Duma Key, the fall of an idol

[Victoria73]

Yes, SK is was my idol since a long time ago. I consider myself a fan of The dark tower (my nick at msn used to be Jake Chambers and im a woman btw).
I have all SK books, and i think he s a genious until....the other day i was reading his book Duma Key and suddenly i saw my country, which i love, humiliated :(.
On this book u can read (im spanish speaking btw) that the character says something like that dolls r made by unhappy children from Camboya or the damned Uruguay.
Yes, im from Uruguay, and here children doesnt work thank to social politics, and Uruguay isnt a damned country, its the best country in the world.
I invite Mr. Stephen King to come to Uruguay to know the country before saying those words, cause them are very offensive.
Stephen King was my idol number one...until he offended me and an entire country.

[jchanic]

Victoria, you cannot believe that, because one of his characters says something, Stephen King feels the same way. Remember, IT'S FICTION!

John

[adrianmarley]

I agree with John. You cannot judge an author by what his characters say. Stephen King's books contain lots of unpleasant characters: bullies, wife-beaters, racists, homophobes, clowns, vampires, etc. It does not mean that SK shares these views. One of SK's strengths is his ability to create realistic characters that come alive on the page but they should in no way be taken as the author himself.

[~Ally~]

Oohh...I am having a serious case of deja vu with this post :eek:.
Adrianmarley you have rsponded with exactly what I was going to say.

[Patricia A]

I'm sorry your feelings were hurt Victoria73, but as so many people have already said, I don't think Stephen King is saying that your country is damned. I think it was character dialogue.
I cannot presume to speak for him, but I can say honestly that from what I've read about him that he would never intentionally insult an entire nation. I understand that he is vigilant in his own patriotism and respectful of others in theirs.
I hope you might someday rejoin the ranks of the constant reader.
We'll save a seat for you.

[Charms7]

I'm sorry your feelings were hurt Victoria73, but as so many people have already said, I don't think Stephen King is saying that your country is damned. I think it was character dialogue.
I cannot presume to speak for him, but I can say honestly that from what I've read about him that he would never intentionally insult an entire nation. I understand that he is vigilant in his own patriotism and respectful of others in theirs.
I hope you might someday rejoin the ranks of the constant reader.
We'll save a seat for you.

Beautifully phrased, Patricia!

[michal]

To be insulted by something a fictional character said is like being angry for a fictional character kicking a dog to death (The Dead Zone) or being racist (The Green Mile, It, Bag of Bones, etc).

Mr King has some of the most murderous, craziest characters ever - from cold blooded killers to child molesters, and you can't possibly believe that he is all this things just for writing about them.

It's as if I being Jewish, should be insulted because of the way Stan suffers from antisemitism at It.

I figure it's just a sensitive point for you, but really, I'm sure it says nothing of what Mr. King feels towards your nation, country or way of life.

[MellowLedbetter]

yeah, all of the above posters are right on the money. but in saying that, I too found myself saddened when Stephen King said in an interview that New Zealand was a "god aweful place". But i'm over it nowadays.:biggrin2:

[robdraggoo]

I beleive SK was once called a racist for his constant use of the N word in most of his novels. From my underSTANDing hes not, but some of his characters are. And thats whats great about him, he makes belivable characters by taking himself as the writer and everyone else reading out of the comfort zone

[Perse Jr.]

I can understand where you're coming from, and everyone has pretty much said what I'd say, but I want to add that if SK's characters were all politically and morally correct, etc., etc., they would be some pretty boring characters. What would be the point? All people are different and have different ideals, mores, opinions, passions, likes, dislikes; SK characters have to be the same. That's what makes his work so FANTASTIC!

[aptpupil]

Hey Victoria

I can understand patriotism, and maybe children don't make dolls in your country, but it's certainly a nation that's been flagged up by Amnesty International many times for its treatment of the young, so maybe you need to temper your outrage just a little...

"In July 2007 the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child expressed its regret at the Uruguayan authorities' failure to institute a national plan of action on children's rights and at the lack of an independent institution to which complaints of violations of children's rights could be referred. It expressed concern about discrimination against children of Afro-descent and about the large numbers of children in detention, some of whom had been tortured or subjected to degrading treatment by law enforcement officials."

I doubt that the very learned SK just plucked your country out of thin air, even if it was only for a character statement. :eyebrow:

[Gondwana]

How could you love this characters so much if you didn't understand they were totally separated from him? Try to write something and you will realise your characters will say what they want to say and not what you want them to say.

[JRM]

It's fiction. I'm sorry it offended you, but I hope you come to understand that just because it's written, Stephen King doesn't necessarily believe it. It's just for the book.

[Roou*]

mmm yeah i agree with the people here, you can't feel angry bcause of that it's fiction :) and well a lot of people write bad things about Mexico and im not going against them xD
it's fiction...

[daffyrocks]

I love dogs, I have 2 and they are my life. Every time I read a book from the great man for the first time, I do it with bated breath as the possibility of something horrible happening to a dog in the story is often quite high. I understand Mr King also likes dogs. What he writes about fictionally (is that a word?) and what he believes in personally isn't necessarily the same.

[Micke]

I can't do more than agree with the others.

[mrlizardking]

Hello. I'm from Uruguay like Victoria. And I just read the part about Uruguay. It hurts for us because we all know that it's true that in Camboya a lot of children work making toys and clothes. But not here in Uruguay. I' ve read SK enough (and many other writters) to know that a character doesn't represents the opinion of the writter. About the article of "aptpupil" i could find as many articles of that kind as you like in every country of the world you could ask. I'd say that in every country children work. Fortunately not in the amount of Cambodia Vietnam or China. This is not about patriotism. It just hurts because we have always been a respectful country of all human rights but of course, good news can't reach CNN or CBS. I'll continue reading this book and all books SK writes becuse i think he is a a good writter and a better person. I wish you read more about Uruguay and other countries of South America. You will find more than F.A.R.C. FMI problems and stuff. Thank you for the space and please excuse my english.