Biblical Motifs in the Novel “Pet Sematary” by Stephen King Cover Image

Bībeles motīvi Stīvena Kinga romānā “Zvēru kapiņi”
Biblical Motifs in the Novel “Pet Sematary” by Stephen King

Author(s): Bārbala Simsone
Subject(s): Novel, Biblical studies, Hermeneutics, American Literature
Published by: Latvijas Kultūras akadēmija
Keywords: allusions; the Bible; Gospels; periphrasis; horror literature;

Summary/Abstract: The theme of this article is devoted to the creative works of Stephen King, the living classic of horror literature. Biblical motifs frequently play a significant role in his works and they are included in his novels from the positions of peculiar inversion. This article focuses on the novel “Pet Sematary” published in 1983 that analyses one of the most universal fears of human beings from various points of views: the fear from death. The article examines the deliberate author ’s periphrasis of the biblical motif in this novel, particularly the Gospel of the New Testament, where the central event is the death of Jesus Christ and resurrection or the so-called Easter story. The article analyses the way how S. King, resorting random allusions, other means of language and thematic interconnections, deconstructs several biblical notions in a peculiar way and offers solutions for the theme of the inevitability of the cycle of life and death in a modern context.

  • Issue Year: 6/2014
  • Issue No: 1
  • Page Range: 136-145
  • Page Count: 10
  • Language: Latvian