Analysis of the Authorial Techniques Used by Stephen King in Misery (1987)

Abstract

Stephen King is a renowned contemporary author, who has published over fifty novels, many of them bestsellers, and who has pushed the thriller and horror genres into new heights. This thesis aims to locate and analyse different authorial techniques, like choosing narrative perspectives, establishing pace, and building suspense, to gain a higher understanding of King’s phenomenon and to aid future aspiring authors, literary critics, and researchers. The techniques are analysed in his 1987 psychological thriller Misery, and the analysis itself is based on theories and research done by literary critics and academics. To keep it concise, not all the aspects of writing are analysed, but the focus will lay on three major elements: the perspective; the pace; and the suspense. After introduction, the second part of the thesis introduces Stephen King and his importance in the literary landscape as well as the literary praise and criticism Stephen King’s writing has received from other critics and scholars. The second part analyses these elements by first establishing their core meaning, then finding examples of them used in Misery, and finally explaining how and why King has chosen to use them to elevate his writing. Finally, the fifth part concludes and summarises the thesis and theorises about the implications and possibilities of further research on this subject.