Michaela Fleming -- The Significance of Horses

  I like the fact that you identified a topic of your own to write on, 
  and choosing the roles of the horses in the novel is actually an 
  interesting way to approach "All the Pretty Horses."  I think some
  of your conclusions are interesting, but others are more of a 
  "stretch."  One of the passages you quote deserves more attention too
  (I'll explain that later).  Moreover, the paper itself is somewhat repetitive
  and not too well-organized.  

  In your first paragraph, you say that horses are a "unified group of
  living creatures," unlike humans.  But I think Cormac McCarthy knows 
  horses well enough to be able to show that they have individual "personalities" 
  and characteristics so they are not all the same or indistinguishable.  Note 
  the passage you quote from page 82:  "The horse had begun to step nervously 
  and it was not a nervous horse."  This implies, of course, that other horses 
  might be more nervous all of the time.

  The thing that John Grady says he likes about men and horses in the quote
  from page 6 is the aspect that could stand some more attention -- "What he 
  loved in horses was what he loved in men, the blood and the heat of the blood 
  that ran them."  That "blood" and the "heat of the blood" certainly involves
  "spirit" as you say.  But I think there's more than that.  It also seems
  to involve the love of danger (there's a passage later on, for instance,
  where McCarthy has a character explain that horses love war as much as
  men do), excitement, passion, etc.  There's more to say here, especially 
  about the way it connects with John Grady's desire for adventure and new
  experiences.  

  The paragraph on page 3 where you discuss as an example of the importance
  of descriptions of horses is the main "stretch" because if you look 
  carefully you will actually see that most of the description refers not
  to the horse but to the horse's rider -- namely the girl Alejandra.  She's
  the one who has the blue eyes, the black hair, the black hat, etc.  So 
  your conclusions about this passage are not all that convincing.

  Finally, there's another passage on page 128 that does an even better 
  job of showing what it is that John Grady does when he interacts with 
  the horses.  This one is entirely in Spanish, so you might have 
  overlooked it.  But speaking to one of the horses, he says he is the 
  "comandante," and he's asserting his dominance over the horse.  You will 
  see that clearly if you translate the next sentences too:  "Without the 
  love (or charity) I give you with these hands, you have nothing.  Neither 
  food, nor water, nor sons (i.e. male foals).  It is I who tames the wild 
  mares from the mountains ... ").  He is able to get them to do what he 
  wants by keeping them calm and saying that he is totally in charge.

  Content:  B+

  Mechanics: A-