The Long Walk is a dystopianhorror novel by American writer Stephen King, published in 1979, under the pseudonymRichard Bachman. Set in a dystopian alternative version of the United States ruled by a totalitarian regime, the plot follows the contestants of a grueling annual walking contest. While not the first of King's novels to be published, The Long Walk was the first novel he wrote, having begun it in 1966–67 during his freshman year at the University of Maine, some eight years before his first published novel, Carrie, was released in 1974.[2]
It was collected in 1985 in the hardcover omnibus The Bachman Books, and has seen several reprints since, as both paperback and hardcover. In 2023, Centipede Press released the first stand-alone hardcover edition.[3] In 2000, the American Library Association listed The Long Walk as one of the 100 best books for teenage readers published between 1966 and 2000.[4]
Plot
Set in an alternative, dystopian version of the United States, the plot revolves around the Long Walk, an annual contest in which 100 young men walk continuously along a pre-arranged route (presumably on Route 1). Walkers must keep a minimum pace of 4 miles per hour (6.4km/h), and are issued verbal warnings by soldiers monitoring their progress if they fall below this speed for 30 seconds. A walker can lose one warning if he walks for an hour without earning another. If a walker receives three warnings and falls below the minimum speed for 30 seconds again, he is shot and killed by the soldiers. The Walk continues until there is only one survivor, who can have whatever he wants for the rest of his life as his prize.
Ray Garraty, from Androscoggin County, Maine, arrives at the start of the Walk on the Canada–Maine border, where he meets the other walkers, among them the sardonic McVries, the friendly Baker, the cocky Olson and the enigmatic Stebbins. The Major, the leader of the secret police force known as the Squads, starts the Walk. Throughout the first day, Garraty befriends Baker, Olson, and several other walkers such as Abraham and Pearson, growing particularly close to McVries and becoming intrigued by Stebbins. The men speculate on who will be the first walker to be eliminated. A walker named Barkovitch reveals to a reporter that he is in the Long Walk to "dance on the graves" of other participants, and later provokes another walker into attacking him, resulting in the latter's death and Barkovitch being ostracized.
Garraty succeeds in surviving the night. Scramm, the odds-on favorite in Vegas, tells Garraty that he has a pregnant wife and will have sufficient motivation to keep going. Garraty decides that his motivation will survive until Freeport, where he hopes to see his girlfriend Jan in the crowd. The walkers begin to resent the Major, and McVries stops walking in an attempt to fight the soldiers, but is saved by Garraty. In return, McVries saves Garraty's life after Garraty experiences a panic attack. This camaraderie infuriates Olson, who is now severely fatigued. Garraty reveals to the others that the Squads took his father away, and a fight almost breaks out between McVries and another walker, Collie Parker, when Parker claims that only "damn fools" are "Squaded".
Stebbins tells Garraty that he believes he will win, but that all walkers have a death wish. McVries tells Garraty that he will sit down when he cannot walk farther. Stebbins advises Garraty to watch Olson, who has become unresponsive. After Garraty brings Olson out of this state, Olson attacks the soldiers and is executed. Scramm falls ill with pneumonia and seems likely to collapse. The other walkers agree that the winner should provide financial security for Scramm's wife. Garraty asks Barkovitch to join the agreement, and Barkovitch agrees, as he has suffered in isolation from the others. Scramm thanks the others and is killed in an act of defiance against the soldiers.
After developing a charley horse, Garraty receives three warnings, but recovers and resumes walking with less than two seconds to spare. To distract himself until he can lose a warning, he tells McVries about how he felt a compulsion to join the walk and that his mother allowed herself to be persuaded by the thought of financial security. McVries reveals that he joined the walk against his family's wishes. Abraham tells Garraty that he did not withdraw after being accepted due to the amusement it provided to his town. Garraty begins to suffer from doubts about his sexuality and masculinity due to suppressed memories re-emerging, especially after McVries hints that he is sexually attracted to Garraty. This causes Garraty to lash out at a deteriorating Barkovitch, and Barkovitch dies of suicide when the rest of the walkers begin taunting him. The next morning, Garraty finds that many walkers (including Pearson) have died overnight, as Barkovitch predicted.
When the walkers arrive in Freeport, Garraty attempts to die in Jan's arms but is saved by McVries. As a response, Abraham convinces the walkers to make a promise to stop helping each other, which Garraty does reluctantly. This has disastrous consequences: Parker starts a revolution against the soldiers but is killed when nobody joins in; Abraham removes his shirt and catches a cold overnight because nobody can offer him a replacement, resulting in his death; Baker falls over and gains a severe nosebleed, and is given three warnings as nobody helps him up. On the morning of the 5th day, Stebbins reveals to Garraty and McVries that he is the Major's son, and his prize would be acceptance into the Major's household. However, Stebbins has become aware that the Major is using him as a "rabbit" to cause the walk to last longer, which has worked, as seven walkers make it into Massachusetts. Baker, now delirious, tells Garraty that he cannot walk any farther and thanks Garraty for being his friend. Garraty unsuccessfully tries to talk him out of suicide.
With Baker dead, the only remaining walkers are Garraty, Stebbins, and McVries. As Garraty tells him a fairy tale, McVries falls asleep and walks towards the crowd. Garraty breaks his promise and saves him; however, McVries chooses to sit down and die peacefully. A distraught Garraty is beckoned by a dark figure further ahead and decides to give up because Stebbins cannot be beaten. When he tries to tell Stebbins, Stebbins clutches at him in horror and falls over dead.
This leaves Garraty the uncomprehending winner. He ignores the Major and keeps following the dark figure (whom he believes to be another walker), declaring that there is "still so far to walk" and, hoping to catch up, even finds the strength to run.
Characters
Raymond Davis "Ray" Garraty (#47)
The novel's main character and point-of-view character, a 16-year-old boy from Pownal, Maine (for which he is called a "hick"). He is described as tall and well-built with a "heavy shock" of "straw-thatch" hair and a faded army fatigue jacket. Garraty is bitter, naive and thoughtful, which makes him a good confidant for the other Walkers, and felt a compulsion to join the Walk that he struggles to understand. Although he has done farmwork, he is not an experienced athlete. His hobbies include dancing, reading, knitting and constellations; conversely, he dislikes beer and cities.
Peter "Pete" McVries (#61)
Garraty's closest companion, a 16-year-old boy from Passaic, New Jersey. He is described as "awesomely fit" with black hair, a knapsack and a white scar across his cheek, which he received from his ex-girlfriend. McVries is sardonic and has a masochistic streak, often goading others into pushing him away even during the pains of the Walk. He saves Garraty multiple times in the game, also giving him advice. He carries a strong hatred towards Barkovitch, stating his only desire is to outlast him.
Stebbins (#88)
A loner who walks at the rear of the group, a 17-year-old boy and the illegitimate son of the Major. He is described as a "lean Buddha" with pale blue eyes and a "sickly halo" of blond hair, and wears an old green sweater, a blue chambray shirt, purple pants and tennis shoes (which he later swaps for moccasins). Stebbins is calm, playful and mocking, and often talks to Garraty in riddles. He is convinced that the Walk is rigged, and is scared at the prospect of it being a straight game.
Arthur "Art" Baker (#3)
Another participant who is close with Garraty and McVries. He is a young man from a large, lower-class family in Louisiana (for which he is called a "cracker"). He is described as appearing "young and beautiful" and "almost ethereal", as moving with "deceptive leisure", and as wearing a red-striped shirt. Baker is sweet and sincere, but is a con artist and a former night rider, and he has a fascination with his own death.
Henry "Hank" Olson (#70)
One of Garraty's earliest companions, a young man of unknown background. He is described as an experienced smoker wearing his foodbelt slung low "like a gunslinger". Olson is cocky and arrogant and humorous ("raring to rip"), but quickly becomes withdrawn and unresponsive, with Garraty believing that he has become a "human Flying Dutchman".
Gary Barkovitch (#5)
A young man from Washington, DC. He is described as small and olive-skinned with a sharp nose and hooded eyes, and he sometimes wears a vinyl yellow rainhat; Garraty considers him to look like a "destructive child's teddy bear". Barkovitch is intense and adheres to a mysterious "Plan", and threatens to "dance on the graves" of the other Walkers, but becomes paranoid and insane when they ostracize him. He and McVries have a heated hatred towards each other throughout the walk.
Abraham "Abe" (#2)
One of Garraty's companions, a 17-year-old boy called a "rube". He is described as disjointed and shambling, with reddish hair, Oxford shoes, and a jacket tied around his waist. Abraham is droll and somber and short-tempered, particularly when jibes are made at his intelligence, and entered the Walk partially as a joke.
Collie Parker
A young man from Joliet, Illinois. He is described as a big-muscled blond with a polo shirt and an insolent look; Garraty further describes him as a "leather jacket hero" and a "Saturday night tough guy". Parker despises Maine and uses excessive profanity, and often attempts to flirt with the spectators despite considering them to be "pigs".
Pearson
One of Garraty's companions. He is described as a tall young man with glasses and pants that are too big for him. Pearson is morose and enjoys poetry, game theory and chess, and views the Walk as a competition that can be solved logically. For luck, Pearson has 99 pennies in his pocket, and moves one to his other pocket whenever someone dies.
Scramm (#85)
The predicted winner of the current Long Walk, a participant from Arizona with a pregnant wife. He is described as a shaggy young man with a crew cut, few remaining teeth, and a "moose-like" physique. Although dim-witted, Scramm is friendly and possesses a "simple dignity". He has dropped out of school and works in a bedsheet factory.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 The deaths of different walkers are reported at the same time in the book, which does not allow the reader to know the exact order of their deaths.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 The death of the walker is not explicitly mentioned in the book and the author only refers to it indirectly.
Analysis
Heidi Strengell describes the book as a naturalistic novel, noting King's representation of human nature through the characters. She called it one of King's "most pessimistic novels".[5] Critic Douglas Winter similarly viewed the novel as King's most despairing work, calling it a "bleak science-fictional mirror of contemporary America".[6] Reviewers have also categorized the novel as a metaphor for the Vietnam War. James Smythe of The Guardian connects several elements of the novel to the conflict: "the televised draft, the horror of seeing new friends die, the seeming lack of reason for it occurring in the first place".[7]
In 1988, George A. Romero was approached to direct the film adaptation, but it never happened.[8] By 2007, Frank Darabont had secured the rights to the film adaptation of the novel.[9] Darabont said that he would "get to it one day" and planned to make it low-budget, "weird, existential, and very contained".[10] In April 2018, it was announced that New Line Cinema would develop a film adaptation of the novel. Darabont's rights to the film had lapsed, and filmmaker James Vanderbilt stepped in to write and produce the film with Bradley Fischer and William Sherak of the Mythology Entertainment production company.[11] On May 21, 2019, New Line announced that André Øvredal would direct the adaptation,[12] and on November 28, 2023, Øvredal was no longer attached to direct and Francis Lawrence was announced to direct the adaptation and the rights were moved to Lionsgate after it lapsed from New Line.[13][14] On June 10, 2024, Cooper Hoffman and David Jonsson were announced to be in talks to star.[15] In July, Hoffman and Jonsson were confirmed to star, along with Garrett Wareing, Tut Nyuot, Charlie Plummer, Ben Wang, Jordan Gonzalez, Joshua Odjick, and Roman Griffin Davis.[16]
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