Why did the author keep the man and the boy nameless throughout the novel?

To keep the man and the boy nameless through the novel was a tool that the author, Cormac McCarthy, uses to be able to have the reader identify with the situation and the characters more. He paints a very broad image that allows the reader to add their own comments and feelings to the reading. The dialogue between the man and the boy is very straightforward and simple and that simplicity allows the reader to add whatever emotion they felt would be necessary and in the end making it more personal.

I believe that the author decided to keep the man and the boy nameless through the novel because it makes it personal. As mentioned before, they carried the fire and what they saw their fire is different than what I saw as their fire as a reader and what my group members saw different in those same lines. Although we all read the book and the point of views in different ways we could all agree that the man's job was to keep the boy alive. By leaving the man and the boy nameless- an action that can often be seen as impersonal and detaching the author has achieved the opposite. By remaining nameless the characters became much more personal and easy to relate to.