MovieChat Forums > The Road (2009) Discussion > Was it the mother's fault the boy was so...

Was it the mother's fault the boy was so soft?

posted 3 years ago by TerraFirma69 (2229)
6 replies | jump to latest

It seemed the father was a pragmatist from the start, and the boy being so sheltered and naive was at odds with that.

Is it possible the mother pitched a fit every time the father suggested he get the boy outside and/or taught him some survival skills?

The way she surrendered herself to death in the end might suggest she had been so totally unwilling to face the reality of survival (understandable in such a nightmare world) that she'd simply refused to let her child be exposed to it either.

[–] tyrannosaurus_sex (496) a year ago

It looked more like just just left, walked off in2 the darkness.

[–] DancingintheDark (1609) a year ago

It was suicide.

[–] DancingintheDark (1609) a year ago

I’ve read the novel twice and watched the film three or four times and in no way feel the mother was responsible for anything outside of whatever trauma was inherently transferred to the boy due to her sudden departure.
As far as the boy being “soft,” I don’t feel that he was, he was merely a young boy, innocent as well as naive but no more that most young boys are at his age, and that was the point the author was making, how do you protect and nurture innocence in a world that has quite literally become a living hell.

[–] Biggs111Mr (247) a year ago

Just saw the movie & hated the part when the mother just left her family like that so so bad & stupid. I really wanted her to stay & fight for survival with her husband & son. I wanted to like this movie but couldn't because of that.

[–] pazuzu9 (384) a year ago

Then it had the impact it was intended to.

[–] [email protected] (2017) a month ago

At that age, growing up in a post apocalyptic world, he would know not to chase after strangers screaming or shout and scream while hiding from cannibals.