Dark & Twisty

In an essay by Berkencamp, she discusses how Misery is about a reader writer relationship.  This was a idea I had not thought of it.  Berkencamp discusses that this reader writer relationship goes beyond actual reading of words on paper and the creation of that kind of literature.

The essay discusses how the characters learn to read each other and then how each character writers the plot of their adventure.  This idea is fascinating.  To think that a story about a writer and a reader turns into a story where each writes and reads the other's adventure.  The characters are actual writing the other's horror story.

Annie is writing the best horror book Paul could dream of.  She is tormenting him with his own fears.  She takes away his ability to do for himself.  She keeps him on the edge of pain and addiction so to manipulate him into what she wants.  Why else would a writer burn his prize property if he wasn't made to do so?  Annie wrote it with torture. 

As the book progresses, it is easy to see that Paul is able to read Annie better.  At first, he needed to read and reread her before he learned her language.  He learns that Annie has more twists than any great adventure novel.  The problem is that this page turner will kill him.  Once Paul learns the story, he can work with it, and he does.  Paul starts to manipulate Annie by writing a mystery around himself.  He builds his story to match hers but doesn't give any clues that he is building himself up with the giant typwriter, or that he plans of burning his manuscript. 

In the end, Paul gives Annie her worst horror.  He burns her baby.  She doesn't read the clues that are provided, maybe because she is so into the story or because she is ignoring different things because she doesn't want to see it.

Berkencamp has an interested thesis. A thesis that I can get