'Child of God', Cormac McCarthy's third novel chronicles the descent of Lester Ballard, an unemployed, unwelcome, underling within society. Written in purple prose, heavily influenced by the works of Faulkner, McCarthy aims to answer whether morality is flowered from within oneself or a facade constructed by society fixated on a politeness to mask its underlying violent tendencies. 'Child Of God' is a powerful, albeit disjointed analysis of dehumanisation, with the writer moving effortlessly from poetic prose which chronicles Ballard's existence to a more journalistic descriptions of Ballard's past from unnamed spectators. Gritty, pessimistic and often unflinchingly violent, McCarthy provides a robust analysis of the dangers of isolation and the blossoming of violent tendencies.