I put my finger on it

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Roho T Rooster

Well-Known Member
Apr 12, 2016
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I just got to the part in the book where
Jake goes back the third time, and the Yellow Card Man's card is black.
That one change brought to the front what I try to tell people about King's writing as opposed to some other suspense/horror writer's; usually Dean Koontz. Most writers have antagonist's that are generally human, used to be human, or, are some other entity that is contained within a certain body...such as a demon, alien, or some such thing. For King, the antagonist is evil itself. Perhaps evil is not the exact word; but, his Big Bads are the embodiment of a particular emotion, past events, or just universal contrariness. Many times, that unpleasantness is embodied in the town of Derry Maine...or a Clown...or a rotten corpse crawling toward you.

That reminds me of the difference between most Western horror movies, and their Asian counterparts. That creepy girl with the stringy hair over her face, or that blueish kid crouched in the corner, a common trope found in Asian horror movies, are not ghosts. They are grudges...powerful, violent emotions that take form. I find that more appealing than actual spirits, or ghosts, or dearly departed; probably because it fits better with my world view.

Anyway...that scene, in the book, reminded me that.

Carry on...
 

GNTLGNT

The idiot is IN
Jun 15, 2007
87,651
358,754
62
Cambridge, Ohio
I just got to the part in the book where
Jake goes back the third time, and the Yellow Card Man's card is black.
That one change brought to the front what I try to tell people about King's writing as opposed to some other suspense/horror writer's; usually Dean Koontz. Most writers have antagonist's that are generally human, used to be human, or, are some other entity that is contained within a certain body...such as a demon, alien, or some such thing. For King, the antagonist is evil itself. Perhaps evil is not the exact word; but, his Big Bads are the embodiment of a particular emotion, past events, or just universal contrariness. Many times, that unpleasantness is embodied in the town of Derry Maine...or a Clown...or a rotten corpse crawling toward you.

That reminds me of the difference between most Western horror movies, and their Asian counterparts. That creepy girl with the stringy hair over her face, or that blueish kid crouched in the corner, a common trope found in Asian horror movies, are not ghosts. They are grudges...powerful, violent emotions that take form. I find that more appealing than actual spirits, or ghosts, or dearly departed; probably because it fits better with my world view.

Anyway...that scene, in the book, reminded me that.

Carry on...
...I tend to concur....they may be huge novels with casts of dozens-yet when boiled down, it's The White vs Evil......