What a Horror Movie Taught Me About America

Photo by Jon Tyson on Unsplash

The supervisor of my historicism-based BA thesis on Stanley Kubrick’s cult horror film The Shining wrote in her feedback: “Your main thesis statement is sound and interesting but not terribly original”.

First, I was heartbroken. I spent more hours on that essay than I dare to admit, honing it to perfection (or so I thought). On the second thought, though, I was quite taken back because… . Well, let me introduce my “unoriginal” thesis statement:

I argued that Jack (The Shining’s protagonist who tries to murder his wife and son) is an aggressive reincarnation of America’s Founding Fathers.

Now, if this sounded dull to my professor’s ears, what does that say about America?

I mean, just look at The Shining’s plot — it is, after all, an adaptation of Stephen King’s both terrific and terrifying novel: after landing a job as a caretaker at the Overlook Hotel, Jack Torrance (played to perfection by Jack Nicholson) moves his wife Wendy and their young son Danny to the Rocky Mountains where they will spend the winter in complete isolation — except for a company of ghosts. As the Torrances become snowbound, the tension between them, aggregated by the paranormal activity, culminates in Jack’s mental breakdown…