McCarthy's style of describing dark and horrific things with poetic and beautiful language reminds me of two other novels I have read which do much the same thing. One is The Book Thief by Markus Zusak, the second is The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy. Both of these books feature extremely disturbing and heart wrenching scenes of human suffering but both like The Road, also feature language that is amazing.
The passage in question, pgs 180-181, with men who eat your children, and squids ink uncoiling is one of the most amazing passages I have ever read. Disturbing as it was I went back and read it several times purely for the language. I think that using language like this is McCarthy's way of drawing you in and burning the words into your mind so they stay for a while imprinted for you to carry with you for the rest of the novel.
Another reason for using such vivid language is to make sure you feel exactly how you are supposed to. Saying the landscape was barren would not hit as hard as the poetic sentences McCarthy uses to show you exactly what you are supposed to be seeing. It's another example of a book that teaches you how to read it. I love McCarthy's language. It is absolutely necessary for this novel. This book is incredibly disturbing to me. It would not be nearly as much so, without McCarthy's way of writing. Each beautiful sentence clenches my stomach and leaves me breathless with all the things I have "seen."
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