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Thread: Walter General Discussion: The Gunslinger **spoilers

  1. #176
    Gunslinger Apprentice Earth's Militant Mind is on a distinguished road Earth's Militant Mind's Avatar

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    I could be wrong of course but I will share my take on not just this quote, but the DT and most of his writing. SK connects many of his stories to his others and many of them take place in Maine where he lives. I believe that much of this puts us on a much more personal plain with Mr. King than we realize. I think many of his characters are incantations of himself in different frames of mind, this may be why he decided to include himself in the story as well.

    Now since we all have inner conflicts with ourselves I believe that what the man in black is saying is that he fears Roland succeeding because if he does than that one train of thought may rule with out prejudice and that is what he fears. He knows Roland is going to catch up with him and kill this form of he because this is ka but there are others like him or other forms of him that he wants to see continue after he is gone. So he does not fear death or bullets because he already knows he will die but he fears Rolands success.

    Even in the ending King can't bring himself to let Roland win because he knows that to some extent this conflict is necessary to provide purpose in life. I may be streatching it now but I don't think the DT is done with Stephen and there will be more even if we don't get to see it.

    That was a great question, hope I made some sense. Who's the HIPPIE now Brice? What?

  2. #177
    shrewd and knavish sprite flaggwalkstheline will become famous soon enough flaggwalkstheline's Avatar

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    has anyone noticed how there are so many characters in the dark tower who are minor figures yet seem to be fleshed out enough that they could have their own books just about them (some of them do actually) the tick tock man and gasher and their whole situation, sylvia pitson, sheb the piano player who was in hambry then tull, alice, david quick, the list goes on and on
    if the worlds gonna end then let's get it over with, i got shit to do

  3. #178
    Gunslinger Apprentice Whitey Appleseed is on a distinguished road Whitey Appleseed's Avatar

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    Yeah, you bet, FWTL. A reader needs to pay attention cause you're likely to see again someone that seems to drop from the pages, if not in the story you're reading, then somewhere else. On one of these threads, some mentioned Brown, and apparently he shows up later in the narrative. Can't say for sure that I remember that, but with many of them, there's subtext that you can wonder about, fill-in-the-blanks so to speak.

  4. #179
    Roont Brice has much to be proud of Brice has much to be proud of Brice has much to be proud of Brice has much to be proud of Brice has much to be proud of Brice has much to be proud of Brice has much to be proud of Brice has much to be proud of Brice has much to be proud of Brice's Avatar

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    Quote Originally Posted by Earth's Militant Mind View Post
    I could be wrong of course but I will share my take on not just this quote, but the DT and most of his writing. SK connects many of his stories to his others and many of them take place in Maine where he lives. I believe that much of this puts us on a much more personal plain with Mr. King than we realize. I think many of his characters are incantations of himself in different frames of mind, this may be why he decided to include himself in the story as well.

    Now since we all have inner conflicts with ourselves I believe that what the man in black is saying is that he fears Roland succeeding because if he does than that one train of thought may rule with out prejudice and that is what he fears. He knows Roland is going to catch up with him and kill this form of he because this is ka but there are others like him or other forms of him that he wants to see continue after he is gone. So he does not fear death or bullets because he already knows he will die but he fears Rolands success.

    Even in the ending King can't bring himself to let Roland win because he knows that to some extent this conflict is necessary to provide purpose in life. I may be streatching it now but I don't think the DT is done with Stephen and there will be more even if we don't get to see it.

    That was a great question, hope I made some sense. Who's the HIPPIE now Brice? What?
    I never said I was the only hippie. Now you may have a hard time convincing Jayson you are one though.

    You made sense, but I do think your analogy is reaching a bit far. It makes sense, but doesn't feel entirely right to me.
    The Awesomest fled across the desert and The Awesomer followed.

    If you rescue me
    I’ll be your friend forever


    I wish that I could write fiction, but that seems almost an impossibility. -howard phillips lovecraft (1915)



  5. #180
    Gunslinger Apprentice Delah is on a distinguished road Delah's Avatar

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    The first few times I read the series, I thought that Walter said that Jake had to be sacrificed in order for the doors to be created. But after a few re-readings, it becomes clear that he doesn't say that. He doesn't not say it, either, because he's Walter.

    In the palavar (in the revised Gunslinger) Walter tells Roland that he has been invested with the power of Drawing. He doesn't explicity tell him that its because of Jake's death or because Walter/Ka/Gan granted it to him, he just informs him that he has it. Something along the lines of "I have to tell you - cause you just let that kid die - that you have this power. If you hadn't let the kid drop in order to catch up, I wouldn't have to tell you."

    The way its worded (and the abundance of magical doors in later books) and the repurcussions of Roland's dropping Jake definitely indicate to me, that Jakes death wasn't neccassary to create the doors or to give Roland the power of drawing. Although it makes a hell of a trap, later. What it comes down to is, Roland traded Jake's life for information. And most of it, while interesting, is absolute drivel. Like Bev Vincent says, the sum of the important information Roland gets out of his palavar with Walter (info he wouldn't get otherwise, at a later time) is: Go west.

    I do think it can be read either way, but when you add in the whole cycle of books and the themes Redemption/repitiiton/change -- Jake's death is unnecassary. It is what Roland has to change to break the cycle in this readers opinion.

  6. #181
    Gunslinger Apprentice BillyxRansom is on a distinguished road

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    I've responded to this already, but I feel I need to clarify my thoughts, which are the same as when I first posted my take. No one else seems to have said this either, as far as I can see. Not to the extent I believe it is, so I'm responding again.

    I think what Walter meant is that he pities Roland. It scares him what Roland is capable of doing to himself, as I expect could be the case for anyone who is an onlooker, whether friend or foe, watching someone destroy themselves.

    Walter/Flagg is a damned egotistical sonofabitch. So he is confident that Roland will fail, so it is only Roland's own self-destructive outlook that he fears, on behalf of Roland.

    Roland's weapons do not hurt Walter, that is true. In fact he believes himself to be infallible, because, as has been stated, Roland hasn't got shit for an imagination.
    Last edited by BillyxRansom; 12-15-2009 at 01:52 PM. Reason: clarification

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