Essay Questions

Is life conceit, according to McCarthy?

Life is priceless, and at the same time, it is vanity. Readers realize that life is vanity when the white professor wants to jump into the railway track in the facade of the Sunset Limited train to commit suicide. Before he jumps, he is rescued by the black believer. The reader tries to imagine what is forcing a learned professor to end his life in that manner. However, the reader gets confused because it is the dream of every learner to become a professor to attain life goals but not to commit suicide. The reader asks himself if a professor wants to die, what of a person who never got an opportunity to get even a college diploma? It is the irony of life that everything, including higher education, is vanity.

Is the black believer justified to question God why He did not give him the right words to convince the white professor not to commit suicide?

The reader comprehends that God gives human beings the ability to think and choose what is right or wrong. The white professor wants to commit suicide because he has no hope in life. The white professor argues that he has suffered a lot in this life, and the only hope is to end his life. The believer did his part in trying to save the white professor's life, but there is nothing he can do if he still wants to end his life. Therefore, God has nothing to do with the white professor's decision, and the black believer has no right to question God whatsoever.

What is the emblematic connotation of the title “The Sunset Limited’?

The title of this book is figurative, and it signifies the destination of life. The white professor wants to end his life by jumping into the railway track in front of The Sunset Limited train. According to the white professor, the ultimate end of suffering is death. Several people traveling via train reaches their destination called The Sunset Limited station. The emblematic meaning of this title can also be argued as death. Every person must die at some point, regardless of committing suicide.