FEAR IN THE FORMATIVE YEARS: STEPHEN KING'S PORTRAYAL OF CHILDHOOD ANXIETIES

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Main Author: R. Shanthini
Format: Recurso digital
Published: Zenodo 2025
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author R. Shanthini
author_facet R. Shanthini
contents <p><em><span lang="EN-US">This paper examines the depiction of fears in Stephen King's child protagonists in Carrie (1974) and The Shining (1977), challenging the conventional understanding of child abuse during the 1970s. Through a close reading of both novels, it becomes evident that child abuse is a pervasive theme, with parental figures Margaret White and Jack Torrance inflicting verbal and physical harm on their children. The analysis reveals a disturbing pattern of intergenerational trauma, where abusive parents repeat the cycles of violence they experienced in their own past. This subverts the dominant narrative of the time, which attributed child abuse primarily to socio-economic factors. By employing the theory of the uncanny, this study demonstrates how King masterfully crafts a sense of unease by blending the familiar with the horrific. King's portrayal of child abuse in seemingly ordinary families echoes the groundbreaking research of the era, highlighting the pervasive nature of abuse across social and economic boundaries.</span></em></p>
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spellingShingle FEAR IN THE FORMATIVE YEARS: STEPHEN KING'S PORTRAYAL OF CHILDHOOD ANXIETIES
R. Shanthini
Stephen King
childhood anxiety
fear
trauma
horror fiction
psychological development
formative years
supernatural
emotional resilience
<p><em><span lang="EN-US">This paper examines the depiction of fears in Stephen King's child protagonists in Carrie (1974) and The Shining (1977), challenging the conventional understanding of child abuse during the 1970s. Through a close reading of both novels, it becomes evident that child abuse is a pervasive theme, with parental figures Margaret White and Jack Torrance inflicting verbal and physical harm on their children. The analysis reveals a disturbing pattern of intergenerational trauma, where abusive parents repeat the cycles of violence they experienced in their own past. This subverts the dominant narrative of the time, which attributed child abuse primarily to socio-economic factors. By employing the theory of the uncanny, this study demonstrates how King masterfully crafts a sense of unease by blending the familiar with the horrific. King's portrayal of child abuse in seemingly ordinary families echoes the groundbreaking research of the era, highlighting the pervasive nature of abuse across social and economic boundaries.</span></em></p>
title FEAR IN THE FORMATIVE YEARS: STEPHEN KING'S PORTRAYAL OF CHILDHOOD ANXIETIES
topic Stephen King
childhood anxiety
fear
trauma
horror fiction
psychological development
formative years
supernatural
emotional resilience
url https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17286495