![]() ![]() ![]() None of the iconic scenes from the film (the blood in the elevator, "All work and no play.", the "Here's Johnny!" line) are in the book.It's hard to not feel sympathetic for a victim of domestic abuse and homophobia to the point of being broken down to thinking he is a pedophiliac dog. The Woobie: Roger (in the book at least his appearances in the movie and the miniseries are just random events).The characterization of Jack himself can become this if you're someone who's suffered under an abusive parent or person and just cannot sympathize with someone like Jack.Hindsight makes this especially a product of the scientific ignorance of The '70s as opposed to now, because in the years since King has delivered much more nuanced portrayals and commentaries on autism, particularly Holly of Mr. Wendy asks Doctor Edmonds if Danny might "become autistic" and regards this as the worst possible fate a child could go through.The depiction of LGBT people varies between All Gays Are Pedophiles (a character from one of Jack's short stories), Depraved Bisexual (Horace Derwent), or both (Roger).It wasn't until much later that true crime became such a broadly accessible, popular interest with its own thriving economy. When the book came out, true crime was still seen as a niche market that only catered to the depraved (this is even a minor plot point in King's own Salem's Lot).(Although the Overlook's primary market seems to be rich socialites and retirees, who probably wouldn't find a history of violence and corruption very alluring.) This is partially because it's much harder to keep the dark past of such places a secret in the age of the internet, and partially because a bloody history is seen as far more of a draw to guests, and thus unlikely to harm their bottom line. Ullman and Al being horrified at the idea of Jack writing a book detailing the hotel's bloody history.Interestingly, Kubrick himself seemed to have this position, which lead to his Adaptational Villainy in the film. Unintentionally Unsympathetic: Jack can be this for people who have suffered under an abusive parent or person and just cannot sympathize with such an individual.Unintentional Period Piece: Like a lot of King's early works, it is very obvious the book was written during the 70's everything from pop culture references, to Wendy smoking cigarettes around a little kid to some hints to social issues of the day that come up in dialogue.Kid was trespassing, and if he'd kept his promise, he probably would have avoided the encounter with Mrs. Strawman Has a Point: Along with Villain Has a Point, while he's stalking Danny, Jack is at least a little angry that Danny took the master key and went into Room 217, when he'd been expressly forbidden to go into any of the guest rooms, and (although Jack didn't know it), had promised Hallorann he wouldn't.note To be fair, the game is essentially moribund, and this novel is likely the only thing keeping the term in regular circulation This is what you get if you Google Image what a roque mallet looks like. Never Live It Down: For the game of roque, this is a lot of people's only experience with the sport.Keeping his family at the Overlook leads to disaster, but leaving the hotel would have ultimately been almost as bad for them. If not for the malevolent, supernatural hotel, Jack's caretaking job probably would have gone off without a hitch. Even though he was the author of so many of his own failures in life, he and his family are trapped in an impossible situation. Jack going crazy in general - particularly pronounced in the book where Danny has repeated dreams and visions of a monstrous creature trying to kill him and yelling at him to "take your medicine." Most readers know the creature will end up being Jack long before they get to the climax of the book.The Arc Word that Danny keeps seeing, "REDRUM", is "MURDER" spelled backwards. ![]() Growing the Beard: Stephen King felt that the point where he wrote Jack Torrance as a sympathetic antagonist was the point where he got better at writing.That said, numerous characters mention that he undercuts basic safety regulations to save money, hence the Hotel exploding due to a faulty boiler. That Jack is blatantly being hired because he's friends with one of the owners can't help. At most he openly worries about Jack's past before hiring him anyway. Ullman, Jack repeatedly calls him an "officious little prick", but he never does anything to anyone.
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