THE NIGHT DOES NOT END

THE NIGHT DOES NOT END

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THE NIGHT DOES NOT END
THE NIGHT DOES NOT END
Anatomy of a Paragraph: Cormac McCarthy

Anatomy of a Paragraph: Cormac McCarthy

All the Pretty Horses

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Aaron Gwyn
Apr 13, 2025
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THE NIGHT DOES NOT END
THE NIGHT DOES NOT END
Anatomy of a Paragraph: Cormac McCarthy
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This is one of my favorite passages from All the Pretty Horses. Here’s what I see Cormac doing, technically:

  1. Starts with a short, physically-grounded sentence: “They rode out along the fenceline and across the open pastureland.” Note the use of compound words: “fenceline,” “pastureland.” This is a move Cormac borrowed from one of his literary heroes, James Joyce: “The heaventree of stars hung with humid, nightblue fruit.”

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