The Shining

Jack goes to the Sidewinder Public Library. He does not tell Wendy why he is researching the Overlook, or about the hotel’s history of mob activity. She keeps asking him well-intentioned questions, but he gets annoyed and feels like she is nagging him. Finally, Jack snaps at her, and she goes to wait in the park nearby with Danny. He apologizes for his tone and says he has a headache.

Jack goes across the street to the drugstore to use a pay phone. The operator connects him with Mr. Ullman at the Surf-Sand Resort. Jack aggressively confronts Ullman about everything he did not tell him about the Overlook’s history. Ullmann fails to see how the information would have been relevant during a job interview. When Jack says he is going to write a book about the Overlook that will expose its sordid history, Ullmann says he will call Shockley, who is the majority shareholder in the Overlook.

When Ullmann hangs up, Jack wonders why he called. He knew that there would be no resolution on the phone. It was never going to amount to anything except an argument. Jack worries that he is self-sabotaging and trying to get himself fired. He admits to himself that he probably called Ullmann because the man embarrassed him during his interview. On the way back, it begins to snow. As he drives, Jack, realizing that he does not like the Overlook, wonders if that is why he tried to get himself fired.

In bed, Jack thinks about Al Shockley’s call earlier in the evening. Shockley says, as the majority stockholder, what Jack is doing makes him feel sick; this is not how Jack should repay Shockley for getting him a job. He gives Jack an ultimatum with two conditions: He can keep the job if he stops calling Ullmann, and if he gives up on the book. Jack is furious, but he agrees. Shortly after the call ends, Jack resolves to write the book anyway, and it will be a more damning version than what he had originally planned.

Wendy is worries that the usual precursors of Jack’s drinking have resurfaced. He is constantly chewing Excedrin, a headache pain reliever containing caffeine. He is using more profanity than usual. She can tell he is trying to hold back his temper, even though he isn’t showing it. She wishes he had a pressure gauge, like the boiler. Danny tells her that Shockley was mad at Jack and did not want him to write the book. She decides that soon she will have to talk to Danny about the hotel; perhaps he will have useful insights that can help them survive the winter.

Danny knows his father is thinking about drinking more. He remembers a kid named Scott saying someone’s father “LOST HIS MARBLES” (195). Mr. Stenger now lived in the place with “THE MEN IN THE WHITE COATS” (196). Danny worries that Jack will send him there if he wants to get rid of him. He also worries that if he tells his mother about the firehose, she will think he has a mental illness Knowing that the snow will bring something worse, Danny thinks again about the word REDRUM.

On the way to Sidewinder, Danny and Wendy listen to music on the radio. Then they listen to a snow report that mentions the Donner Party, and Wendy turns it off. She asks Danny if he would be happy away from the hotel for the winter. Danny says yes but adds that Jack needs it. At least for now, Danny thinks the hotel is good for Jack.

Wendy says that if Tony thinks the two of them should leave, they will. They would have to stay at her mother’s, however. Danny says that he knows she has problems with her mother. He prefers the Overlook. She asks if Jack is drinking again. Danny says no but thinks privately to himself, “Not yet” (202), She asks him to make Tony visit. Danny tells her that he tried that morning, but Tony would not come. He begs Wendy not to take them to her mother’s, and she agrees.

Jack goes out to clip the hedge animals. There is a rabbit, a dog, a buffalo, and three lions. He thinks about drinking and tells the animals that he would rather replace them with sod.

Jack goes down the slide and thinks about his father. The slide is too small and fails to recreate any childhood joy for him. The swings are disappointing as well. Suddenly, Jack hears a noise. When he looks at the animals, he notices that the rabbit is now on all fours. It was standing upright seconds before. The dog moved as well, and the lions are now closer to him. They are blocking the path. He covers his eyes, then looks again. The dog is now closer. They all move when he is not looking; he realizes that cannot watch them all at once. He covers his eyes. When he looks, they are all back to normal.