59 pages • 1 hour read
Stephen KingA modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. For select classroom titles, we also provide Teaching Guides with discussion and quiz questions to prompt student engagement.
The plot of “The Man in the Black Suit” revolves around a series of unintended events that could be considered accidents, coincidences, or fate. An accident is an unintentional event that usually has negative consequences. A coincidence is a surprising confluence of events that have no apparent causal relationship. A coincidence can have positive or negative results. Fate is an action or result that is predestined, and over which humans have no control. Fate can have positive, negative, or ambiguous outcomes.
The first unintended event is that Gary’s older brother dies from a bee sting. Even though this event occurs before the story begins, it is the underlying incident that propels the plot.
The second unintended and unexplained event is the Devil’s appearance. Older Gary writes of the encounter: “He was real, he was the Devil, and that day I was either his errand or his luck” (69). King never reveals whether the Devil had any intention of meeting Gary, whether their meeting was fated, or whether it was all a dream. The multiple possibilities leave room for readers to suspect both earthly and otherworldly causes for the story’s events—or no cause at all.
By Stephen King
11.22.63
11.22.63
Stephen King
1408
1408
Stephen King
Bag of Bones
Bag of Bones
Stephen King
Billy Summers
Billy Summers
Stephen King
Carrie
Carrie
Stephen King
Children of the Corn
Children of the Corn
Stephen King
Cujo
Cujo
Stephen King
Different Seasons
Different Seasons
Stephen King
Doctor Sleep
Doctor Sleep
Stephen King
Dolores Claiborne
Dolores Claiborne
Stephen King
Duma Key
Duma Key
Stephen King
Elevation
Elevation: A Novel
Stephen King
End of Watch
End of Watch
Stephen King
Fairy Tale
Fairy Tale
Stephen King
Finders Keepers
Finders Keepers
Stephen King
Firestarter
Firestarter
Stephen King
From a Buick 8
From a Buick 8
Stephen King
Full Dark, No Stars
Full Dark, No Stars
Stephen King
Gerald's Game
Gerald's Game
Stephen King
Gwendy's Button Box
Gwendy's Button Box
Stephen King, Richard Chizmar