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.
When we first meet Bill Samuels, Ralph describes him as youthful—a “child prodigy.” The cowlick at the back of his head makes people think of Alfalfa from the Little Rascals. That childish feature symbolizes his immaturity. His repeated smoothing of the cowlick suggests self-consciousness underlying his superficial confidence. That insecurity leads him to compensate by acting precipitously in Terry’s arrest and sticking doggedly to his guns for fear of losing face.
In the end, Samuels learns his limitations. Moving forward he will take a more mature and less reckless attitude. When Ralph meets with him after Terry’s exoneration, Samuels has gotten his hair cut, and the cowlick is gone, signifying that he has grown up.
Edgar Allan Poe’s “William Wilson” is a story about a man (Wilson) haunted by his doppelgänger, who gradually takes over Wilson’s life. In desperation, Wilson finally attacks the doppelgänger, only to find that he has fatally wounded himself. The story has no conclusive ending in that the reader never learns whether the double was real, supernatural, or a delusion (or some combination).
In The Outsider, the characters’ interpretations of this story evolve based on the information they have about Terry and his apparent doppelgänger.
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
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Doctor Sleep
Doctor Sleep
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Dolores Claiborne
Dolores Claiborne
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Duma Key
Duma Key
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Elevation
Elevation: A Novel
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End of Watch
End of Watch
Stephen King
Fairy Tale
Fairy Tale
Stephen King
Finders Keepers
Finders Keepers
Stephen King
Firestarter
Firestarter
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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