They were all day among the dunes and in the evening coming down from the last low sandhills to the plain below among catclaw and crucifixion thorn they were a parched and haggard lot man and beast. Harpie eagles flew up screaming from a dead mule and wheeled off westward into the sun as they led the horses out onto the plain.
In the scene from Cormac McCarthy's "Blood Meridian," the characters and their horses have endured a grueling day traversing the harsh dunes. By evening, they emerge from the last of the sandhills, facing the stark reality of their exhaustion and thirst. The description emphasizes their weariness, portraying both man and beast in a parched state, indicative of the relentless environment surrounding them.
As they descend onto the plain, the landscape reveals signs of decay, symbolized by the presence of dead wildlife. The harpie eagles, known for their scavenging, rise ominously from a mule carcass, adding a sense of foreboding to the scene. The image of the eagles flying west into the setting sun serves as a powerful metaphor for the cycle of life and death in this unforgiving world, underscoring the themes of survival and desolation woven throughout the narrative.
