The Dark Half: Analysis of Major Characters
"The Dark Half: Analysis of Major Characters" provides an in-depth exploration of the key figures in Stephen King's novel, "The Dark Half." Central to the narrative is Thad Beaumont, a novelist who grapples with a dark alter ego named George Stark, under which he writes violent fiction. Thad's struggles are intensified by a traumatic past, having undergone surgery as a child to remove the absorbed twin that resurfaces in his life as Stark. Stark embodies Thad's repressed impulses and becomes a separate entity, leading to a series of brutal murders that cause turmoil in the small town of Castle Rock, Maine.
The character of Sheriff Alan Pangborn plays a crucial role as he navigates the investigation of the murders linked to Thad, ultimately recognizing the supernatural connection between them. Supporting characters include Thad's wife, Liz, who fears the violent persona Stark represents, and their twin children, who unwittingly bond with the sinister figure. The narrative also features Dr. Hugh Pritchard, who provides insights into Thad's condition, and Rawlie DeLesseps, a folklore professor who helps Thad understand the ominous symbolism of sparrows throughout the story. Overall, the analysis highlights the complex interplay between creativity, identity, and the darker aspects of human nature, making it a compelling topic for readers interested in character-driven narratives.
The Dark Half: Analysis of Major Characters
Author: Stephen King
First published: 1989
Genre: Novel
Locale: Maine
Plot: Horror
Time: 1988
Thad Beaumont, a novelist and professor of creative writing at the University of Maine. At eleven years of age, Thad began to suffer blackouts, preceded by the sound of sparrows. When neurologist Hugh Pritchard operated, he removed the fetus of a twin that had been absorbed into Thad's head while both were still embryos. As an adult, Beaumont has published novels that were praised by critics but not widely read. To cure a writing block, Thad writes, under the pseudonym George Stark, violent novels about Alexis Machine, a sadist who kills evildoers. These are so popular that Thad becomes independently wealthy. When a law student, Frederick Clawson, tries to extort money by threatening to expose Thad's identity as Stark, Thad admits responsibility in an interview for People magazine and announces that he will write no more Stark books. Shortly after the article appears in People, Thad again has blackouts and hears sparrows. When a resident of Castle Rock, Maine, is brutally murdered and Thad's fingerprints are found at the scene, the Castle Rock sheriff, Alan Pangborn, confronts Thad, but he becomes convinced that he is innocent. Soon, other people are murdered, including Clawson, the people associated with the People magazine story, and the agents and editors involved with the publication of the Stark novels. Thad tries to convince Pangborn that his pseudonym has come to life. Through the psychic bond that links them, Thad learns that his double is physically disintegrating. Thad intuits that, should he write another Machine novel, his pseudonym would become whole and he himself would deteriorate. Meanwhile, huge numbers of sparrows have gathered. Thad learns from a folklore professor that sparrows are “psychopomps” who conduct souls to the land of the dead. When Stark threatens Liz and the Beaumonts' twins at the Beaumonts' Castle Rock summer house, Thad comes to their rescue. There, he and Stark begin the new Machine novel. The sparrows invade the house and carry Stark away. With the help of Sheriff Pangborn, Thad burns the house and all evidence that Stark ever existed.
George Stark, the pseudonym under which Thad Beaumont writes the Alexis Machine novels. He becomes a separate being when his creator symbolically kills him. Stark is the reincarnation of a fetal twin removed from Thad's brain. He represents Thad's “dark half,” the destructive impulses that the writer has repressed. Near Castle Rock's cemetery, where he comes to life, Stark bludgeons an old man to death. He is responsible for the other murders as well. Stark is psychically linked with Thad, but he is unaware of the sparrows gathering around his double. Stark is decomposing and will die unless Thad resumes writing as Stark. Stark takes Liz and the babies hostage, drives to the Beaumonts' summer home in Castle Rock, and threatens to harm them unless Thad begins a new Machine novel. When Thad arrives and begins to write, Stark's sores start to heal. Stark takes over the story, unaware that he is inserting the word “sparrow” more and more frequently into the text. Sparrows invade the house and carry Stark back to hell.
Alan Pangborn, the sheriff of Castle Rock. Pangborn has a keen analytical mind, is almost preternaturally agile, and can assess honesty and character intuitively. Because fingerprints at the crime scenes match Thad's, Pangborn at first suspects Thad, but he comes reluctantly to accept a supernatural explanation. Pangborn tracks down Dr. Pritchard, who operated on Thad's supposed tumor. When the surgeon tells Pangborn that he had removed a fetal twin from the child's brain, Pangborn realizes that Thad's double has come back to life as Stark. When a Castle Rock farmer reports that a black Toronado, matching Thad's description of Stark's car, has emerged from his garage, Pangborn drives to the Beaumont summer house and is captured by Stark. When the sparrows invade the Beaumont house, Pangborn shelters Liz with a blanket. He helps Thad burn the house and the Toronado to remove all evidence of Stark's existence.
Liz Beaumont, Thad's devoted wife and the mother of Wendy and William. Liz feared the man her husband became when he wrote the Machine novels. When Stark holds her and the twins hostage, Liz conceals household objects that might be used as weapons.
William Beaumont and Wendy Beaumont, the Beaumonts' twin babies. They treat the monstrous Stark as their father.
Hugh Pritchard, a retired surgeon who removed the fetal twin from the brain of the eleven-year-old Thad.
Rawlie DeLesseps, a professor of folklore and a colleague of Thad. Rawlie tells Thad that sparrows are “psychopomps,” associated with the living dead. He loans Thad a car when Thad seeks to escape police surveillance.