bride came to him out of a green and leafy canopy " His wife coming to him in his dreams expresses the life within the subconscious of the man, rather that being in a dead world the only sense of life he experiences are within his dreams and day dreaming, however she being dead , yet in an obvious subliminal tranquil (forever) state shows the temptations within death- being able to live so wondrously and freely within the mind of someone else after death- rather than being alive in a dead world- hopeless and doomed for eternity. The temptation of this is shown when the said " the right dreams for a man in peril were dreams of peril and all else was the call of languor and of death " he expresses how these apparent pleasant dreams of his wife within nature, greenery contrasting to his dead gray world, are nothing but a spite against him, a temptation and that he should of dream of peril, should dream of his dead world rather than be spited by an alive world within a subconscious unreachable place.

5- As a feminist you could argue for a females role to be taken to the book as they are being misrepresented or not involved, only used for ability to birth children, to eat. but in reality it is the woman who is depicted as the most aware of her surroundings, she realises her impending doom and hopelessness of the world so decides to kick the bucket, this linking to how life is given in death, she increased their chances of survival.

Voice and POV.

Voice and Point of View

The Road is written in the third person, in the voice of an omniscient narrator, with the characters referred to as ‘he’ or ‘the boy’. However, within this, McCarthy manipulates and plays with the narrative voice and the point of view from which the story is seen. Here are some of the things you might find interesting to explore in relation to the narrative voice of The Road: 

• –  3rd person voice, omniscient point of view
• –  3rd person voice, from the point of view of the man
• –  3rd person voice, from the point of view of the boy
• –  unattributed dialogue (i.e. without ‘he said’)
• –  decontextualised dialogue (without commentary from the narrator)
• –  unattributed thoughts (i.e. without ‘he thought’)
• –  not signalling where the narrative ends and dialogue or the thoughts of a character in the first person begin
• –  dream sequences related without a clear sense of whether it is in the third or first person
• –  3rd person free indirect style where the reader not only feels he/she is seeing events from a character’s perspective but that it is in the character’s own words, not those of the narrative voice. 
  To explore the narrative voice of The Road you will need photocopies of the extracts suggested on page 28.

Extract 3: page 122 
He’d no idea what direction they might have taken and his fear was that they might circle and return to the house. ... He held the child and after a while the child stopped shaking and after a while he slept. 

" in what direction do lost men veer?" the whole extract seems to be spoken by the narrator ( of whom we do not know, maybe the family following them ) except for this one point which seems to stem from the mans mind himself, this 1st person view is used to create a sense of disorientation and confusion. 

McCarthy switches from different points of view and narration within the book to create a deliberate sense of disillusion  and confusion to reflect and give us an insight to the helplessness and lack of understanding the characters themselves experience, for example " in what direction do lost men veer " sees the man asking of his own direction and his own acceptance of being lost- as a man with direction cannot be truly lost- this is an example of McCarthy's sense of " free indirect " narration.

The map he carries reflects on how he is trying to place his world ( old world ) that no longer exists into this new world, he cannot let go of his old world and carries this as a sense of relief, in hope that something recognisable or reminiscent of his old world still exists. It is futile, as the map no longer resembles the new world yet he still tries, like being alive in a dead world.

The only character who recognises this was the woman.

They are " carrying the fire " the light, symbolism of light and hope, except the world is " graying " and there is no colour let alone light 

, infact " the world grows darker everyday " even the flare, a symbol of safety and help cannot be seen upon the graying ash filled skies, when the man dies the light dies. 

Deus ex Machina

GOD IS IN THE MACHINE.

One thing to fix everything.

The Ending.

The Beach-

" He looked at the boy. He could see the disappointment in his face. I'm sorry its not blue "

Sums up the disappointment and hopelessness within the book- a running theme- significant in where life began, there is no life. Finalises the whole view of a post apocalyptic world. The road is in itself the journey the pair have to find the end of the road, This point is in where they have reached this ending.
"im sorry its not blue " as if the father has promised him this, Key that the boy has been looking forward that it would be " blue " shows how the bleak the world is, all is dead and " graying " that the idea of colour is the greatest thing the young boy could think of.

Dead fish, even the sea is dead, the earth is dead, all is dead and there is no hope. Religious imagery " fish " " birdless "" boat " of jesus, ironic in that jesus could split two fish for thousand but there is not enough just for two. " birdless " no saviour.

" desolate, birdless " link to a quote from the beginning of the book " barren, silent, godless " ties up book.

or-

Mans death-

Tone changes after the death, tone changes to mimic the boys naivety- seems over hopeful and optimistic, takes the sinister intentions out of the book- we forget about the harsh reality.

The boy is the morale compass of the novel.

The man talks about unknown creatures and is in a dreamlike state- reflecting on his state at the beginning of the book. " failing light " hope, life, all dying with him.
" They have reached the point of no return which was measured from the first, solely by the light they carried with them " Things are only getting worse for them- there would be no point in carrying on, they had no food and had found theyre destination to be an anti climax.

" You said you wouldnt leave me " this doesnt fit in with the rest of the emotionless context of the book- however, it could reflect the removal of a metaphorical mash- we are finally seeing the mans raw emotion.

The Tiger who came for tea.

Sophie sat at the kitchen table.

The door rang and her and her mother shared a glance between each other as she began to speak.

I wonder who that could be, it can’t be the milkman

No.

Its not the grocer.

No.

Its not your dad.

No.

Sophie got off of her chair. She walked towards the door. She opened the door.

Hello?

She was greeted by a tiger who was big and was furry and was stripey.

Excuse me, he said. I am very hungry. Can I have tea with you?

Yes.

The tiger came into the room. He sat.

Would you like a sandwich?

The tiger ate every single sandwich and every bun and every biscuit and every cake. Nothing was left.

Would you like a drink?

He drank the milk. He drank the tea.
The tiger looked around. He looked for futher food.

He ate all the supper on the hob and he ate all the food in the fridge and ate all the food in the cupboard.

He drank the milk. He drank the orange juice. He drank the beer. He emptied the tap.

Thankyou. Goodbye. He left.

There was no food for dinner and no water for a bath.

The father walked in. He took them out for dinner.

It was nice, and after they bought all the food.

They bought a tin of tiger food.

The tiger never returned.

THIS WEEK

" tolling " is a reference to church bells, so is symbolism of the endless march of death etc.

Time.

McCarthy does not openly give us knowledge of the passing of time, instead we have to assume the time passed and set from clues he gives us, eg. " one night the boy woke from a dream " " The darkening town " he also continually refers back to breakfast and dinner as it shows a routine, shows the characters as grasping small things from their old world, not wanting to let go.

Marking seasons- " can i cover him in leaves " the father dies in autumn, symbolic because of the falling of leaves, the death of the summer life, nature begins to sleep. P 305
Winter when walking through blizzard, as well as when meeting the mutilated people, as they described the " tray " snow. P 114

Telescoped time, McCarthy slows down (contracts )time when going down the stairs in the house P116, causes tension and mimics horror films, evokes emotion within us.
McCarthy expands time when filling the gas canisters up {229 for again tension. panic, etc.

" coldness was her final gift " McCarthy uses a linear chronology except when flashing back to certain events, eg the mothers leaving, however after half way through the book there is no more flash backs, this is to show how they have almost let go of all their past lives.

1. six main episodes.
2. Deliberate dull writing
3. telescoping of time.
4. Routine like writing with lack of punctuation.
5. Communes, why wasn't he in one? something to dwell over.

1. 6
2. Dull
3. Telescoping.
4. Routine.
5. Communes

1. Dull.

Not Oedipal, only man, unnatural, doomed world. The characters rely on basic human instinct, we are primal again, the boy describes himself as the " one " to show a contrast, only hope.

McCarthy has a limited pallet, doesn't use many colours, mostly shades of tray to show the dull and doomed post apocalyptic world. " grays " ashen "

Death of every living thing through language, " couldn't even tell what it was "P52, reflects how humanity is merging into the rest of the greying hopeless landscape, death is now normality so dead man is simply " it " , Not regarded as human anymore, rather passed over, pointlessness. " Gray Beach " 230. bleak, dull, emotionless, ironic as the start of life has seen to be as dull and lifeless as the rest of the world, again no hope, no emotion, only death. Deathscape, post apocalyptic world.

" he " " he walked " repetition of he to separate the man from the boy, father does not teach him anything, isnt planning a life after he has died... as he doesn't teach him to survive he can state how the boy could not survive without him- self afilling prophecy.

Last one.

- the theft of the man and boy's belongings (pp. 270-278)

" the tarp  was gone. their blankets " short blunt sentences, speeds up reading and time, shows the conflict- tension and panic.
" they took everything " returns to grief, again no hope, everything seems pointless again, no surviving.
" stay with me " fathers character offers comfort and protection towards the boy, boy obviously in fear and recognises the grief and trouble they are in. everything is failing.

" and stop crying. " father becomes more assertive, commanding, he recognises the trouble he is and and knows he has to deal with the situation. blunt short sentances, gives the assertive determined tone, still panic though, time passes quickly with lack of commas. 
" looking for sand " shows hunting tactics, we question what his back ground is? how does he have this knowledge, links back to killing of road-rat and his expertise in shooting, is he military trained? is he an outcast himself?
" good work " still assertive tone, like a commander rather than a father, trying to gain control of the conversation when in fact he seems hopeless. changes our opinion of the father, he seems to know more that he lets on. " coughing " the father constantly coughs throughout the novel, is he disease ridden? is he dying? 
" are we going to kill him? i don't know " shows brutality, no remorse, the father recognises that he may have to without though. level headed, clear minded.
" it was another hour " acknowledgement of the amount of time that is passing." thief " ironic that they themselves stole the possessions.
" an outcast from one of the communes " first time we realise that there are other civilisations in this post apocalyptic world, but why has the father chosen not to be part of this? is he keeping the boy away on purpose? is he selfish for taking the boy?
" im going to blow your brains out " brutal language, the father is again the first to show any aggression, does not even try to reason with him, we see another side to the character in that he does not seem innocent
" standing there raw, naked, filthy and starving." the father has no remorse in leaving the man even though he is certain to die, he has shown no aggression yet the father has chosen to brutalise him.
" im scared " first time the man admits he is frightened of what will happen, " yes i am, i am the one " boy takes responsibility for the first time, he is maturing.

another episode..

 getting to the shore (pp. 227 - 230)

Extract told in a monotonous way " and " " and " repetition makes it into a list, purposely dull and mundane to show how the character has got into a routine.  Purposely dull and shows no emotion to expresses the hopelessness and pointlessness of apocalyptic life. Technical specific language shows his intelligence but furthers the dull and mundane feel " valve stem " resembles an instruction manual. 
" face masks " shows the harsh atmosphere around them, reflects on constant danger and harm, reminder of the world they are living in. 
" yes we did " acknowledgement of his efforts causes a release in tension. we start to think things are getting better for them. 
" still a long way from the coast " Lets us know the story is far from finished, plot thickener.
" he knew he was placing hope where he'd no need to " character finds first signs of hope, real emotion, however he recognises himself that there is no hope. 
" grew darker daily " world is forever ending- slowly dying. drags time. relates again to the apocalypse. or post.
" Like a man walking in a grace " the world is dead around him, seems pointless and hopeless. again post apocalyptic. 
Gore imagery of the rotting corpses, " coming to life " reference to Romero's zombie flicks, post modern novel as of references. No real separation between life and death.

ANOTHER EPISODE

the baby on the spit (pp. 210-215)
 - short blunt deriptions " they were listening " creates tension, waiting for something to happen.
" it could be a trap " suspense, danger. " they could smell somehing cooking " leads the reader in, hinting at normality, "food"
" whatever black thing" unsure to whatever the thing is, lack of description leads the reader in.
" theres no one here. its okay " characters only feel safe in their own isolation.

McCarthy brings he gore back into the novel when illustrating the " charred human infant headless and gutted on the spit " this language makes you feel sick, as he creates a worryingly realistic image. it is a further example of our human savagery that has goten so out of hand we have even began killing infans of whom in normal society we deem untouchable, " women and chidren " , the fact it has been beheaded further shows the animalistic qualities whomever killed it thinks of it, " gutted " like a fish, like a butcher has prepared it and put time into the cooking- it has become a meal and not just a last ditch attempt of survival- it is clear that they have planned this and seem experienced in it.

" im sorry, he whispered, im sorry " father recognises the trauma this will cause the boy and tries to comfort him. " he didnt know if hed ever speak again " the boy seems to be scarred by the incident, innocence finally ruined in the death of the younger generation- the death of an innocent child.

thought " the sound of the river would cheer the boy up " simplistic calming things, natural, shows the life they are living in. " still a long way from the coast " recognises there is still a long journey remaining, shows us that there is still a lot of the story remaining.

they encounter a desolate few houses, a reminder of the post apocalyptic world they are living in, all is empty and have already been raided, " a man sat on a porch in his overalls dead for years " a reminder of how long it has been, " his overalls " his job, link to old life. letting go of his old life.
" enroute to their several and collective death " language and thoughts have become very pessimistic, hints of the journey geting harder for the characters, chances of surivival getting bleaker.

" he boy set off down the road. He'd not seen him run in a long time. Elbows out, flapping along in his oversized tennis shoes. He stopped and stood watching. biting his lip " The father is recognizing something he misses with he boy, draws a close connection to him at this point, his running brings him back to a concsious understanding and even begins to make him cry. this language evoke empathy for us as readers, as we see the father beginning to cry not for sadness but for happiness.

Switch back to their " normality " quickly after seeing the charred infant, reflects on how they are used to the gore and death scape around them, dismiss it,

OTHER EPISODES

How the episode impacted on you?
What was the writer doing to evoke this response?
Plot progression (what will happen next?)
Your experience (change of mood? A ligher moment? Increase or release of tension?)
How does this develop character and their relationship?
The techniques employed by McCarthy. Is the language in keeping with the rest of the novel? Are there particular symbols or images that are foregrounded?
Is this in fact a key episode? What makes it important? How does it stand out in a novel without chapters or chapter titles?

Coming across the man who is struck by lightening (p 50-53)

"who is anybody? " this quote evokes the image of isolation very distinctly, he means that no one has an identity anymore, that in this post apocalyptic world everything has lost their meaning and morality to such an extent that even names are wasteful now, even demonstrated by the the father and boy himself, they are never given names which shows the lack of identity in full. 

McCarthy begins the description of the man to clearly shows his staggered stance "dragging one leg slightly and stooping from time to time " this description is a clear lift from Romero's zombie classics, it creates the image of a half dead man staggering and struggling and even " stopping from time to time " this reference shows how the book is a post modern novel with its obscure references and clear gore inspiration from the next description including "one of his eyes burnt shut ... " 

" as they passed he looked down. as if he had done something wrong " this statement seems strange, its that the burnt victim seems lesser to the man and the boy, maybe he recognises their class as above them? or it gives the impression that he feels he has failed, maybe in knowing he is near death he feels himself not worthy, as if life was a challenge he has failed- however he is then described to of had " shoes bound with wire " which shows he has tried to kill himself, and failed. he must be ashamed in the fact he could not kill himself and is now ended up suffering more- this again shows the gore within the novel, and the image that maybe death in itself would be better than the current world they maintain.

McCarthy then uses short full stopped dialogue to build tension and shows the fathers lack of remorse for the man- the boys innocence is shows when he asks to help the wounded man "cant we help him " with no prevail. " the boy was crying " this is the first time we see any emotion portrayed within the book, we start to build empathy with the boys character as we realise he is just a boy stuck in the post apocalyptic world and his innocence of wanting to help the man contrasts with the harsh reality of them being better of without- promotes the selfishness of them but need of survival. 

"couldnt even tell what it was " the man has lost his identity, he is no longer a dying man but an " it " blurring in with the rest of his surroundings and becoming part of their twisted normality.

" picture of his wife " leads the reader to question what happened to his family. all his possessions can be spread out in one place, reflects on their lack of anything, they have nothing and are starving, he decides to leave all this behind and this is them fully letting go and realising they have no identities anymore, no past.




shooting the 'roadrat' (pp. 62-69)

" the first if them were already coming into view " already creates danger with the idea there is plenty of them to come, they are being approached by something obviously not of good nature as the father " whispered ". " one in a biohazard mask " using dark imagery, they are hunting for them... the biohazard masks are symbolisms of the end of the world, or their end. referencing zombie movies again, or " exterminators " as if they are rodents needed to be killed.

McCarthy is constantly using short sentences and speech to further build panic. " quick. " This is the first time we see the characters in any immediate danger ( not starving ) and develops the fathers obvious care for his son " don't look back. come on " we feel further empathy when showing how the father is trying to save his child from the "gas canister " wearing monsters.

" rifles " black diesel smoke " coiled "ropy. " missing and puttering " uses dark and slimy language to describe the men and their truck- helps create the evil/danger they represent, we begin to feel scared for the characters. 

" he sand down and put his hands on the top of his head " shows the father as retreating, hiding, he is unsure of what to do and begins to panic himself- makes us doubt the immediate safety of the characters and doubt their successive survival. " then just the silence " creates further tension in that there is no sound, yet we know the canister men are searching for them- creates dark atmosphere.

" if you call out you're dead " i am surprised when the father is the first to react and pull out a weapon, shows him as being brave and a certain determination to survive- along with raw savage instinct. " he came forward " `the man seems unfazed by the threat creating more tension, " deeply sunk " his face resembles a skull. symbolism of further death. " looking out the eyeholes :" a mask- significant in that the man may have changed since the end of the world, become a savage in which this is now a mask- a new identity.

awkward conversation, short, blunt, tense. " are you doctor? " the fathers intelligence is shown here, probably the most significant in the book, " we got a man hurt " he rejects an offer to help a wounded man- shows a degree of selfishness but again the harsh reality of everyone to himself. he will not take risks. However clearly doesnt want to shoot the man, not in guilt but for the fact he wants to save it for himself. 

" no expression on his face at all " the boy seems unfazed by the death. Comfortable with death- unnatural- result of a post apocalyptic world. The man runs miles until " he dropped to his knees " shows devotion to his child.

finding the cellar of naked and mutilated people (pp. 112-121)








goes into detail of house, seems luxurious as, decorated with " grand staircases" McCarthy deliberately makes this bit tension free to create a calming sense of false security. " the rest of it was too large to burn " we realise the house has been raided and used of its wood. " he would have ample time later to think about that " hints at strange going on- more tension as everything is not what it seems. " shh, he said " the father recognises something is wrong with his surroundings- yet needs to investigate further- " the ashes were cold  " whoever was here appears to be gone, another release of tension. ( house modelled on that in the TCM - obscure horror reference linking it to a post modern novel ) 
" he was almost in tears " the father is ignoring his child's breakdown- ignorant to his calls and questions rather transfixed to realise what is going on, the character seems foolish at this point and not as clear headed as normal. 
" half dragging the child " he is forcing the childs motions and further fails to acknowledge his scare. " all these things he saw but did not see " failing to notice his surroundings- not ho he normally is- not level headed- becoming panicked. 
" just stay here " father is willing to leave his son in search of food... is this selfish or brave?
" like an offering " the light seems a beacon to anything in the darkness, offering, satanic, darkness, gore. 
Builds up description of his surroundings " ungodly stench " builds tension. " old mattress " we realise this is or was inhabited. 

McCarthy's scene here is by far the most graphic in the book, it takes influence from the zombie basement scene in Romero's " dawn of the dead " and illustrates the savagery that us as humans resort to in a post apocalyptic world, it is not said, but we infer that some people have been gathering humans and storing them in the cellar, " with an ungodly cell " and a stained mattress. We see a man with no legs " burnt " "blackened" which shows us that the captors have been amputating their victims, most probably to eat themselves. this act of cannibalism again refers to Romero's zombie flicks but perfectly portrays the lengths us as humans will resort to in a " post apocalyptic world ". As a plot thickener it tells us that their travels are only getting worse, and their hopelessness doesn't seem to be getting any better when the world around them opens up to being more and more gruesome.

"please help us" he again rejects to helping another person, he is selfish but recognises the benefits of it being just him and the boy. 
Short sentences to build tension " up the stairs. "
" are they going to kill us? " "shh" he does not answer the boy, he is unaware himself.
 " you are going to have to do it " presents the fact to the boy he has to kill himself is they find him, he understands showing they have talked about this before.
" he took the gun from him " realises the brutality he is putting him through.

the next paragraph are his fathers words, short questions show doubt and panic as he thinks over how he cannot kill his son. " could you crush that beloved skull with a rock " horrible gorey image- brutal truth.
constant comfort " i promise " feels boys discomfort.

They lie in-front of the house in waiting to go, hear " shrieks " at night, further gore imagery. and even witness how the murderers system works, interesting to see it from a perspective where the characters are not involve but appreciate how clever it is.

FIRST EPISODE_ OPENING

Upon reading the first few pages we have already established the setting of the novel " days more grey each one that what had gone before" from this we realise how the characters sense of time seems to be tagging- dull and lifeless-each day go past like the next and even merges together. This pessimistic language help create the post apocalyptic emotionless slump of a setting/characters in which McCormick tries to establish.

 " Glaucoma dimming the world " this is a metaphor showing how the world is going blind, or at least grows fainter and is dying- this shows the struggle and hopelessness in which they are living, again to show a sense of lack of emotion- post apocalyptic world.

" barren, silent, godless" shows again how dull emotionless and bleak the world is, particularly emphasises their isolation within the new world and furthers the post apocalyptic, no hope, tone which is present and keeps with the monotonous " greying " imagery set. " Godless " shows the lack of morales around them, could foreshadow the gruesome killings and cannibalism they come across.

The father seems to have a release of tension where upon seeing the boy sleep, shows the character is ultimately devoted to keeping him safe and only feels at ease when coming to realise that he is safe, at least at this point. " you read me a story " shows a want and cling to their old life- characters are obviously finding it hard to let go of their previous life. " Papa " shows they are middle class.

" Moving south, there'd be no surviving another winter here " thickens the plot and lets us know that the two are not stationary, have to continuously move- shows their struggle and lack of safety, obviously hard to survive " survival of the fittest " almost- again links into the post apocalyptic world and deathscape. " chrome motorcycle mirror " shows the father needs to be aware of his surroundings and does not feel safe around himself.

REST OF QUOTES

Okay? Okay.

This shows the reassurance the boy needs from the father, he seems still unaware of his surroundings and still not managed to process the world how it is now, he continually asked for his fathers guidance showing his need of help and reassurance. The response is blunt and emotionless, this symbolises the world around him becoming nothing but bleak and emotionless, it shows his anguish with the world and shows a negative ambience within it, the blunt and full stopping shows his confidence within his answer and no hesitation- showing the father as a determined yet rather stubborn character as he does not seem to process his answer through. This blunt answer also lets us know that he does not wish for his son to ask again, Maybe he is sick of his sons questioning? However it could also parallel the blunt and sudden ending in which the world has fallen in the apocalyptic placing the novel has been put in.

 'They sat on the edge of the tub and pulled their shoes on and them he handed the boy the pan and soap and he took the stove and the little bottle of gas and the pistol and wrapped in their blankets and they went back across the yard to the bunker.' 

As McCarthy shows within the book lack of detail and short blunt descriptions, this appears to be one of the longest extracts and sentence within the book making it prominent and obviously he wanted us to notice this particular bit. The repetition of " and " particularly drags out the piece and shows the tension and movement of time that drags out within it, they use them to make all the small movements and things they are doing extremely tedious and emotionless, almost zombie like ( zombie reference ) and exaggerates the pointlessness of it all.

Tolling in the silence the minutes of the earth

The word tolling drags out the sentence as it is read, this shows McCarthy using his language to drag out the time and movement from the characters and expresses their suffering with this even more. The " silence " is used to express how the world is indeed empty, and dead, they are alone and isolated within the deathscape, however we would normally think of a silent world as something beautiful, picturesque, however from this description in seems abandoned rather than beautiful, deathly and hollow.

She was gone and the coldness of it was her final gift

The coldness of her leaving reflects the environment they are currently in, staggering through the snow, as if this is what she left them with. The fact that it was her " final gift " creates the image that she was one one who made them happy and kept them together, she was the maker and peace giver whom constantly gave gifts primarily of love and company etc. the fact that it was her " final gift " reflects her death and the resonance of their now isolation and abandonment. The coldness also reflects on how nothing is good anymore, the post apocalyptic world is full of death and this in fact has left everything cold, heartless, bleak.