Although smoking in the past was considered glamorous and romantic, its cancerous and harmful effects are now a common occurrence. Similarly, in Cormac McCarthy's novel All the Pretty Horses, the constant smoking throughout the novel juxtaposes the negative effect of smoking with a naive faith in the myth of the American western. The recurring motif of smoking in the novel serves to depict both the romanticism behind blind faith in Western myth and the harsh realities of its modern failure. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an Original EssayIn the relentless motives of smoking, it's hard to deny that smoking has a deeper symbolic meaning in All the Pretty Horses. The friendly dialogues and the clichés of the beginnings which take place while smoking express the poignant communion between the characters before the disappointment of the Western myth is discovered. John Grady and his father meet in a café where they hardly speak; During this awkward dinner, his father feels like he has let his son down. Throughout this first scene where the characters are smoking, John Grady's father "took another cigarette and tapped it against the lighter," and as Grady ponders his future, "his father smoked." This father/son conversation reflects the intimate relationship of the characters before the disappearance of the myth. Additionally, before Rawlins and Grady escape to Mexico, the two share a man-to-man communion (while smoking): Rawlins "pulled out a cigarette" and "sat down smoking." As he “knocks the ashes out of the end of the cigarette,” Rawlins asserts that women “aren’t worth it.” None of them are. The empathy between John Grady and a close friend or relative while he was smoking emphasizes the idealized view of the West. Just as smoking fascinates young users, so does the clichéd idea of ​​the West. In this clichéd beginning to the novel, John Grady and Rawlins experience no danger or violence during their trip to Mexico; their innocuous trip to Mexico follows the boys' naive perception of Western myth. This perception of the myth also follows the act of smoking: the intriguing experience of smoking seems at first harmless. As Rawlins soaked up his new life in the West, he “rolled a cigarette and lit it.” Here, in another communion with John Grady, he asserts that he “could get used to this life.” He gently patted the ashes, saying it “wouldn’t take him any time at all.” This further highlights Rawlins and Grady's childish view: just as they believe that smoking is a harmless habit, they believe that this idealized view of the West will be what they expected. As John Grady and Rawlins face the bloody reality of the American West, the plight of smoking is also recognized. The death of John Grady's father and the violent and threatening scenes reflect the degradation of the myth of the West. Although smoking begins as an exciting communion between the characters, it soon becomes a brutally silent killer...or almost a killer. At the moment when "the boy stubbed out his cigarette", the violent scene of fight breaks out in the prison where John Grady is almost killed. Relationships with cigarettes have changed dramatically since the quest began: characters no longer engage in deep conversations while smoking; they are now confronted with the violent reality of Western myth. Perhaps the most painful reality of smoking was described by the death of his father. This death symbolizes not only the reality of smoking, but also the death of a childish vision of the West. GOOD.!