The Shining
Introduction
Literature that combines the themes and concepts of horror, the supernatural, and fiction into a cohesive creation is known as gothic literature. Central to the genre is the notion of irrational thought and passion taking precedence over rationality and reason. The release of The Castle of Otranto in 1764 by Horace Walpole paved the way for the growth of Gothic literature that in the twentieth century saw popular novels transformed into cinema (Emandi, 2013). A notable example is The Shining, originally written in 1977 by Stephen King and later adapted to film by Stanley Kubrick in 1980. The film is rich in Gothic elements such as a haunted houses, Gothic villain, and Gothic heroine (Bailey, 1999). This blog seeks to offer a textual analysis of the use of American gothic themes in the film The Shining (Kubrick, 1980). The discussion shall briefly overview gothic literature before narrowing it down to American Gothic.
American Gothic
The American Gothic is a subgenre of the Gothic save for the manifestation of specific attributes unique to it: the uncanny, ghosts, puritanism, guilt, monsters, and rationality versus irrational (Smith, 2003: p.5). Its literature often sees the protagonist indulge in irrational thoughts that make them mad. As an aspect of puritanism, the depiction of Hell presents a theme of the original sins of a character and the subsequent guilt that accompanies them. Smith (2003) opined that the American Gothic distinguishes itself in setting; homes replace caves in the European Gothic. An essential aspect of contemporary American Gothic is some form of the private world that plays a central role in the plot and character development. Such private worlds could be in the form of a family unit whose members constantly interact with each other and the evolving external environment.
Gothic Themes
American gothic perceived as a subgenre of gothic fiction which covers themes that have components of irrationality, guilt, puritanism , ghosts, monsters, ab-humans and the uncanny traits (Punter, 2012). Furthermore, Bloom (2010) indicated that the Gothic would manifest aspects of mysterious imagination, medievalism, ab-human, and scenes of morbidity. Stephen King has played a significant role in defining America gothic as in his books, readers can underline aspects of classic gothic fiction, despite the role of Stephen king in changing or adapting the settings to meet with the zeitgeist of modern times.
The Shining – Film Summary
King Kubrick decided to emphasise in themes/visuals/characters in Shining plot. Ghostly characters, such as Lloyd and Grady, begin emerging in the film, who in turn play a key role in shaping the dark path to be taken by Jack. Wendy starts to deal with Jack’s deteriorating mental health, prompting her to protect Danny and herself from Jack. Danny’s telepathic abilities can get Hallorann to their aid (Kubrick, 1980). The doppelganger Danny is influenced by Danny’s imagined friend Tony, who turns out to be Danny himself, trying to help him in his struggles. He affects Danny’s behaviour and his parents’, making them approach him with caution and more protection than he needs. As the film ends showing a 1921 picture with Jack, it becomes evident that the audience. Magistrale (2004) averred that the scrapbook played a crucial role in developing the Gothic narrative. It brought out Jack’s changes and made Jack committed to working in the hotel as his predecessors. Jack’s growth in his commitment works towards manifesting his depravity and thus the development of the supernatural feel of the hotel. Magistrale (2004) opined an exciting perspective of Kubrick’s direction of Jack’s character as that of him making the character more dystopic than was the case in the King’s novel; his direction is said to mirror Alex (from Kubrick’s A Clockwork Orange) and Hall (from his 2001: A Space Odyssey).
Gothic Elements in the Film
The hotel serves as the film’s focal platform for presenting macabre deaths, ghostly apparitions, and the fight between good and evil. Supernatural events, including deaths in the past, are skillfully combined with the realistic portrayal of multiple corridors and rooms that create an impression of manipulative forces oppressing defenceless humans in the present (Bailey, 1999). In this regard, the hotel ought not to be viewed as a mere inanimate object but, to some extent, animate as it has devised ways to communicate with its inhabitants through apparitions. This point becomes evident because the facility came to life upon Danny’s arrival (Kubrick, 1980).
Danny’s clairvoyant powers allow him to expose the supernatural attribute of the Overlook Hotel, which in turn it causes his suffering in an attempt to conceal its diabolic feature (Strengell, 2005: p. 20). Moreover, the supernatural aspect of the Overlook is also responsible for bringing out Jack’s dark side, causing him to lose his grasp on reality and therefore contributing to the Gothic story. This point is apparent in both the novel and film, where the writer states, “This inhuman place makes human monsters” (King, 1977, p.156).
Jack’s portrayal in the film exhibits features of the Gothic double, in which a figure appears to be caught in the middle of a struggle between good and evil. While Jack was initially the Overlook’s caretaker, the hotel eventually became Jack’s caretaker to avert Wendy and Danny’s destruction (Magistrale, 2004: p.16). A Gothic tale is represented by the transformation of an inanimate thing, the hotel, into a living object in an endeavour to remain “alive.” (Bridgwater, 2003).
Another critical aspect of the Gothic element is that of an ancient prophecy (Harris, 2015. p.1). In The Shining, this is manifested as Jack’s scrapbook, which provided the bridge between the past and present of the Overlook Hotel. The book outlined the history of the hotel that in turn makes Jack more motivated to look out for the interests of the facility. Magistrale (2004: p. 173) opined that the scrapbook could cloud Jack’s thinking, thus preventing him from distinguishing the rational from the irrational. Perry & Sedelholm (2009) suggested that Jack is dragged even further into the abyss where he begins to exhibit symptoms of addiction, the source of addiction being the scrapbook which baits him closer to the Overlook while dragging him even further into depravity and delusion. Magistrale (2004) argues that the scrapbook was vital in developing the Gothic story. It brought out Jack’s metamorphosis and compelled him to commit to working in the hotel in the same capacity as his predecessors. The increase in Jack’s level of dedication contributes to the manifestation of his depravity and, as a result, the creation of the frightening atmosphere of the hotel.
Magistrale (2004: p. 177) further opined that Kubrick’s direction of Jack’s character was exciting because it involved him directing the character into a more dystopic one than depicted in King’s novel. Central to the shaping of his character was the scrapbook whereby, the more he read the book, the further his bond with the hotel increased, oblivious to him of the dangers that he was dragging himself into (Kubrick, 1980). Indeed, this fact was equally apparent in the novel, where it was noted that the scrapbook made Jack feel “like having a responsibility to history” (King, 1977, p.175).
Conclusion
There are various gothic characters in The Shining related to the house and the characters. The house has been depicted as a powerful symbol that gives shelter, stability and warms. Nevertheless, in Stephen King, the house, which is the common place in The Shining, has been perceived as an epicentre where the bizarre, the aberrant and the macabre psychological changes take place. Hence, the house has contributed in establishing an atmosphere of uncertainty, suspense, horror, terror, or a common ground for abnormal activities. Thus, house has turn from being a place for relief to be a place for uncertainty.
The Gothic aspects of The Shining are embodied through the impact on each character. The haunted home has a substantial effect on each character and is one of the key reasons they changed during the narrative. Ie. In particular, Jack needed to fulfil an ancient prophecy to become the Gothic villain. Along with his troubled background that will lead to his demise, as dictated by the Gothic machinery. His decline harms not only himself but also those around him. Wendy became the film’s heroine because she was both vulnerable and obedient. At the end of the film, she realises that she has no choice but to stop being subservient and start fighting. What matters is that the focus is on the characters’ psychological development whether they climb or fall. The film’s terror comes not from the hotel’s creatures but from the monsters that people may become under the appropriate circumstances and from the truth that anyone can become Jack.
