6 the Green Mile – the Novel
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UNIVERZITA PALACKÉHO V OLOMOUCI PEDAGOGICKÁ FAKULTA Katedra anglického jazyka Bakalářská práce Veronika Symonová The Green Mile – the comparison of the book with its film adaptation Olomouc 2014 vedoucí práce: Mgr. Blanka Babická, Ph. D. Prohlášení: Prohlašuji, že jsem bakalářskou práci na téma, The Green Mile – the comparison of the book with its film adaptation, vypracovala samostatně a užila jsem jen uvedených pramenů a literatury. V Olomouci dne: Jméno a příjmení Aknowledgement: I would like to thank my supervisor Mgr. Blanka Babická, Ph. D. for her guidance and valuable advice, with which she provided me while I was writing my thesis. Abstract The thesis The Green Mile - the comparison of the book with its film adaptation is primarily focused on the comparison of the book with its film version. The emphasis is put on the comparison of the plot, characters and moral dilemmas. One chapter is, however, dedicated to those parts of the film which were omitted or changed. Also, the thesis provides a brief biography of Stephen King, mentions his other books and the background of the book and the adaptation and their awards. Table of Contents 1 Introduction ....................................................................................................................... 7 2 Stephen King ................................................................................................................... 9 2. 1 Life .............................................................................................................................. 9 2. 2 Richard Bachman ...................................................................................................... 12 3 Work ................................................................................................................................ 13 3. 1 The Beginnings of King´s Writing ............................................................................ 13 3. 2 Novels ........................................................................................................................ 14 3. 3 Books Chosen Thematically or Stylistically Close to The Green ............................. 16 4 Factors That Influence King´s Works ........................................................................... 17 5 Film Adaptations ............................................................................................................. 18 6 The Green Mile – the Novel ............................................................................................ 19 6. 1 The Origin of the Book .............................................................................................. 19 6. 1. 1 The Life in the United States During the Great Depression ............................... 20 6. 2 Language .................................................................................................................... 21 6. 3 Formal Aspects .......................................................................................................... 22 6. 4 Awards ....................................................................................................................... 22 7 The Green Mile – the Film ............................................................................................. 23 7. 1 Why Adapt? ............................................................................................................... 23 7. 2 The Adaptation .......................................................................................................... 24 7. 3 Criticism ..................................................................................................................... 25 7. 4 Awards ....................................................................................................................... 25 8 The Comparison of the Novel With Its Film Adaptation ............................................ 27 8. 1 The Plot ...................................................................................................................... 27 8. 1. 1 The Finding of John Coffey................................................................................ 27 8. 1. 2 Introduction of Percy Wetmore .......................................................................... 28 8. 1. 3 Scenes with Mr. Jingles ...................................................................................... 29 8. 1. 4 The Miraculous Healing of Paul Edgecombe ..................................................... 29 8. 1. 5 The Death of Eduard Delacroix .......................................................................... 30 8. 1. 6 John Coffey Wants to Die .................................................................................. 31 8. 2 The Characters ........................................................................................................... 31 8. 2. 1 John Coffey ............................................................................................................ 32 8. 2. 2 Paul Edgecombe ..................................................................................................... 33 8. 2. 3 Percy Wetmore ....................................................................................................... 34 8. 2. 4 William Wharton .................................................................................................... 34 8. 3 Moral dilemmas ......................................................................................................... 35 8. 3. 1 Edgecombe´s Investigation and Finding Out the Truth ......................................... 36 8. 3. 2 The Deciding About the Night Journey ................................................................. 37 8. 4 Changed or Omitted Parts of the Novel ..................................................................... 38 8. 4. 1 Discovering the Truth............................................................................................. 38 8. 4. 2 Other Changed Parts............................................................................................... 39 8. 5 Summary ........................................................................................................................ 40 9 Conclusion ........................................................................................................................ 42 10 Bibliography .................................................................................................................... 44 11 Appendices ...................................................................................................................... 47 1 Introduction “A little talent is a good thing to have if you want to be a writer. But the only real requirement is the ability to remember every scar.” Stephen King I opened my thesis with a quote by Stephen King and the reason for choosing this very quotation is that in my opinion, it totally expresses the power of King´s work. It is beyond no doubt that Stephen King´s books have been an inspiration for numerous film directors during decades. Furthermore, a great amount of film adaptations based on his novels or short stories have had a roaring success in the field of public and film making. However, the first and most important thing needed for making a fantastic film is a fantastic piece of writing on which the film will be based. When one decides for a book written by Stephen King, he or she can be sure that it is a work deserving a film adaptation. To remember every scar is the foundation stone of his writing. This might be why his books are so celebrated. They are based on real events even though, in most cases, he makes science fiction of them. The reason for me choosing specifically The Green Mile is that it is a great novel regarding not only reading between the lines but also there is a need for thinking about moral dilemmas that pervade the whole book. In addition, a few years after publication was created a film of the same name that is based on the novel. The Green Mile, the film, was also a huge success and is still considered to be one of the greatest and beloved films ever made. In the first part of my thesis I, firstly, concentrate on Stephen King´s life. It is important, for understanding his works, to know what his life was like when he was young and what it is like today. Secondly, I provide important features of The Green Mile, the book and the film adaptation separately. There is mentioned the background of its origin as well as its criticism. Mainly, it is concentrated on the origin of both versions and the main characters but also on the language King uses. The second part of the thesis deals with the comparison of the book with its film adaptation. One section is focused on the plot, especially if it is faithful to the original story. 7 Another part concentrates on agreement between the main characters in the novel and their realisation in the adaptation. If the film catches the essence of the book is another part of this section. And one piece of the work, however, is focused on those parts of book that were omitted or changed in the film adaptation. 8 2 Stephen King Stephen King, who is very often called ´the master of horror´, is considered to be one of the greatest contemporary authors, not only in the USA but all through the world. His works are thrilling, gripping and most importantly, he captures the character of human being very well. Each of his books is not just about the fear, it is written for the reader to draw a lesson