The Road 130-222 Reading Questions

The Road 130-222 Reading Questions

Partner up!

Please have your book out and be prepared to respond to the following qustions!

• Read the question with your partner, discuss, then respond!

• Zoomers, if you'd like to work with a small group, holler at me!

Pages 114-130

Please open your book to the beginning of this section

Open Ended

Around page 114, find the quote which states, "Is there a being within you of which you know nothing?". Explain your interpretation of this quote within the context of this novel.

Open Ended

We recently read a section in which the man finds a cellar full of people begging for help. Does your opinion about the man change given the fact that he didn't help them? Justify your response.

Multiple Choice

Upon finding the people in the cellar, what critical mistake did the man make?

• He dropped the lighter when they ran

• He left the hatch to the cellar wide open

• He hurt the boy's wrist pulling him across the yard

• He let the boy see what was in the cellar

Open Ended

When they realize that they're in danger at the house, they flee and have to get away safely in a scene full of tension. How does this scene end up in a somewhat anti-climactic manner?

Open Ended

On page 127, explain the boyʼs reaction to the truth about the people in the cellar.

Multiple Choice

A bit further on in this section, to whom does the boy refer to again?

• The mother

• The other boy in the town

• The man that held a knife to the boy's throat

• The man who was struck by lightning

Open Ended

On page 131, why do you think the boy wishes that the other little boy was with them?

Multiple Choice

On page 132, the man finds something that would be seemingly useless at this point, but he takes them anyways. What did he take?

• Seeds

• Batteries

• A cell phone

• Glasses

Open Ended

When you read the man say, "Oh my God, Oh my God," on page 138, what did you expect that he saw?

Multiple Choice

While in the cellar, what does the man have to teach the boy how to do?

• Put butter on his biscuits

• Light a lantern

• Sleep on a mattress

• Eat peaches

Open Ended

Explain the reasons for bathing and cutting oneʼs hair - why does it matter in a post-apocalyptic world?

Open Ended

Explain the meaning of the manʼs dream, on page 153-154.

Poll

Would you have left the shelter like the man and the boy?

• Eventually.

• Yes.

• No.

• Not sure...

Multiple Choice

The author, McCarthy, uses the potential disappearance of which animal to represent the fall of most living creatures on Earth?

• Crows

• Rabbits

• Dogs

• Deer

Open Ended

Discuss and share your thoughts regarding the man and the boy's encounter with Ely, starting on page 161.

Open Ended

Ely says to them, “People were always getting ready for tomorrow. I didn't believe in that. Tomorrow wasnʼt getting ready for them. It didnʼt even know they were there.” What do you make of this quote?

Open Ended

Why doesnʼt the old man tell them his real name?

Poll

Which of our protagonists do you find to be a "better" person. Keep in mind, "better" can be a difficult term to justify in this book!

• The boy

• The man

Open Ended

On page 185, why did the three men on the highway leave the man and the boy alone?

Open Ended

Page 190-191 reveals how the boy has evolved and become somewhat of a dynamic character. What event/scene proves this to be true?

Be aware:

• ...that there is a group of people in the forest with a baby

• ...it is implied that something horrible happens to the child

• ...this book is dark; keep reading, though.

Open Ended

Towards the end of the section that is due for today, the man spots a boat. Predict what will happen when the father swims out to the boat.