WHY was Susanna in a wheelchair?

[tigerlilly2k]

I cant see the point. I mean...what was the purpose of making her a legless person?
Usually I can understand why SK does what he does with any given character, but this one baffles me. I mean, she could have still been hit on the head with the brick, still could have developed multiple personalities as a result of that trauma...so why did she need to be legless for the sake of the story?

Ive been obsessing on this question way too long, LOL.

[bopropadop]

I don't know other than a guess... Perhaps because some people in life are in wheelchairs. Why not put Susannah in one? I've never really thought about a particular reason why, though.

It certainly made the journey more difficult, especially for Eddie and Roland as much as they had to carry her.

[LittleRedKing]

I cant see the point. I mean...what was the purpose of making her a legless person?
Usually I can understand why SK does what he does with any given character, but this one baffles me. I mean, she could have still been hit on the head with the brick, still could have developed multiple personalities as a result of that trauma...so why did she need to be legless for the sake of the story?

Ive been obsessing on this question way too long, LOL.



Well for starters it gave her a fantastic back story. If nothing else look at how much havoc she caused on the beach just by tipping the thing over and slowing Roland and Eddie down. Not to mention that she was still able to practically kill Eddie while legless is a monument to how evil and strong Detta really was. And later on in the story different incarnations of her have legs, creating some interesting situations

How far have you gotten in the DT series? I ask because your opinion may change if you are not finished yet. :biggrin2:

[the_last_gunslinger]

It creates a realistic, physical obstacle, something which the ka-tet must come to terms with. There are several scenes in which the wheel chair becomes a significant burden and by doing so, we have a sort of second antagonist, something for the group to worry about, something that can enhance a story's suspense.

[rjt65]

If yu read it u know... so i guees u mean why make ot that way! it made for a gr8 story

cif u read his on writing etc.. u will know how these characteome to him... anid he had no devious want to make her that way she just was! --

[tillyn]

Now that's a good question, I would think it makes for a lot of interesting story plots for that character, you could get her into a lot of situations along with the fellow katet's. Or maybe he just felt like it.

[wally wonder]

picked up a new phrase, the visual fabric of the theme, thank you elmore leonard, get shorty...no pun intended, it just happened to be where i read the phrase. but mayhap the operative question is (and some have obviously alluded to that) what happens because S is in a chair? i'm thinkin' the visual fabric of the theme here, maybe nancy sinatra, these boots are made for walkin' and that's just what they'll do wanna these days these boots are going to walk all over you...maybe tom petty, no i wont back down, no i'll stand my ground.

i've wondered the same thing. think of the chair, sorta like a handcart on rails, roland and jake, and those rails only go one direction, another if they reverse. S w/a twist, confined to a chair, at the mercy of others, or not? you decide. why make her black. or did she favor negro? S gets carried on the backs of others. what does S carry?
dunno, we're all in this together. something about teamwork mayhap.

[noharmzim]

Ka?

[jackson992]

IMO it shows the struggles she and the rest of the group had to endure on their way to the Tower

[Sawney Beane]

I cant see the point. I mean...what was the purpose of making her a legless person?
Usually I can understand why SK does what he does with any given character, but this one baffles me. I mean, she could have still been hit on the head with the brick, still could have developed multiple personalities as a result of that trauma...so why did she need to be legless for the sake of the story?

Ive been obsessing on this question way too long, LOL.
Whenever S.K is asked why does he make any of the characters he creates go through certain situations,he always says he´s as much surprised as the rest of us.Apparently(or at least,that is what he says)he doesn´t know any more than us when it comes to the whys,hows, whats,wheres and whens regarding the origin and the nature of those people.Myself,I sort of enjoy believing it wasn´t him who made her legless,and besides that,I just can´t think of a single element in the D.T series put into just for the sake of the story.

[Robert Gray]

Why would you even be thinking about the story in that way? I cannot imagine reading the books and truly being "there" if one is effaced and studying the constructs within likes bugs pinned to a board. Asking why she doesn't have legs is like asking why the sun comes up in the east and sets in the west. I'm not being snide. I'm merely pointing out the strangeness of the question in the first place.

[TBlack]

I thought it was to promote the effectiveness ,traction & worldswide durability of the "Firestone Beach-Comber 2000" series!

[tigerlilly2k]

I guess y'all are right. The wheelchair did give the Ka-tet (yet another) challenge...and certainly it did add an interesting layer to the character. And, like SK always says, his characters sorta create themselves and come to him as they want to be...So, I guess she just came to him in a wheelchair.
I think my obsessive worry over this is double-fold. On the one hand, I LIKE her and WANT her to be able to walk! LOL, on the other, I worry that making her legless wouldnt be easy, if a movie is ever made. But, SK says he doesnt want a movie of the DT. (I pray he'll change his mind). So, WTH, irt is how it is and I'll just have to be OK with it. Thanks, everybody. I feel better.

[mstay]

I think it's because that's who Susannah is. How could she be any other way?