The shining is a gothic horror novel by stephen king, first published in 1977. Dec 23, 2019 an outline of how optical illusion patterns are used in the shining s set designs to create a sense of unease for the audience. Stanley kubricks the shining is a revisionist work because it challenges the viewer to find the evil within the. Daniel anthony danny torrance is the son of jack and wendy torrance, the older halfbrother of lucy stone and the uncle of abra stone. If jack jack nicholson is seeing a ghost, theres a mirror nearby a fulllength mirror can be found in room 237. In his novel the shining, king includes multiple gothic features and the. A boys special perception and a possessed hotel interact with deadly results in the novel the shining by stephen king. The shining begins with jack torrance being interviewed for the caretakers job at the overlook hotel. The shining is a horror movie in which the character of jack torrance is very important. The shining stephen kings novel gives us more background and detail into the character of jack torrence than does the film. The shining 1980 is full of mysteries and ambiguities, but there is one constant. The shining has captivated the academic world for decades due to its rich. Eclipsed perhaps only by its 1980 film adaptation, the novel is one of the most popular and enduring horror stories of all time. Kubrick discussing the shining with john hofsess, quoted from p415 stanley kubrick by vincent lobrutto.
As a fan of both the stephen king book and the stanley kubrickdirected film, im perplexed by the. The unmasking will happen at the stroke of midnight. The story of this film is based off the book, the shining by stephen king. Eclipsed perhaps only by its 1980 film adaptation, the novel is one of the most. Stephen king characters wendy torrance she is jacks wife. Gothic elements in stephen kings the shining repozitorij unios. Analysis of the shining mawr gorshin film analysis, freud, horror novel, literature analysis, psychoanalysis october 9, 2016 may 23, 2017 11 minutes the shining is a supernatural horror novel written by stephen king and published in 1977. The book is more psychologically disturbing, thrilling, and all of those are sprinkled with touches of spooks. The psychoanalysis is a process in which describes, explain, predict, control are the four steps. Although the stories of the two are surprisingly different, horror aficionados have long loved both. The shining by stephen king misscole december, 2011 at 12. As detailed in the previous chapter, there are dozens of subliminal connections between. The main character jack torrance is a violent, recovering alcoholic who has broken his son, dannys arm while drunk before.
Once there, he calls the mechanic nearest the hotel, larry, and says that the people taking care of the hotel turned out to be total assholes, lying that mr. Identify how the setting of the shining influences the actions of its characters. The shining is a horror novel by american author stephen king. Danny sees alarming visions of the hotels past using a psychic ability known as the shining. Jack is blown away, imaging the scene of wealth and splendor. A space odyssey and a clockwork orange, kubrick works across genres and his movies come with impeccable directing, atmosphere and a sense of intelligence. The torrance apartment in boulder is full of stacked books. Analysis of the shining, by stanley kubrick essay bartleby. An analysis of the shining, a film directed by stanley kubrick. This chapter opens with the dramatic irony of dick halloranns journey to the. It was his third novel and his first hardback best seller.
Ullman asked him to return to the overlook hotel and figure out if they have to be replaced. On a general level, the shining can be considered a gothic horror novel, but more. Topics about this book topics that mention this book. The shining is stanley kubricks bid for a super hit, his attempt to even a number of scores. He was renowned for using supernatural events in many of his stories making them a mixture of horror, gloom, and fantasy. Near the end of the film, on a frigid night, jack chases. The faustian theme is paralleled in a subplot of the book on which the shining is based. But there is a deleted scene from the shining 1980 that casts wendys reliability in a curious light. The shining wouldnt have been the same if kubrick didnt add the yellow green colour to film, which created a complete different atmosphere. The shining leaves a residual effect that is uncharacteristic of its genre specifications. The native american designs arent mentioned in the book but kubrick went to great trouble to build the set in this theme. While most analyses of both the novel and the film. The shining is about a man, jack torrance, his son, danny, and his wife when they become caretakers of an isolated hotel.
Hardcover paperback trade kindle audio movie tv miniseries dvd. Jack torrance character the story take place in colorado and begins with jack torrance, going to a place by the name of the overlook hotel to be the caretaker over the winter months, because of coast of keeping a twentyfive mile road, in which it take to. It was his third published novel, after carrie and salems lot. Published in 1977, it is kings third published novel and first hardback bestseller. At the beginning of the movie we see that kubrick has changed the books red volkswagon with a yellow one a seemingly harmless change. The shining by stanley kubrick is one of my favorite movies ever and im interested in reading the novel. Stephen kings the shining, published in 1977, is a horror novel. King wrote many bestselling books but his book the shining, published in 1977, established king as a great american writer. The hellish world of the tyrannical patriarch medium. Drama analysis of the shining the shining is a 1980 psychological horror film directed by stanley kubrick. Jack torrance, his wife wendy, and their young son danny move into the overlook hotel, where jack has been hired as the. Born from a bad dream experienced during a onenight stay at a colorado hotel that was closing for the season, the shining is the first book stephen king wrote from a.
The shining collectors edition introduction by ken follett king, stephen on. 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. Theres the sense that a great talent has been wasted. The author, who expressed his gratitude to kathleen murphy for her contribution to this article, has taken the liberty of discussing scenes that appear throughout the films narrative. Jul 09, 2016 the shining was stephen kings third book, following carrie and salems lot. The novel by horror master stephen king was adapted for the screen by no less a genius than stanley kubrick. A solid commercial success for the film which opens here next week would confirm one of kubrick. Brimming with intrigue, clues, and hidden messages, kubricks 1980 film has been given the royal treatment when it comes to analysis, even becoming the subject of the documentary room 237 that digs deep into the possible meanings behind the directors cinematic choices, and. And we can see why its a book by stephen king, a film by stanley kubrick, and the. It sounds like something thats somehow beautiful and horrible at the same. Despite these shortcomings, torrence starts out a decent family man. A sequel, titled doctor sleep, was published in 20 summary. The shining is a supernatural horror novel written by stephen king and published in 1977. The great gatsby winstonsalemforsyth county schools.
Near the end of the film, on a frigid night, jack chases danny into the labyrinth on the hotel grounds. Jack torrances new job at the overlook hotel is the perfect chance. This analysis of stanley kubricks the shining steps inside. The shining is a rare horror classic that is famous both as a book and a film. His alcoholism and short temper are the themes running throughout the novel. Critical genre analysis the shining, stanley kubrick. Typically, there are 515 questions per chapter, act or section. Chapter summary for stephen kings the shining, part 1 chapter 4 summary. The shining, gothic horror novel by stephen king, first published in 1977. The film has even inspired a documentary called room 237, which features theories about what the various themes and intentions of the late.
Its speculated that the reason for this is that he wanted to use to movie to draw attention to the genocide of the american indians. Seriously exhaustive analysis of the shining shows kubrick. The shining is a tragedy, and wed be remiss to classify the ending otherwise. The shining is a tale about the lives of a family in which the husband works as a caretaker in a hotel overlooking colorado, named the overlook hotel, and much to the husband and wifes unknowing, the hotel has a force within it that transcends the eras and would like to spread further terror to the ones inside it, and the one to notice, and experience it firsthand is the familys son, danny torrance. King does a good job in all of his books to keep a relatively gloomy sensation while reading them. Though he strives to assure danny that the images he sees in the hotel are just like pictures in a book and cant hurt him, dick sternly warns danny to stay out of that room.
Its just the story of one mans family quietly going insane together. I read the novel three times, although over fifteen years have passed since. Over the last few weeks ive noticed a great deal of criticism surrounding the character of wendy torrance in the big screen version of the shining 1980. May 20, 2015 whats the difference comes at you this week with one of the most popular viewer suggestions. The overlooks manager, ullman, is concerned about giving jack the job. Alcoholism in the shining in the shining, written by steven king, the reader is exposed to an issue that a lot of families face in the real world that of which is alcoholism. 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. His ability also allows him to see past, present, and future events through his guide, tony. Rather than being haunted by the memory of horrifying images, the audience is haunted by the question of what initiated those horrifying images. Review and analysis posted on may 25, 20 by carl 21 comments stanley kubrick remains one of americas strongest filmmakers best known for classics such as 2001. I love the shining because of how jack unravels and because of how real the overlook feels. A sequel, titled doctor sleep, was published in 20. Ive read more books about the shining than ive read about any other movie. So many people wonder how much of a difference there is between the film and novel of the shining by stephen king.
The events in the shining greatly differ in the novel and in the film. If personality is an unbroken series of successful gestures, then there was something gorgeous. Seriously exhaustive analysis of the shining shows kubricks inversion of kings novel shares 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. A critical look at stephen kings epic by jenifer michelle delia a dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of doctor of philosophy department of english college of arts and sciences university of south florida major professor. I was curious if anyone has an explanations for the many open ended segments of the movies ending. S tanley kubricks indelible take on both the horror genre and the popular fiction of stephen king, the shining is both a radical distillation of its source novels densely stuffed ghostsandgore imagery as well as a conflation of its hidden central theme of the truelife horrors of domestic abuse. May 31, 20 seriously exhaustive analysis of the shining shows kubricks inversion of kings novel shares 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. This essay is a narratological analysis of stephen kings. I quickly posted a video version of the article on youtube, which gathered tens of thousands of viewings during early 2007. Jack torrance character the story take place in colorado and begins with jack torrance, going to a place by the name of the overlook hotel to be the caretaker over the winter months, because of coast of keeping a twentyfive mile road, in which it take to get to the hotel open, because of all the snow. The shining mystery of the twins film analysis by rob ager. The shining, even though might not be the one to deliver an extremely frightening tale, it manages to provide us a pool of drama, thrills, disturbance, and everything you could think of in a good horror story for us to dive into. With their widely noted disputes about the adaptation, some think kubrick left an eff you message in the shining for stephen king. The themes in freuds essay are relevant in jacks case and assert the concept of an.
No one who has not seen the shining will be seated during the last ten paragraphs. What is significant about the shinings use of mirrors. The shining collectors edition introduction by ken. The shining novel in the novel, jack torrance is a loving but troubled father who cares deeply for wendy and danny but does not know how to show it properly. I already knew that the television set in the overlook hotel has no cord. Early thursday morning, dick hallorann boards a plane to denver. The setting is the overlook, a palatial resort on a colorado mountain top, snowbound and closed down for the long, long. Her gullible nature, her compassion for danny and her husband seems to be her only flaws. The same technique is used in the shining, but this time several scenes are presented as a film within a book and the book in question is jacks manuscript. Fiveyearold danny torrence and his parents, jack and wendy, are spending the winter at a resort high in the colorado mountains. Find a summary of this and each chapter of the shining.
Moving his wife, wendy, and their son, danny, into it for the. It was made into a film by stanley kubrick in 1980. The conclusions drawn from the detailed analysis strongly suggest. 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. The appeal of stephen kings the shining textual and. Lets take a close look at some of the characters in stephen kings the shining. The cycle of violence in the overlook hotel in the shining.
Seriously exhaustive analysis of the shining shows. When his father becomes caretaker of the overlook hotel, dannys visions grow out of control. Early scenes of the film reveal that wendy is an avid reader. The shining is generally considered by critics and king enthusiasts to be one of his best novels, along with carrie 1974, salems lot 1975, and the stand 1978. The shining collectors edition introduction by ken follett. This research paper aims at psychoanalyzing the character of jack torrance with a view to understand the psychological disorders he faced during that time. Psychedelic geometry in the shining film analysis youtube. A very important, and often heated, area of discussion is the comparison between kubricks film and the original novel of the shining by stephen king.
Top 10 differences between the shining book and movie. The shining 1979 analysis by rob ager collative learning. Jacks alcoholism and violent temper had lost him a job as a teacher of literature at a. Stanley kubricks films are some of the most analyzed pieces of cinema, especially his horror masterpiece the shining. He is the cousin of jackie torrance he has the shining, which allows him to detect spirits, thus making him a prime target of the overlook hotel. Oct 09, 2016 analysis of the shining mawr gorshin film analysis, freud, horror novel, literature analysis, psychoanalysis october 9, 2016 may 23, 2017 11 minutes the shining is a supernatural horror novel written by stephen king and published in 1977. The storys main character, jack torrance, struggles from this issue due to his troubled past regarding an. Movie, hell be taking a critical look at movie adaptations of horror novels. He puts the invitation back in the book and starts reading the scrapbook. Jun 18, 2006 but there is a deleted scene from the shining 1980 that casts wendys reliability in a curious light. With ghosts, visions and psychological horror, the shining by stephen king is a very good horror story, i would say one of his best, right up there with the likes of salems lot which is another sk novel that i recommend if you enjoy horror. A presold prefab blockbuster, what with kings carrie hitting the moviehouses, salems lot being lensed, the shining itself sold to warner bros. I couldnt help but feel sympathetic for jack because hes come from such a horrible place, tried to rise above it, but is destroyed by this malevolent place.
Check out his first column below, exploring the shining. Stanley kubricks the shining was released in 1980, and since has been hailed as one of the greatest horror movies ever made. The shining is a novel published in 1977 by stephen king, a wellknown american author. The shining bookmovie beat sheet comparison the movie save. The shining theories i just finished watching the shining with my girlfriend for the first time. Back in late 2006 i wrote my first film analysis article and it was about stanley kubricks film version of the shining. It centers on the writer jack torrence and his family, as they become the isolated. The hotel will soon close for the winter, but cant be left unattended. The title alerts us to the big idea or central concept around which the novel orbits.
I would say that king has designed the overlook hotel to operate as the. Gatsby, the man who gives his name to this book, was exempt from my reaction gatsby, who represented everything for which i have an unaffected scorn. Stephen king has also written doctor sleep which is the shining book two. During jacks chat with delbert grady, there are mirrors in the bathroom, and the two are standing on a shiny, polished floor capable of reflection. Told from four pointsofview the three torrances and.