Rust Cohle - True Detective

After God gives Adam his first commandment not to eat of the Tree of Knowledge in the story of Genesis, he brings each animal to Adam so that he may name them.  “And whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name.”  Because none of the animals that were created was a suitable helper for Adam, God creates a new creature out of Adam’s flesh.  Adam names this creature, Woman.

Names in the Bible have huge significance.  With all the names and biblical references in the HBO television show, True Detective, the names of the characters deserve a second look, and Rust Cohle, played by Matthew McConaughey, is perhaps the most important one.

Rest is red.  For me, rust always evokes the image of dried blood, given blood’s iron content and the texture of how it dries.  Rust implies that a material has been weakened.  Rust is precisely that, rusty.  In the interview room with the two clueless detectives, we think that he has lost his edge, or perhaps his mind. 

Coal is black.  Coal embodies darkness, but it also has the potential to eradicate the dark.  Coal is dirty.  Whatever it touches gets sooty marks over it.  Coal has the potential to burn you. 

Rust Cohle is both the darkness and the blood.  He is messy.  Broken.  Rust Cohle evokes powerful imagery and that is echoed by the near poetry of the evil he faces.  A great name for a great character.