The Stand - Let's Discuss! *SPOILERS*

[Jean]

If Captain Trips struck, I'd swim to Ireland and sit in the shadows of celtic crosses somewhere in the middle of nowhere, with my family and closest friends. It would be great to see Mother Abagail, but sadly USA would be too far for us. Ireland simply is such a beautiful place you'll forget all those dreams eventually.

I've always loved The Stand. Some people complain it's too long - in my opinion, it could've been longer.

pick me up on your way past

I agree so much, thats why i love this book, it took over my life it was so big

bears concur!

I don't think people in other continents could have taken part. Y'know...only Americans can save the world from evil.

oh yes... sorry, I keep forgetting...

[Odetta]

it's all OK... if SK lived in, say... Australia, then I am sure The Stand would have centered around Australia.

[Mordred Deschain]

Really though, with all the wonders of the world (just sitting there empty) I think I would find some like minded friends and spend like 6 months out of every year traveling and collecting things. Spending the other six months with the community.

Let someone else worry about taking care of Flagg. I'd be to scared.

my god... we are kindred spirits! i would do the EXACT SAME THING!

I think if you ended up in one camp or the other, there was a compelling force to either stay or change sides. However, the Free Zone probably wouldn't have cared if you left and came back, as long as you didn't posses needed skills. ie doctor, engineer, etc... Or they would have at least asked you to stay until someone else comes along to help cover.

I do have to say I love the Stand, but the entire idea creeps me out. I'd probably end up in Las Vegas, only because it's Las Vegas. I mean what kind of irrational illogical creature wouldn't want to end up smack in the middle of a desert when the world is moving on? Only an insane fool would want to go in the wilderness where there's apt to be plenty of water and food.

[GirlGoneNineteen]

I guess I just assumed that Captain Trips hit the rest of the world as well - I mean, people were travelling internationally both in and out of the US before they knew anything was going on. At the very least it would have spread to all of North and South America, no? And if it got that far, the Caribbean isn't much farther than that, and so on and so on. It just seemed logical that it spread globally.

[rico567]

Quote per 'Randall Flagg':

"Knowing that King no longer had a future at Doubleday, the company declared that King must cut the huge manuscript (over 1,600 pages) by at least 250 pages in order to "keep the retail price down." King was furious, but he had little choice in the matter given his contract. It wasn't until twelve years later that his uncut manuscript was published (by Doubleday, ironically) as The Stand: The Complete and Uncut Edition. "

Interesting....so Doubleday was responsible for the original shortened manuscript. I have that one in hardcover, and as far as I am concerned is by far the better, tighter story. The rest of the uncut manuscript is nothing but bloat, as far as I am concerned. King may have been furious, but DD was doing The Stand a favor.....

[cody44]

Quote per 'Randall Flagg':

"Knowing that King no longer had a future at Doubleday, the company declared that King must cut the huge manuscript (over 1,600 pages) by at least 250 pages in order to "keep the retail price down." King was furious, but he had little choice in the matter given his contract. It wasn't until twelve years later that his uncut manuscript was published (by Doubleday, ironically) as The Stand: The Complete and Uncut Edition. "

Interesting....so Doubleday was responsible for the original shortened manuscript. I have that one in hardcover, and as far as I am concerned is by far the better, tighter story. The rest of the uncut manuscript is nothing but bloat, as far as I am concerned. King may have been furious, but DD was doing The Stand a favor.....

I must say I strongly disagree. I love the added parts, and I loved the trip of the Trashcan Man. It may not read as smooth, but just knowing those extra pieces enhance the story.

[Jean]

bears agree 100%

I've always felt this ability to create a story inside the story, a story outside the story, a multitude of seemingly unrelated stories, a history of an object or a family, a crowd of brilliant, unforgettable secondary characters, etc, the strongest side of Sai King's talent. (that is why, by the way, bears were so disappointed by Lisey's Story, which is perfectly linear)

[ManOfWesternesse]

I guess I just assumed that Captain Trips hit the rest of the world as well .......

Definitely did - as Woofer said above we are told directly in the Book that the military had people on all continents, with nice phials in their posession, who were going to ensure that everyone fared the same as the USA.

I guess one question would be:- Did people elsewhere in the World dream of Mother Abigail and/or The dark Man, and were they compelled to travel to one or other?
The presumed answer (for me):- Of course they would have!
The factual answer:- King didn't address it! (And, in all fairness, really couldn't. The story was big enough already).

[Brice]

He could have made it a few thousand pages longer.

[Jean]

yes, that would have made bears a few thousand pages happier

[Brice]

brices too.

[ManOfWesternesse]

[jayson]

He could have made it a few thousand pages longer.

i could have gladly gone another 1000 pages with it.

[Brice]

only 1,000?

[Lily-sai]

brices too.

and liisas too.

[CRinVA]

Someone asked USA Weekend (Sunday Newspaper magazine insert) where SK got the name "Hemingford" from for The Stand and they managed to get an answer (3rd item down):

For King, fictional Hemingford Home is where the heartland is. And it’s named after the real Hemingford, Neb. “I originally used Hemingford Home in The Stand,” King says, “because I wanted to put Mother Abigail in the American heartland. That’s Nebraska. Hemingford was in the right place. … I love Nebraska and keep going back to it in my fiction — when I’m not in Maine, that is.”

[Kronz]

Currently re-reading (circa pg 500) and I think I am enjoying it much more than when I first read it as a kid. The worst part though, I have been coming down with a nasty bug since a day or two after starting out. Psychosomatic reaction?

I kind of wish I could have read the cut version for my second run through, but it just felt like I'd regret it. Lots of classics have been revised and no one ever goes back to the originals but this case seems more extreme than usual. The only thing I find irritating are the self-conscious updated pop culture references when moving the story ahead a few years. Tom Cruise did not need to be mentioned in The Stand, if you know what I mean.

[Ageless Stranger]

I'm due a re-read I guess. I don't remember Tom Cruise being mentioned in The Stand. Huh.

[Kronz]

In the uncut edition there's a line that mentions him (near the beginning of chapter 24), believe it or not. I understand King was just going the distance to make the updated version contemporary but I found some of the updated references a little silly.

[Riostar]

I have the uncut edition of the Stand i think I will have to re-read, its been about 6 yrs since I've read it. Being that's its over 1000 pgs I will have to finish my 3 other books 1st to make sure I give it my full attention.

[Ageless Stranger]

I have the uncut edition as well. I just don't remember it. I'll re-read it one of these days after I read some more of his books I haven't read before.

[Jean]

I read only the uncut, but don't remember any Cruise - probably because last time I was rereading, I didn't know of his existence, so it was just another name for bears (it's little more than that now, too...)

Loved King mentioning fictional (EdMcBain's) characters, though, as if they were real people.

[Hannah]

That's a neat little factoid. How cool that it comes so many years after The Stand came out...

[ManOfWesternesse]

I re-read the uncut about a month ago. Think it was just my 2nd read of the uncut. I've read the old cut version a hell of a lot of times (15-20?)

[Kronz]

I just finished re-reading the uncut in about five days and it was waaaaay better than I remembered, and I remembered it was really great. Now I feel guilt for ranking it a four on the polls. I did a little back and forth with my paperback of the original, and found it odd some of the things I noticed changed. The whole The Kid/Wolfman business was great and it's too bad it was cut (or do you think King wrote all that in the 80s when he updated it?)

Oh and I read this very closely but I still couldn't figure out why the Judge was going to Oregon? Was he planning to wrap back around to approach from the west? Or was he shirking? Why are his initials RF? Red herring? Inquiring minds want to know.