Stephen King
"The Man Who Loved Flowers"
Read and post a reaction. No additional commentary is necessary.
Happy Halloween!
"The Man Who Loved Flowers"
Read and post a reaction. No additional commentary is necessary.
Happy Halloween!
Samuel Taylor Coleridge
First, what are your reactions to Coleridge's poems Frost at Midnight & Kubla Khan ? What reactions do they invoke in you? Next, what is different about the poems? If you had to do a side by side comparison or make a Venn diagram of them, what would you include in it? After posting your initial thoughts, return to the blog to respond to your classmates.
I can't really say that the ending surprised me. Knowing Stephen King's work and knowing that this was supposed to be somewhat of a scary story, I figured it was going to have some sort of twist at the end. I still enjoyed reading the story though and thought that the build up to the twist was well done.
ReplyDeleteWoah! I love Stephen King's work and this was a great read for Halloween. As soon as the young man reached into his pocket, I knew he was feeling the hammer referenced a few lines before. Knowing it was a horror story, I automatically assumed the main character would end up being a murderer or killed. The build up to the ending flowed really nicely and was effective. I liked it!
ReplyDeleteFirst of all, I love Stephen King. I enjoyed how he was able to take two polar opposites, such as love and death, and combine them into something brilliant. He creates an almost too perfect setting, but I still was not sure exactly what was going to happen with “Norma” at the end. I also enjoy the clever aspect of mentioning a hammer murder on the loose through a radio broadcast, which ended up being the main character. Overall, it was a great and spooky read for Halloween!
ReplyDeleteThis was a good read for Halloween! There was some very obvious foreshadowing when the radio reported the "hammer murder" was on the loose. As soon as the man reached into his pocket I knew "the something" was the hammer. The ending wasn't much of a surprise but I did enjoy reading this spooky story :)
ReplyDeleteIt wasn't a surprising ending as the detail of the radio caught my attention immediately; however, it was a good read nonetheless. The buildup to the ending was effective and led smoothly into him taking the hammer out of his coat pocket and bludgeoning the female. It was interesting how he transitioned from complete madness to wholehearted love at the snap of a finger as well.
ReplyDeleteI really really liked the flower guy and the interaction that the main character had with him. The whole conversation seemed like realistic banter between a customer and salesman. I liked how the ending was built up to: the avenue got narrower, the dusk became night, and the murder was mentioned on the radio. I think he kills to recall some love for Norma, perhaps like Ted Bundy targeting people who all looked like his first girlfriend.
ReplyDeleteI really liked this as a short little story for Halloween! Though the radio message of the hammer killer taught my attention, there was still a neat transition from the perfectly bright day to the darkness of the alley. I found after the killing to be really interesting as the young man declared his name as 'love'; it gave a little bit of something for the reader to think about.
ReplyDeleteWhile I saw the ending coming because of the news on the radio, I was 100% willing to ignore that because King uses such beautiful descriptions that I didn't want to believe the boy was a murderer. I especially loved his conversation with the man at the flower stand. It was so sweet and pure and wholesome and I am so conflicted. I feel bad for the guy. He's obviously messed up, but his intentions are sweet.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed how everyone who encountered the man knew he was in love--which is true, but in the end, he identified himself as love itself. I also liked the foreshadowing with the radio and the hand in his pocket. Overall, it was a good story for Halloween.
ReplyDeleteI like these kind of stories. They show a duality between how romantic and light the narrative of the story is with how dark and disturbing the actual plot is. I think short stories are the perfect format for twists such as these because they allow me become invested enough to enjoy the twist, but they are not too long where I feel upset by how shocking the ending really is. The foreshadowing with the object in the pocket and the radio news was also really well done and let me make a prediction.
ReplyDelete