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Storm of the Century
a book and film by Stephen King
Shaun Kerry, M.D.
Diplomate, American Board
of Psychiatry and Neurology
Art is a form of fiction that portrays
reality. A writer draws images from his unconscious mind, and
when his audience is drawn to those images, it is usually because they
resonate with feelings in their minds as well. As a social
psychiatrist, I often use films to explain phenomena that words alone
cannot convey.
Stephen King is the best-selling novelist
of all time, and it is no
coincidence that fear is extremely prevalent, and a very destructive
emotion in our society. I would |
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invite you to examine with me the
symbolism in this story.
Storm of the Century is a terrifying tale of a town besieged by a
man possessed with evil demonic powers. The several
hundred inhabitants of a picturesque, small island off the coast of
Maine find themselves completely cut off from the rest of the world when
they are hit by the worst storm of the century.
As snow steadily buries everything familiar,
terror arrives in the form of
an evil stranger. As the streets disappear and an
eerie darkness envelops the town, a series of bizarre murders creates a
nightmare of fear. With no help coming from the outside world and
no end to the storm in sight, the townspeople are forced to take drastic
action before it's too late.
The evil stranger arrives in town, kills an old
woman with his cane and allows himself to be taken into
custody -- and knows everyone by name -- and knows their secrets, which
he lets spill in front of everyone else. |
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He keeps magically repeating one phrase
in
writing: "Give
me what I want and
I'll go away." As the storm builds to a crescendo, so do his
supernatural manipulations -- and when the battered people of Little
Tall are at their weakest, he tells them what it will take to make him
leave them alone. When he presents his demands to the whole
town, he gives them a half-hour to discuss and decide -- and you see
that next half-hour unfold in real time.
I don't want to give away too much, in
the event that you
haven't read the
book or seen the
movie. The terrifying experience happens to a society in
miniature, not to a single person. The result is
extraordinarily dehumanizing for everyone involved, and no one can see a
way out. |
This is very much how
many children, boys in particular, perceive their school
experience. The system repeats over and over, day in and day out,
year after year: "Give me what I want and I'll go away." They are
forced to comply.
Society sees that there is a problem so
severe that they put it at the top
of their agenda. In the past 10 years, the amount of
money the American government spends on public education has risen 50
percent to nearly $650 billion a year – an astounding sum. Yet
most people remain as perplexed by the problem as the people in the
film.
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