Blood Meridian Chapter 12

Yay! A huge slaughtering! Finally! We've been waiting for a massacre like this since chapter four! The group finally got some scalps; good for them. They deserve a reward for all of the hard work they have done. Too bad they didn't get the head honcho's...well...head.

McCarthy really provides us with some interesting imagery. He writes, "...bashed (the babys') heads against the stones so that the brains burst forth through the fontanel in a bloody spew...(McCarthy 156)" I looked up the word fontanel and got: one of the spaces, covered by membrane, between the bones of the fetal or young skull (dictionary.com). It's amazing how McCarthy is able to pull off being very brutal and disgusting while being very scientific at the same time. Most of the time, he shows this through the Judge, however not in this circumstance. Also, the Delawares seem to be very violent, more so than the others. Possibly showing how Indians are violent and merciless no matter where they live. This adds to the whole view of Native Americans as savages thing.

Glanton is truly a heartless and emotionless killer. He just kills McGill (sorry Andrew) without even stepping off of his horse. He doesn't even try to soothe the man; he just figures that he should die quickly and without pain. Sure this may seem like a sort of "easy way out" for McGill but the others would surely be a little afraid and ashamed of Glanton. I would have thought that Brown would have interveined but sadly no. It looks like Glanton is too feared to be challenged. McCarthy uses this trait in Glanton to show his view of a good leader. I believe that McCarthy thinks that a good leader should be inspiring but feared at the same time. You should agree with your leader and be ashamed when you displease him. Glanton also seems to be very sympathetic towards his animals. He is always talking to his horse and his loyal pet dog. Maybe this is because he respects their instincts and wishes to befriend as many wild creatures as possible. On the other hand, it may be a sign of his power when he states that he can "tame all beasts."

The scene with the kid and Brown was very interesting. First of all, why would no one help Brown? Is he a jerk or is it because they don't want anything to do with him? Hmm... Anyway, the kid made a new friend and that's all that counts. A quote I didn't understand was when Brown says, "Stout lad, ye'll make a shadetree sawbones yet (McCarthy 162)." Sawbones is slang for a docter or surgeon (dictionary.com) however not really sure what a shadetree is. Also, the thing the expriest says was strange also. "Dont you know he'd of took you with him? He'd of took you, boy. Like a bride to the altar (McCarthy 163)." Does this mean that Brown doesn't care about the boy? That he would have no regard for the kid if it weren't for his wound? Seems like the rest of the group has something against poor Brown. Also, some more good imagery, "The veins in the man's neck stood like ropes...(McCarthy 162)" If you were to ask me, I would say that he is in some sort of pain...

The Judge was a jerk in this chapter. Well, he's a jerk in every chapter but he was worse in this one. He just killed that innocent kid for no reason, unless there was something we don't know about. Everyone loved the little Indian boy and Judge had to go screw everything up...jerk. I don't blame Toadvine for being angry with the Judge, however putting his pistol to the Judge's head may have sealed his fate later on. The Judge has a sort of two sided conscience. One minute, he's intelligent and gentlemanly. The next, he is slaughtering children and scalping them.

On page 163, the word phantasmagoria means: a shifting series of phantasms, illusions, or deceptive appearances, as in a dream or as created by the imagination (dictionary.com). I think that it is the same as a mirage or something of that sort. There seems to be alot of these kinds of things in the west.