Setting
The setting of Stephen King’s masterful novel, “Carrie,” is in Chamberlain, Maine, a quaint little town with little to nothing of any consequence that, unfortunately, is about to be struck by a horrible tragedy at the hands of a disgruntled teenager… though nobody knows or suspects anything yet. More specifically than even that, the setting is Ewen High School, which, much like Chamberlain itself, is small and harbors no significance. This, of course, is entirely intentional, as King wants to place us in an environment that we can all relate to, that being your typical high school, so that when we eventually see the destruction of said Ewen High, as well as the town of Chamberlain, it hits us just a little bit harder, since we know of, or have maybe even lived in such an area at some point in our lives.
Characters
Carrie White
Over the years, it has often been debated over whether the character of Carrie White is a heroine, villain, anti-hero, or just misunderstood in general. I think it is none of these, and furthermore, that those who debate so are missing the point entirely, that being this: Just as the town of Chamberlain, Maine, is inconsequential, and Ewen High School is inconsequential, Carrie was also, in and of herself, inconsequential. And why so? Because, Carrie White is simply a girl. King’s point, when characterizing Carrie, was to show that we should be respectful of even the people who are of the least significance, because only then can we ensure our own safety. Carrie was not evil, but nor was she completely innocent either. She was meant to emulate a normal girl who would, over the course of time, be driven into a descent to madness at the hands of both her peers and her truly evil mother. Carrie would become significant, but not by achieving greatness in fields of science or poetry, which has become a large fictional cliche. Rather, she becomes significant for the mass murder of her classmates and neighbors with the help of her telekinetic powers.
With that said, Carrie’s appearance is that of the average girl (which, again, is the point). She is hardly repulsive, but not attractive either. The difference lies in her upbringing, which, over time, has become the subject of much ridicule, due in large part to Margaret White’s lacking in maternal care. Because her mother is so fanatical, Carrie can’t consult her for how to address the world around her, and is instead left to her own devices to figure her entire life out. We see this taking effect on Carrie in many forms, the most noteworthy being her meltdown in the showers when she becomes convinced that she is dying after receiving her first period (this, of course, was a result of Carrie’s mother not telling her what a period is.) Carrie’s place among her peers is that of the scapegoat and pig, two unpleasant barnyard analogies that ring painfully close to the final act of the book. She is treated both unfairly and honestly spitefully by her classmates. However, it is reinforced that these such classmates are not bad people. They simply have had it engrained in their minds that Carrie White is the one to be bullied, and so they do… with dire consequences, of course.













Margaret White
As previously stated, it has often been argued whether the character of Carrie White is a villain or not. Well, in my humble opinion, Margaret White is the true villain of this novel. It is she, I think, who should be held mostly accountable for the deaths of so many people. For, if Margaret White had shown Carrie a true childhood, and had raised in a normal, controlled environment, then such horrible events never would’ve happened, without question. Certainly, other characters such as Chris Hargensen and Billy Nolan are also less than perfect (I’ve even gone as far as to refer to Billy as a psychopath in his individual analysis), their behavior is far more excusable than that of Margaret White. For both of those characters are simply high school students. Chris is simply trying to retain her status as the Social Queen of Ewen High, and Billy only wants to please Chris for physical reasons. On the other hand, Margaret White is a true embodiment of evil. She relentlessly harasses and tortures Carrie mentally and physically throughout the entire novel, going as far as to lock her in a “prayer closet,” for hours on end, not allowing her to use the bathroom or get food or water, and perhaps even worse than that, simply not functioning as a normal parent in the smallest and most important ways.
Margaret White is described as a very “big woman,” who always wore a hat. Her legs swell, her bosom heaves, and her feet always seem to be on the verge of overflowing her shoes. Furthermore, she wears rimless bifocals, usually black clothing, and always carries a King James Bible (carrying any other kind of Bible would probably be sanctimonious in her eyes). Margaret’s religious fanaticism is a key plot point, as King wanted to illustrate with his novel how religion could be used as a conduit for control and evildoing.














Sue Snell
Sue Snell is one of the best characters that this book has to offer. She strikes a very nice balance between being an ordinary girl and also feeling enough guilt to carry out a plan to liberate Carrie from her sense of unbelonging. As King himself once put it: “Alone… Yes, that’s the key word, the most awful word in the English tongue. Murder doesn’t hold a candle to it and hell is only a poor synonym.” Snell is perhaps the only character to not only recognize this, but to also realize that one of her own, Carrie, is living this hell. Furthermore, she realizes that she has helped to trap Carrie there, and, on her own accord, she decides she won’t stand for it and has the heart to try and do something about it. Of course, this unintentionally does not go as planned, and multitudes of people die as a result.
Sue Snell was a character who was designed to show that the masses of people who tormented Carrie over the years were, on the whole, not entirely bad. Instead, they were mostly girls who had been influenced by other sources to commit such undesirable acts, chief among these other sources being Chris Hargensen, who would later stage the infamous “Pig Blood Prank,” that would wreak havoc on Carrie’s mental state, the school, her town, and much more. It should be considered the trauma and guilt that Snell herself probably had to endure, as she was, indirectly though it might be, responsible for masses of deaths.
Chris Hargensen
Chris Hargensen is a ruthless manipulator. Like Billy Nolan, she thinks only of herself and ways in which she can further her own agenda. However, unlike Nolan, she was not apparently born this way. Rather, she is the result of a coddled childhood. Her father, John, has spoiled her from an early age, and so naturally, she is used to getting whatever she wants. However, once she is incorporated into a social environment, she no longer has that power. Instead of breaking, however, Hargensen claws her way to the top of the social food chain at Ewen High School, and to do this, she has a methodology that is harsh at best and completely merciless at worst.
She bullies. Chris Hargensen picks out the school misfits, and she exemplifies them in a horrible light. She then uses the often times forced laughter she obtains from others to gain power until she is at the top. Naturally, of course, her father still plays a large role, defending her until the end and not even admitting that Chris is the source of many of Ewen High School’s worst cases of mental and physical duress among students. Anyone who crosses Chris must suffer the consequences, as she rules with an iron fist, and no one, from the lowliest of the students to the all star captain of the football team, can escape her wrath.
With this said, it should be noted that Chris probably feels threatened by Carrie, as she is going to the prom with Tommy Ross, and has an opportunity to show herself in a very positive light, which is the very last thing that Chris wants. Chris wants Carrie to remain the school misfit so that she can continue to bully and deprive her of a relatively normal social status so that she may rise to the top, and of course, she plans to keep her the school misfit, by playing a horrible prank on Carrie involving pigs blood.












Billy Nolan
Billy Nolan shares some of the same traits that Chris Hargensen does, especially psychologically, in the sense that he is not one of the pawns that is simply manipulated into cruel action. Certainly, he does what he does for Chris, but he only allows himself to do such things. Chris truly has little to no control over him, for he is very clearly psychopathic. For example, take the text in which Billy Nolan and his lackeys drive out to Henty’s farm. Billy Nolan then does the unthinkable. He takes the old man’s pigs and proceeds to slit their throats before collecting the blood, for the purpose of a cruel prank to be played on Carrie White. He does not hesitate to do this, but instead, plunges in, not showing any emotion whatsoever. It should also be mentioned that he does this knowing that Henty himself is at his mother’s funeral, therefore continuing his bland disregard for the emotions of others in the light of his own benefits (in this case, Chris, though he uses her in the same sense that Chris is using him.)
Physically, Billy Nolan is meant to fit the “Greaser,” archetype that was still popular around this time period. He has all the classic elements of such, including the greased hair, leather jacket, levis, and slipshod vehicle. However, he is designed to take the image of the greaser that we know and love and contort it into something alien, as this is certainly a type that we have never seen before. For, as previously mentioned, he fails to inhibit one thing that most other examples of this archetype exibit: Emotion. He thinks only for himself and seems to take a twisted pleasure in watching other people fail. He doesn’t care that anyone thinks he’s “Scuzzy,” because he agrees with them. He knows he’s “scuzzy” and blatantly doesn’t care one way or the other.














Plot
	The plot of “Carrie” revolves around the events surrounding a student, Carrie White, for the months and final hours before her eventual death at the end of the book (though she hardly goes alone). Carrie White is a shy misfit at Ewen High School, who lives a rough home life with her relentlessly religious mother, who is often verbally, physically, and mentally abusive.
	The book opens with Carrie once again being tortured by her classmates, as she experiences her first menstrual period at sixteen years old in the communal showers after her gym class. Due to the religious fanaticism of her mother, Carrie has no idea what a period is, and so naturally, she completely panics and becomes convinced that she is going to die. When she rushes to her comrades for assistance, they only mock her, throwing sanitary napkins and tampons.
	Upon seeing this atrocity, the gym teacher harshly punishes the girls responsible, especially Chris Hargensen, a vindictive rich girl who is the consistent ringleader in the bullying of her peers. Upset and angered, Chris Hargensen vows revenge on Carrie, who she blames for the entire incident, though she is unsure of how she will get back at her yet.
	Sue Snell, one of the girls who had previously taunted Carrie, now feels shameful for her actions. She asks her boyfriend, Tommy Ross, if he will take Carrie to the prom, as she feels that she will have at least righted some of her wrongs if Carrie is allowed a chance of normalcy.
	Upon hearing of this, Chris Hargensen sends her own boyfriend, Billy Nolan, on a mission of vengeance. They plot out their revenge on Carrie very carefully until they finally carry out their plan on the night of Ewen High’s Senior Prom.
	Unfortunately for Chris, as well as everyone else present at prom that night, Carrie harbors a unique power known as telekinesis, and when Chris pulls her prank, that being to cover Carrie in pig's blood, Carrie experiences a complete mental breakdown. In the light of this breakdown, she brutally murders everyone at her prom before moving onto her town, which she leaves in flames before killing her own mother and shortly afterwards dying of a coronary brought on by the energy it took to complete her massacre.
	The structure of the plot serves to drive home the main point of the novel, that being that we shouldn’t pick on those who we believe to be less than us, for we truly have no idea what they might be capable of. The slow build up and “excerpts,” from works relating to the events at hand, truly contribute in the sense that it adds to the continual tension, which will lead to an unforgettable climactic act.




















Theme
I, as well as anyone who has ever taken the time to read “Carrie,” are aware of the theme, which is anything but subtle. Rather, the entire story revolves around one idea, and though it is simple, it makes a definite resonance with the reader that allows one to widen their perspective and survey their surroundings much more carefully.
Simply stated, the theme is this: That you should be nice to everyone. This is meant to specifically appeal to high school students, as high school, as most of us know, is a dangerous and unpredictable environment in which savage and unruly things can often occur. King is telling us that we have no idea what people are capable of. That the misfits we so often see being crucified by their peers do have their own unique personalities, though they may be lacking in certain respects of intelligence or attractiveness. King is telling us, in short, to beware. To watch where we tread, as often, even those people who did nothing wrong will pay the consequences for those who did.
The most disturbing aspect of this entire conundrum is that King is right. The very phenomenon that has happened in his novel has happened several times in real life. However, instead of telekinesis under the arsenal of the bullied misfits, there are instead very real and very dangerous weapons. Assault rifles, pistols, bombs, and knives that are carried by students into schools in days that will be remembered infamously amongst the communities in which such tragedies occur. We all know the names of the communities affected, although the most infamous stand out, such as the horrible tragedy of Columbine High School.















Qoutes
“But of course she did break. It took six hours but she broke, weeping and calling Momma to open the door and let her out. The need to urinate was terrible. The Black Man grinned at her with his jackal mouth, and his scarlet eyes knew all the secrets of woman-blood.”

This quote is important because it illustrates Carrie’s discomfort with her newfound womanhood. I, being a man, find the idea of monthly bleeding disturbing enough. However, it gives me great displeasure to contemplate having a mother who wouldn’t tell and forewarn me of such things that were to come. This truly illustrates how much Carrie’s mother, and her religious beliefs, have affected Carrie in a very negative manner.

“The first thing that struck Carrie when they walked in was Glamour. Not glamour but Glamour. Beautiful shadows rustled about in chiffon, lace, silk, satin. The air was redolent with the odour of flowers, the nose was constantly amazed by it. Girls in dresses with low backs, with scooped bodices showing actual cleavage, with Empire waists. Long skirts, pumps. Blinding white dinner jackets, cumberbunds, black shoes that had been spitshined.”

For me, this quote is notable for both it’s irony and it’s beauty. For the first time in her life, Carrie is being accepted into a social quota, and I feel very happy for her character, since I have spent the last 200 pages or so bonding with her. However, the ultimate infamy of this book precedes itself, along with the numerous passages that suggest that something horrible is about to happen, so I can’t help but feel apprehension, and, in hindsight, this passage is ironic in the sense that everything is about to take a very drastic turn.

“Carrie ran through the crowd with her hands clutching her face, and somebody put his foot out. I don't know who it was, but she went sprawling on her face. leaving a long red streak on the floor. And she said, 'Ooof!' I remember that. It made me laugh even harder, hearing Carrie say Oof like that. She started to crawl along the floor and then she got up and ran out. She ran right past me. You could smell the blood. It smelled like something sick and rotted.”

One of the biggest things that has always bothered me about this book, as much as I love it, was this passage. I find myself unable to fathom why people seem to find Carrie’s downfall so funny. I understand that she is a constant subject of ridicule, but if something like this were to happen in reality, wouldn’t everyone be more shocked and horrified than tickled?

“'A little slower, Momma. Do you know what the present is, Momma? What you always wanted. Darkness. And whatever God lives there.'”

Reading this line gave me great pleasure, as it ensured that the true villain of the text, Margaret White, had finally gotten her comeuppance, and one that was well worth the wait. Carrie also makes sure to give her mother a very dark send off, with the implication that there is no heaven waiting for her mother. No pearly gates, no singing angels. Only darkness, and the unlikely probability of a God.

“Her rapid breathing slowed, slowed, caught suddenly as if on a thorn, and suddenly vented itself in one howling, cheated scream as she felt the slow course of dark menstrual blood down her thighs.”

Finally, as Carrie White’s massacre comes to an end, she once again feels herself menstruating. It was this same menstruation that largely brought on such telepathic powers, and so of course she would feel cheated that she would once again start her period at such a crucial moment, shortly before she died.

















Vocabulary

Subconscious.


“Nobody was really surprised when it happened, not really, not at the subconscious level where savage things grow.” (Page 3)


Definition- of or concerning the part of the mind of which one is not fully aware but which influences one's actions and feelings.

Example- The nightmares that I had experienced in my youth had recently vanished into my subconscious.

Self-Righteous

“She looked strange for a little girl, half sad and half self-righteous.” (Page 31)

Definition- having or characterized by a certainty, especially an unfounded one, that one is totally correct or morally superior.

Example- The theist who I had just beaten in argument stormed away, head held high, self-righteous to the last.

Penitent

“It was only now, three hours after that, sitting here with her head bowed over the sewing machine like a penitent, that she remembered the fear in Momma's eyes and she thought she knew the reason why.” (Page 60)


Definition- feeling or showing sorrow and regret for having done wrong; repentant.

Example- The penitent refused to show his face, hiding his guilty visage behind a mask.

Harelip

“The Swope girl has a harelip, I understand.” (Page 72)

Definition- a congenital split in the upper lip on one or both sides of the center, often associated with a cleft palate.

Example- My cousin was born with a harelip and microcephaly to boot.

Flounder

“'Not say yes! Why - ' She floundered. 'You're ... everybody likes you and-'” (Page 84)

Definition- be in serious difficulty.

Example- Many old cell phone businesses are now floundering due to new technology.

Ungovernable

“She had done an ungovernable, dangerous thing - she had broken cover and shown her face.” (Page 110)

Definition- Impossible to control or govern.

Example- Indiana Jones was difficult at best and ungovernable at worst.

Glandular

“We suspect that the TK ability may be glandular in nature.” (Page 126)

Definition- relating to or affecting a gland or glands.

Example- My glandular hematoma put me in the hospital for quite a few days.

Tabloid

“An image of her broken, bloody corpse, thrown against the base of a telephone pole like a pile of rags, flashed through her mind like a tabloid photograph.” (Page 135)

Definition- a newspaper having pages half the size of those of a standard newspaper, typically popular in style and dominated by headlines, photographs, and sensational stories.

Example- I’ve found that the stories in tabloid magazines are often exaggerated.

Redolent

“The air was redolent with the odour of flowers, the nose was constantly amazed by it.” (Page 149)

Definition- strongly reminiscent or suggestive.

Example- The lights in the sky were redolent of those I had seen above the cornfield three weeks ago.

Mimeograph

“Tina Blake and Norma Watson were circulating mimeographed ballots, and when Norma dropped one at their table and breathed 'Good LUCK!' Carrie picked up the ballot and studied it. “ (Page 161)

Definition- A duplicating machine that produces copies from a stencil, now superseded by the photocopier.

Example- My teacher asked me to mimeograph a set of worksheets.

Jute

“She licked her lips. They both stared at the length of jute cord.” (Page 170)

Definition- Rough fiber made from the stems of a tropical Old World plant, used for making twine and rope or woven into sacking or matting.
Example- I grabbed the jute sack and threw it defiantly against the wall.

Discordant

“The music came to a crashing, discordant halt, a few voices hanging on after it like broken strings, and in the sudden deadness of anticipation, filling the gap between event and realization,” (Page 188)

Definition- Disagreeing or incongruous.

Example- Pop music today is very discordant and frankly boring to me.

Fatigues

“His hair was standing up every which way, he was dressed in dirty green work fatigues and an undershirt and he had his loafers on the wrong feet, but Doyle thought he had never been so glad to see anyone in his life.” (Page 204)

Definition- Clothing worn by military personnel or working men for labor or for field duty.

Example- Private Joker had to rush to get into his fatigues.

Preternaturally

“Her eyes were preternaturally bright, hawk-like, but her mouth was trembling.” (Page 216)

Definition- Beyond what is normal or natural.

Example- The Flash crossed Gotham City with preternatural speed.

Supplication

“She fell forward on her knees, head down, hands raised in supplication.” (Page 218)

Definition- The action of asking or begging for something earnestly and humbly.

Example- The priest prayed in supplication for his grevious amount of sins.


Discussion

There are honestly countless ways in which I can relate this book, “Carrie,” to my everyday life, so much so that I am sure I could write a manuscript of just these events large enough to fill quite a few notebooks. Why? Because I am a highschool student, and as such, every day I witness events that Carrie White, Sue Snell, Chris Hargensen, Tommy Ross, and Billy Nolan have witnessed, though at different times and places. I know all too well the familiar (and slightly ludicrous) social framework that exists within my own student body. I know all too well the pressures that come with being a teenager that are so poignantly written of in this book. And of course, I know of the belittlement of certain peers who simply cannot function normally in a social environment, often times due to poor lives at home.
Three important literary elements that have presented themselves in this novel to me are that of irony, symbolism, and even an allusion to a previous work by King. The first of these is startlingly apparent with Susan Snell’s plan to integrate Carrie White into her prom, making her peers see her as a human being for the first time. The irony lies in the fact that it works… initially. It doesn’t take long before Chris puts her own plan into effect, and everything goes back to the way it was, although Carrie herself isn’t having it. The second literary element, symbolism, comes in the form of Carrie’s mother, Margaret, who serves as a symbol of religion as a conduit for violence. Margaret White is a perfect example of how religion can be used to hurt other people, and her relentless abuse of Carrie mirrors real life problems that exist in the past and even present today, forty three years after it was written. From the crusades, to the Westboro Baptist Church, to the crimes against humanity carried out by radical Islamist terrorist groups, Margaret White stands as a warning sign for violence that has happened and has yet to happen. Lastly, there is the allusion. It is a well known fact among fans of Stephen King’s work that all of his stories take place in the same universe, and evidence of this is usually found in subtle hints. The subtle hint in the particular book is the reference to a character by the name of Teddy Duchamp on page 187, who according to the character of Quillan, has “been dead since 1968.” The character of Teddy Duchamp is a reference to a previous work by King, a novella known as “The Body,” which was published in his Four Seasons collection along with “Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption,” as well as “Apt Pupil,” and “The Breathing Method.” Such allusions always keep fans of King such as myself on our toes, as we read in anticipation to find the next clever nod to a previous or upcoming work.