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Jack Torrance—Everyman or Monster?”—SOUL #23

Jack Torrance—Everyman or Monster?”—SOUL #23

Last updated on: November 2, 2024 at 2:35 pm by John Gravino

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Jack Torrance—Everyman or Monster?”—SOUL #23 2024-11-02T14:35:45-04:00 John Gravino

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“Jack Torrance—Everyman or Monster?” Kubrick showed us that Jack the Monster made for riveting cinematic entertainment. But King showed us more—namely, that Jack the Everyman* contributed prescient social commentary to a dying culture.*

Summary

Welcome to the spooky edition of SOUL SCIENCE! In honor of Halloween, episode #23 looks at Stephen King’s novel The Shining. We look at the controversy that developed between King and the director of the movie, Stanley Kubrick. It is fairly well known that King was unhappy with some aspects of the movie.

The show takes an in-depth look at a couple of questions about King’s famous novel:

How close does Stephen King get to orthodox Christian spiritual concepts in The Shining?

Is King pushing back against 70’s pop psychology? Is he suggesting that, in some way, perhaps, we are all Jack Torrance to some degree or other? Is King presenting the character of Jack as a counterexample to the culture-defining mantra of the 70s—

“I’m okay; you’re okay”?

The Controversy

Some of you may already be aware that Stephen King was not completely happy with the movie. He was particularly displeased with changes that the director, Stanley Kubrick, made to the main character, Jack Torrance. This is how Jason Hellerman described the disagreement:

“King thought of Jack’s character as a decent guy just trying to provide for his family. In the movie…he was just evil!”

If King believed that Jack was basically “a decent guy,” then he must have also believed that “decent” people were capable of very terrible crimes. If this is the idea King was pursuing, then it is safe to say that he was certainly pushing back against the popular sentiment of 70’s pop psychology that all of us are, in fact, “okay.”

King is challenging us to consider a truly frightening possibility:

Can a normal guy with common flaws be driven to unspeakable evil? Can evil spirits be the cause of such downfalls?

On the Reality of Evil and Evil Spirits in the Bible

Certainly the Bible teaches that all humans are engaged in a spiritual battle with evil demons and that, sometimes, the battle turns out badly. Satan entered into Judas Iscariot and induced him to betray Jesus. And Judas ended up killing himself.

Then there is this passage from Ephesians:

“For our struggle is not with flesh and blood

but with the principalities, with the powers,

with the world rulers of this present darkness,

with the evil spirits in the heavens” (Eph. 6:12).

And here is a warning from St. Peter:

“Be sober, be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking some one to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same experience of suffering is required of your brotherhood throughout the world.”(1Pt.5: 8–9)

The Shocking Tucker Carlson Story

A ghostly appearance at the site of a gruesome execution.

As I was getting ready to record the show, I came across a stunning Tucker Carlson interview in which he asserted that he was attacked by a demon. I comment on that in the episode. And you can find a link to the full Tucker interview in the show notes below.

My Scary Photograph

Also making an appearance in the show is my scary photograph from Medjugorje. I discussed the picture last Halloween, but in this episode,

I discuss the photo’s thematic parallels to The Shining. For example, manifestations of paranormal activity are thought to be associated with the sites of horrific acts of violence. Here I am, 24 years ago, at the site where 30 martyrs were burned alive for refusing to renounce their faith. The ghostly apparition in black, above the plaque, appeared as my wife snapped the photo. . . . [For more info on this episode, see the show!]

Show Notes:

Kubrick made a monster out of Jack Torrance: https://nofilmschool.com/kubrick-the-shining-king.

The Shining is autobiographical: https://elliotchan.com/2019/08/24/stephen-king-vs-stanley-kubrick-how-the-shining-went-from-book-to-movie/.

Image of Padre Pio: https://denvercatholic.org/foundation-releases-never-before-seen-images-of-padre-pio/

Tucker Carlson demon story: https://youtu.be/LDIqoPKNhgo?si=1yUMgWkFSkeKITzZ

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About John Gravino

John Gravino is the author of The Immoral Landscape of the New Atheism, which was the topic of a health and spirituality seminar at Duke Medical School. He continues to explore the intersection of health and religion and the other big questions of life right here at Patheos. You can read more about the author here.

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