Human Evil

[michal]

I really liked Apt Pupil because to me Mr. King managed to show in this book that the monsters that live within human hearts - and not monstrous man, just simple, small and at times well-educated ones, can be much more frightening than any creature that resides under our beds or in our imagination.

[Cowboy]

I agree. The creatures under the bed make for good stories and if told well can be a bit scary. But it is the character that could be living next door to you that becomes the really frightening monster.

[Damaris]

It was among the first King stories I ever read and it still makes me uneasy. The part with the cat and the stove ... it still gives me chills. I think it was great to read such a story early on, to help get a feel for Mr. King's voice, but man it sure sticks with you.

[aptpupil]

"I really liked Apt Pupil"

Thanks. Most people find that I'm a nice guy when they take time to get to know me! :cool2:

[marew1]

My mother always told me to be afraid of the living and not the dead.

[morefutility]

Human evil is a constant theme in many of the Steven King novels I have read. That makes a good bit of sense considering that human evil is a constant theme in the life of too many. Its almost nice to see evil in a fictional setting, where it can be justly dealt with (the brothers Grimm knew their business also) as opposed to the helplessness often felt by its victims. Try reading The Kindly Ones for another fictional insight of a similar character.

[dsurrett]

I liked the book more than the movie. The movie had to water down several things.

[karend3]

I loved the book, the story was so enthralling I couldn't put it down. The movie however boring and badly directed.

[ME-He Har Har]

Apt Pupil?
This wasn't released in Australia.
Therefor I can't view it or comment on it.
Wasn't it about Nazi's?

[aneaglesangel]

I haven't read this one yet...but I agree with your mom mare! Be much more afraid of the living than the dead. When I'm out on investigation (if it happens to be outside, which isn't usually the case) I carry a weapon, and it's not for the dead, I assure you!

[ginapenn]

This is one of King's stories I have only read once and can't pick up again. The animal torture is too much for me.

[EddieDean]

This story was banned from my school (when i was in school). Although i believe it stemmed from an english teacher at a different school making the kids in his/her class read it for an assignment

[JRLauer]

My mother always told me to be afraid of the living and not the dead.

She was right. It's sad to say but there are people who live among us that are evil to the core, and they will not hesitate to hurt or kill you if they think it will help them in what ever they're doing.

[tracie]

remember it's always the shy,good mannered,and very quite that you have to be afaid of because their the ones who you will never expect to do you or anyone harm.

[Albie]

It was among the first King stories I ever read and it still makes me uneasy. The part with the cat and the stove ... it still gives me chills. I think it was great to read such a story early on, to help get a feel for Mr. King's voice, but man it sure sticks with you.

This is one of 4 stories in Different Seasons. I suggest Stand By Me for King nonfiction.

[Albie]

This is one of King's stories I have only read once and can't pick up again. The animal torture is too much for me.

Agree. I also do not believe any of the characters had any redeeming qualities. Well written - my opinion - just the worst of the 4 stories in Different Seasons

[Damaris]

I wouldn't say it's the worst, just the ... darkest. The one most like a Bachman book. The one that sits up with you at night and unexpectedly lays cold hands on the back of your neck.

[Aim4 the hed 2 kill zomBs]

This story was banned from my school (when i was in school). Although i believe it stemmed from an english teacher at a different school making the kids in his/her class read it for an assignment

I really hate to hear when this sort of thing happens. The holocaust was sickening, but it was powerful. It was too powerful to merely be contained in textbooks. It's only natural for something with implications so big to inspire fiction writers. Apt Pupil was a very good story in my opinion about the hold an ideal, even a bad ideal, can have - and how it can get the better of you. Not to preach on a soap box, but there's a reason people say history repeats itself. By teaching that history, even in a new way from a fictitious story, you can hopefully educate people to prevent it from happening again.

Sorry, censorship is one of my buttons.

[GNTLGNT]

Working in a prison, I get to see many "monsters". As The Shadow radio show used to say-"Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men..." The human heart and/or soul can become the most horrid, fetid, diseased place imaginable. Real evil is always worse than anything a writer can conjure up-even our beloved Wordslinger.

[Pucker]

I think it was Kurt Vonnegut who said, "We are who we pretend to be, so we must be careful who we pretend to be." Either that, or it was someone else. In any case, the point here is very well taken. An evil clown cavorting in the sewers or malicious aliens are one thing. The boy next door is another matter entirely. Stories like Apt Pupil or Rage, or even Cujo, read just a little bit too close to the evening news, which makes them actually frightening, as opposed to chilling in the abstract. We're not really afraid of vampires or werewolves or even re-animated corpses. But a kid up on the berm taking target practice on the commuters? That will scare you right back into your hobbit hole, won't it? What I find truly frightening about Tod, and what he and Dussander ultimately got up to, was how everyone who should have been in a position to notice that something was wrong . . . didn't.

That is a cautionary tale for this, or any, age.

[Teddy Duchamp]

Very dark story, but I found it fascinating.

The movie however, was disappointing. Like another poster above I only read the book once - some of the torture sections (while being absolutely true to the story and needed to be there)...........I couldnt read them again.

The reason the movie was so poor in my opinion was that it just couldnt get that "menace" across........

[catnoel]

Tell me about it!!! i was married to a real life monstor many years ago.....

[Chris Chambers4711]

I read "Apt Pupil" for the first time when I was nine, I think. Certainly a good novella, it definitely scares the crap outta ya if you're not prepared for it. BEfore reading it, I had no idea of the horrors of the Holocaust, nor that the Nazis were so utterly despicible. :eek2:

[Sophiia]

The part with the cat and the stove ... it still gives me chills.

I don't think I've ever been so horrified by anything else :/

[Seb Shaw]

King is so great at capturing the essence of evil. The novella, I read just over a week ago now and it is still with me, every last detail.... Now to me that sums up just how great King is!

The ilm had it's great parts too, I know I'm in the minoraty here when I say I really enjoyed the film... not as much as the novella, but close to it.

Human evil, is the most terrifying/harrowing thing... because it is real.

[Homer403]

Todd is seduced by the power of evil,which I think is the most significant point of the story.Sai King seems to drive that concept even deeper with the ending in the book but not the movie.I wonder why? Also the concept of the seduction of power and evil played a major role in Nazi Germany,IMO.

[Mommy2KeriaNThaddeus]

I think this is very good (but often overlooked) adaptation. It shows exquisite characterization. Again, Thank you big-big, Sai King!