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The best study guide to The Shining on the planet, from the creators of SparkNotes. Get the summaries, analysis, and quotes you need.
- Plot Summary Plot
Jack Torrance looks across the desk at Stuart Ullman and...
- Themes
Stephen King’s The Shining focuses on families and the way...
- Quotes
But it wasn’t really empty. Because here in the Overlook...
- Characters
The Shining Character Analysis | LitCharts. The Shining...
- Symbols
The Overlook Hotel burns to the ground at the end of The...
- Plot Summary Plot
- The Shining Themes
- Analysis of Key Moments in The Shining
- Style, Tone, and Figurative Language
- Analysis of Symbols
Family Bonds
When the Torrance family arrives at the Overlook Hotel, their bonds with one another are already shaky. Wendy is depressed and anxious about her future with her husband, and Jack is struggling to maintain his sobriety while also bringing in enough money to support his family. Danny, who loves both of his parents, is also struggling with the stress of a prospective divorce, even though he is only five years old. The Overlook Hotel’s disembodied evil uses these divisions to tear the family apar...
Evil
Although the exact nature of the evil in the Overlook Hotel is never entirely revealed, it does make itself known through numerous forms. This includes the moving and violent animal topiaries outside, the ghost of Delbert Grady, the woman in Room 217, and more. These various ghostly figures and entities personify evil in various ways. Grady helps convince Jack that he needs to kill his family, and the animal topiaries attempt to kill or at least deter Dick from returning to the hotel.
Isolation
Isolation is one of the most central themes in this novel. Without the family’s isolation at the Overlook Hotel and Jack’s isolation from his wife and son, the events of the novel would not have played out as they did. The hotel’s evil depends on divisions in family relationships. Without Jack’s alcoholism and violent tendencies, it is unlikely that the hotel would’ve been able to isolate him as it did. Plus, the fact that the family was totally alone added to the overall danger and suspense...
Jack accepts the job at the Overlook Hotel as the winter caretaker.Jack is told how important it is to remember to check the boiler in the cellar.The family moves into the Overlook Hotel and meets Dick Hallorann.Danny speaks with Dick about the “shine.”King uses the omniscient third-person point of view when writing this novel. He shifts between different points of view, including Danny’s, Dick’s, and Jack’s throughout. As is common with Stephen King’s writing, he often uses the free indirect style. This means that the characterstake over the narration for a period of time, distorting it through ...
Redrum
“Redrum” is a word that Danny first sees prior to the family moving to the hotel. He sees it in his mind, written in various mirrors. He doesn’t know what the word means for the majority of the book. It is later revealed that the word is murder spelt backwards. It symbolizes the complete reversal of Jack’s intentions as the novel progresses. He begins with the hope of providing his family with a fresh start and ends up attempting to kill them and destroy the hotel. It also adds to the overall...
The Wasps’ Nest
The wasps’ nest that Jack finds and then gives to his son Danny is symbolic of unexpected dangers in the hotel. Danny was thrilled with this unusual gift from his father, but it turns out to be something quite dangerous. In the same way, Danny trusts his father, but this is a misplaced trust. This is clearly seen through Jack’s attempts to kill his wife and son at the end of the novel.
The Boiler
In classic King fashion, the reader is provided with a great example of foreshadowing in regard to the boiler at the beginning of the novel. Jack is told how important it is to continually check the boiler’s pressure. If he doesn’t, it could explode and take his family and the entire hotel with it. This is exactly what happens at the end of the novel. The boiler is symbolic of Jack’s attachment to reality. At first, he diligently checks it. But, as the novel progresses and he loses his grip o...
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‘The Shining’ is a 1977 novel written by the “master of horror” Stephen King. It was his third published novel and helped to solidify his career. The book was adapted into a well-loved film in 1980 by famous horror director, Stanley Kubrick.
The The Shining (1977 Novel) Community Note includes chapter-by-chapter summary and analysis, character list, theme list, historical context, author biography and quizzes written by community members like you.
'The Shining' was Stephen King’s third novel and the first that brought him public acclaim. It was published in 1977. Read the summary here.
The Shining is a 1977 horror novel by American author Stephen King. It tells the story of Jack, Wendy, and Danny Torrance during an isolated winter in which Jack becomes the caretaker of Colorado’s Overlook Hotel. It deals with themes of parenthood, isolation, addiction, and the bonds of family.
The Shining was Stephen King’s third pub-lished novel, written as his rise to fame as a horror writer was beginning. The story centers on Jack Torrance, a struggling writer and recovering...
