He then evolves into a source of fear, and finally a source of strength. Essay on the shining by stephen king 829 words bartleby. Jack torrances new job at the overlook hotel is the perfect chance for a fresh start. But its a testament to the power of kings novel that it holds its own against the film. Daniel doc anthony torrance is a fictional character that first appears in the 1977 novel the shining by stephen king as a child with psychic powers called. It dont hate you and me, but it dont love us, either. The character also appears in the 1980 film adaptation the shining and was played by danny lloyd. His alcoholism and short temper are the themes running throughout the novel. No one had ever seen the likes of the shining before. Jun 22, 2012 the shining is the story of jack torrance, who is employed as the caretaker of the gargantuan overlook hotel in colorado one winter. Exchange nabe pinnacle award for inspirational books in spring 2011.
The shining is set in the overlook hotel, which is located in the rocky mountains of colorado. Terrible things happen in the world, and theyre things no one can explain. Find all the books, read about the author, and more. Danny sees tony, at first, as a flesh and blood person. Stephen kings the shining, published in 1977, is a horror novel. Stanley kubricks the shining will always be remembered as a classic in the horror genre, but it is far from a perfect adaptation of the novel. Hardcover paperback trade kindle audio movie tv miniseries dvd. No horror movie ever has been more analyzed and debated than the shining. In the book, tony is the man danny would eventually grow up to be, sending messages back from the future to help guide his younger self. Before doctor sleep, there was the shining, a classic of modern american horror from the undisputed master, stephen king.
Drama analysis of the shining the shining is a 1980 psychological horror film directed by stanley kubrick. Most importantly, they did not understand it in any way which allowed them to deal with it. The shining is the story of jack torrance, who is employed as the caretaker of the gargantuan overlook hotel in colorado one winter. In the novel, he almost kills him, unaware how incredibly powerful his shining really is. Making jacks dad a male nurse, who frequently comes home bloody some. The shining tends to be opaque, even though its corridors are welllit. Jack and wendy think tony is your standard imaginary. The shining met the fate of several other stanley kubrick films when it came out. And there is good reason for viewers to puzzle over the film 33 years after its release. It is regarded in some quarters as kings best book. Near the end of stephen kings the shining book, its revealed that tony is actually danny torrances future adult self. Dannys imaginary friend tony in the shining is actually someone surprising, as revealed not in the film, but in stephen kings original book.
Danny shows almost every sign of the psychological impact of child abuse. Seriously exhaustive analysis of the shining shows. Supersummary, a modern alternative to sparknotes and cliffsnotes, offers highquality study guides that feature detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, quotes, and essay topics. She suffers three broken ribs, a busted upper calf, a scraped ear, a shattered vertebra 58. Ullman stood fivefive, and when he moved, it was with the prissy speed. Mark is jacks abusive, alcoholic father, with whom jack had a lovehate relationship. Although the stories of the two are surprisingly different, horror aficionados have long loved both. Tony becomes the thought to be imaginary friend of abra stone, a young girl from new england very powerful with the shining more so. Like he rolled in his bed, twisting the sheets, grappling with a problem years too big for him, awake in the night like a single sentinel on picket. Also, if tony is danny at fifteen, then tonys presence has all along foretold dannys survival. Daniel doc anthony torrance is a fictional character that first appears in the 1977 novel the shining by stephen king as a child with psychic powers called the shining. The character of tony in the shining from litcharts the creators of. Stephen king is brilliant, but hes also sometimes wrong.
The shining stephen kings novel gives us more background and detail into the character of jack torrence than does the film. Jack and wendy think tony is your standard imaginary friend, one who happens to coincide with. Kubrick was right to reject the killer topiary bunnies. The story of this film is based off the book, the shining by stephen king. The main character jack torrance is a violent, recovering alcoholic who has broken his son, dannys arm while drunk before. A sequel, titled doctor sleep, was published in 20 summary. Tony his name taken from dannys middle name, anthony, is at first to danny an imaginary playmate, then a source of fear, and finally a source of. In stanley kubricks iconic film adaptation, danny torrance refers to tony as a little boy that lives in my mouth, and tony shows visions to danny of things that have happened and things that will happen. Jack torrance, his wife wendy, and their young son danny move into the overlook hotel, where jack has been hired as the. This onepage guide includes a plot summary and brief analysis of the shining by stephen king. Feb 23, 2015 the shining is a rare horror classic that is famous both as a book and a film.
Toward the end of the novel, tony reveals himself to danny. Apr 28, 20 this feature is not available right now. Ullman stood fivefive, and when he moved, it was with the prissy speed that seems to be the exclusive domain of all small plump men. King cowrote the bestselling novel sleeping beauties with his son owen king, and many of kings books have been turned into celebrated films and television series including the shawshank redemption, geralds game and it. Eliminating most of the supernatural episodes from the original stephen king novel, stanley kubricks version of the shining is at once a coolly ironic nearparody with a jack nicholson performance that defines over the top and a genuinely chilling dissection of how a family breaks down when the father cannot or does not want to perform his duties as provider and protector. A theory that will change how you watch the shining. The 6 weirdest theories about the shining mother jones. May 12, 2016 published in 1977, the shining was stephen kings third novel, and it established him as a major figure in the horror genre. Tony manages to come through near the end of the novel and tells danny that he, tony, is a part of him. As the offseason caretaker at the atmospheric old hotel, hell have plenty of time to spend reconnecting with his family and working on his. The novel by horror master stephen king was adapted for the screen by no less a genius than stanley kubrick.
He lives in bangor, maine, with his wife, novelist tabitha king. The film is based on stephen kings 1977 novel of the same name and stars jack nicholson, shelley duvall, scatman crothers, and danny lloyd. This was a oneofakind novel that simply blew the reader out of hisher comfort zone and took you places inside your own mind that were normally off limits. That is until the overlook hotel takes over his weak personality and. Are the marvel mcu best days behind them or ahead of them the john campea show john campea 2,654 watching live now. The shining by stanley kubrick jack nicholson, shelley. The shining september 20, 20 lizaduncan after rereading the fall of the house of usher and taking notes on the information dr.
Ever wondered how turning a great book into a great movie worked. Among his most recent are hearts in atlantis, the girl who loved tom gordon, bag of bones, the screenplay storm of the century, and the green mile. Well, evidently tony is dannys imaginary friend as stated in the bookmovie that lives in dannys mouth, but was apparently constructed from dannys. The shining is also certainly not deficient in other areas either. Whats the difference between the shining the book and the. Published in 1977, the shining was stephen kings third novel, and it established him as a major figure in the horror genre. May 31, 20 the documentary room 237 has been called a diy mashup of the many theories put forward over the years as interpretations of stanley kubrickss 1980 horror classic, the shining. The documentary room 237 has been called a diy mashup of the many theories put forward over the years as interpretations of stanley kubrickss 1980 horror classic, the shining.
I recently found what is arguably the most exhaustive. Campbell presented to us in class on themes of gothic fiction, i couldnt help but be struck by the similarities to another story i knew quite well. Although hes dead, mark is very much alive in the mind of his son, whos deeply afraid of repeating all his fathers mistakes. Although the shining is at heart a variation on a ghost story, kings ability to present the reader with real and credible if horrible characters lifts this novel to a higher plane. Wendy is a brave, courageous woman whose heroics help save her son, herself, and dick halloran.
For years, the prolific horror author has asserted that stanley kubricks 1980 adaptation of the shining is not just a bad adaptation but also a bad movie, a cadillac with no engine in it that you cant do anything with except admire it as sculpture. And sometime after midnight, he slept, too, and then only the wind was awake, prying at the hotel and hooting in its gables under the bright gimlet gaze. The shining is a rare horror classic that is famous both as a book and a film. It also allows him to see past, present, and future events through hisguide, tony.
Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools. As the offseason caretaker at the atmospheric old hotel, hell have plenty of time to spend reconnecting with his family and working on his writing. Lets scrape together the shining epilogue that stanley. Jacks tortured and often very unpleasant internal narrative peppers the text and even interrupts his own lines of dialogue and in doing so we see him in a. Shining through is an american world war ii novel by susan isaacs. Jul 09, 2016 the shining was stephen kings third book, following carrie and salems lot. Jun 26, 2012 the shining mass market paperback june 26, 2012. Perhaps by the third novel the combination of excellent characters with intricate detail was becoming to be expected, but this is a more intense and personal vision than the previous two, and many of the ones to come. King was the recipient of americas prestigious 2014 national medal of arts and the 2003 national book foundation medal for. The shining, a novel written by stephen king followed by a film directed by stanley kubrick in 1980 is a horrorthriller narrative filled with many mysteries of its own. History professor geoffrey cocks is pretty sure the shining is about the nazi extermination. Stephen king is the author of more than fifty books, all of them worldwide bestsellers.
His acclaimed nonfiction book, on writing, was also a bestseller. When his father becomes caretaker of the overlook hotel, dannys visions grow out of control. The book was made into a 1992 film of the same name, starring michael douglas as edward leland and melanie griffith as linda voss, though some of the plot and characters are changed in the adaptation. The shining book vs movie all the differences between. The setting and characters are influenced by kings personal experiences, including both his visit to the. Some important things to remember about the hotel are that it is isolated due to the winter.
The shining was stephen kings third published novel, written as his rise to fame as a horror writer was beginning. The character also appears in the 1997 tv miniseries the. Before doctor sleep, there was the shining, a classic of modern american horror from the undisputed master, stephen king danny is only five years old, but in the words of old mr hallorann he is a shiner, aglow with psychic voltage. The book was made into a 1992 film of the same name, starring michael douglas as edward leland and melanie griffith as linda voss, though some of the plot and characters are changed in the adaptation plot summary.
Until the end of the novel, tony s face is obscured by shadow and distance. Tony is perceived differently by different people in the novel. The shining is a horror novel by american author stephen king. The shining raised the authors writing to an extremely higher state, which included stardom for him. His parents are father jack torrance and mother wendy torrance. The shining book vs movie all the differences between the two. Until the end of the novel, tonys face is obscured by shadow and distance. It lost its humanity, and for that, it could never achieve true perfection. In the movie the motivation of the ghosts is to possess jack torrance to get him to kill danny. The shining is a gothic horror novel by stephen king, first published in 1977. Sometimes it seems like its only the bad people who stay healthy and prosper.
The concept of shining has other subliminal applications in the film. The shining, gothic horror novel by stephen king, first published in 1977. The story centers on jack torrance, a struggling writer and recovering. Seriously exhaustive analysis of the shining shows kubrick. A novel stephen king this study guide consists of approximately 58 pages of chapter summaries, quotes, character analysis, themes, and more everything you need to sharpen your knowledge of the shining.
Eclipsed perhaps only by its 1980 film adaptation, the novel is one of the most popular and enduring horror stories of all time. Jack torrance, his wife wendy, and their young son danny move into the overlook hotel, where jack has been hired as the winter caretaker. The shining, by stephen king, is slowly but surely changing that perception. Moving his wife, wendy, and their son, danny, into it for the. I am not going to go on and on about how frustrating it must be for someone of kings prolificity and stature to have people think that his best novel was written 22 years and 30some books ago. Of course the documentary room 237 posed all kinds of crazy theories like the movie is really about americans cruel treatment of native americans or an apology for kubrick filming a fake moon landing. Fiveyearold danny torrence and his parents, jack and wendy, are spending the winter at a resort high in the colorado mountains. The shining is a 1980 psychological horror film produced and directed by stanley kubrick and cowritten with novelist diane johnson.
Because he has the shining, it allows him to detect spirits and thus makes him a target of the overlook hotel. I hope you enjoyed this brief insight into the world of novel vs movie adaptations. A boys special perception and a possessed hotel interact with deadly results in the novel the shining by stephen king. The part in his hair was exact, and his dark suit was sober but comforting. Thats why king statements like this arent to be trusted. One clue is given in hallorans dialogue with danny in the kitchen, some places are like people, some shine and some dont. I guess you could say the overlook has something about it thats like shining. Despite these shortcomings, torrence starts out a decent family man. This inspiring and compelling book has won ten awards to date, including honorable mentions at the december 2012 new england and london book festivals, october 2012 southern california book festival and june 2012 new york book festival in the category of spiritual books. The shining was stephen kings third book, following carrie and salems lot. When danny shows up with bruises later on in the film, wendy immediately accuses jack of hurting him, despite the fact that kids can get hurt in a million. The is the first time weve heard that dannys middle name is anthony same as jacks father, which alludes to the doubling and foiling of the complex fatherson conflicts in the shining, as we discuss in jacks analysis. Published in 1977, it is kings third published novel and first hardback bestseller.
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