Imagining the Worst: Stephen King and the Representation of Women

(Hardback)

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Stephen King has been hailed as a writer of the late 20th century Everyman, yet his representations of women remain debatable. These essays not only explore his portrayal of female characters, they illuminate Stephen King's own psychology and that of our culture's fears, anxieties, and feminine obsessions. The various works examined include Carrie, Gerald's Game, Rose Madder, Holloween, Friday the 13th, Dolores Claiborne, It, Christine, and Misery. The essays progress through various discussions of female power versus male authority, the association of female with evil, and King's monster imagery associated with the mother-figure characters. Written by various scholars and professors, these essays offer rare insight into the treatement of the female characters of Stephen King's imagination. The works of Stephen King are as popular as they are contested. Delineated by his precise commentary on the late 20th century culture, and most notably American culture, his horror fiction strikes a more specific, personal note with readers. These essays tap into the feminine aspect of King's social commentary. Concentrating on his treatment of female characters, these essays explore Stephen King's exposure of the fears, anxieties, and obsessions concerning the female and feminine that our culture harbors. The numerous works analyzed in this book provide a comprehensive study of King's treatment of the feminine, and what it implies about our culture and Stephen King.

Reviews

"This review is surprised that feminist critics have not jumped on King's fiction prior to this: the contributors document the pervasiveness of misogyny, homophobia, gynophobia, Oedipal complexes, and every kind of neurotic projection imaginable in King's work. These psychological conditions seem to be the very source of horror in much of his fiction....[T]he collection is readable and engaging. Especially provocative are Linda Anderson'a exploration of the mother as monster, Edward Madden's consideration of sexuality and horror, and Lant's piece on King's relationship with his readers."-Choice
This review is surprised that feminist critics have not jumped on King's fiction prior to this: the contributors document the pervasiveness of misogyny, homophobia, gynophobia, Oedipal complexes, and every kind of neurotic projection imaginable in King's work. These psychological conditions seem to be the very source of horror in much of his fiction....[T]he collection is readable and engaging. Especially provocative are Linda Anderson'a exploration of the mother as monster, Edward Madden's consideration of sexuality and horror, and Lant's piece on King's relationship with his readers.-Choice

Author Bio

KATHLEEN LANT is Professor of English at California Polytechnic State University where she is also Coordinator of Instructional Technology for the College of Liberal Arts./e Her publications include work on Harriet Beecher Stowe, Kate Chopin, Charlotte Perkins Gilman, Tennessee Williams, Stephen King, Louisa May Alcott, Sulvia Plath, and educational technology. THERESA THOMPSON is Assistant Professor of English at Valdosta State University in Georgia./e She has also published articles on Virginia and Leonard Woolf, Edward Said, and D. H. Lawrence.