The Shining Movie And Book Comparison Essay

“The Shining” is a novel written by Stephen King in 1977 and a horror movie directed by Stanley Kubrick in 1980. The novel and movie tells a story about Jack Torrance, who becomes the off-season winter caretaker of the Overlook Hotel. Although the movie and the book have some similarities; there are many differences from the adaptation of the novel.

In the book, the main characters are Jack Torrance, Wendy Torrance, and their son Danny Torrance. Jack is a recovering alcoholic who struggles with his thoughts, guilt and has flashbacks about his past transgressions. Wendy is a strong character and loving wife who has blonde hair. Danny is a five year old boy who is self-reliant whose vocabulary is way beyond his year. Furthermore, Jack friend Al Shockley hires him to watch the Overlook Hotel. During the interview, Mr. Ullman treats Jack mean and doesn’t want to hire him. In addition, there is no reference of the hotel being built on a native burial ground. Jack wants to work at the hotel for the silence and quietness which will enable him to write his play.

In the book, Wendy Torrance has blond hair, strong charace

In the book, Danny Torrance is

Jack is characterized as an aspiring writer and recovering alcoholic with anger issues troubled by past binges that, prior to the story, had caused him to accidentally break Danny's arm and lose his position as a teacher. Jack hopes that the hotel's seclusion will help him reconnect with his family and give him the motivation needed to work on a play. Danny, unknown to his parents, possesses telepathic abilities referred to as "the shining" that enable him to read minds and experience premonitions. Dick Hallorann, the chef at the Overlook, also possesses similar abilities to Danny's and helps to explain them to him, giving Hallorann and Danny a special