The Reaper's Image

Last updated
"The Reaper's Image"
Short story by Stephen King
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Genre(s) Horror short story
Publication
Published inStartling Mystery Stories
Publication typeMagazine
Media typePrint (Periodical & Paperback)
Publication date Spring 1969

"The Reaper's Image" is a horror short story by American writer Stephen King, first published in Startling Mystery Stories in 1969 and collected in Skeleton Crew in 1985. The story is about an antique mirror haunted by the visage of the Grim Reaper, who appears to those who gaze into it.

Contents

Plot summary

The story concerns a visit by an irascible antique collector, Johnson Spangler, to the Samuel Claggert Museum in his attempt to authenticate the legendary Delver's Mirror. The museum curator, Mr. Carlin, ushers Spangler through the building, recounting the history of this rare Elizabethan mirror, which incidents of attempted destruction have plagued it. The museum curator also explains the infamous history of the mirror, recounting all the people who have looked into the mirror had mysteriously disappeared.

Carlin tells a skeptical Spangler that an image of the Grim Reaper is rumored to appear in the mirror, standing close to the viewer. Spangler scoffs, but feels unnatural horror when he looks into the mirror and claims to see some duct tape in the mirror's corner. He angrily confronts Carlin, who claimed the mirror was undamaged. However, Carlin claims that there is no duct tape, and Spangler is "seeing the reaper." When Spangler runs his hand over the "duct tape", he feels a smooth surface rather than the rough outside of the tape. When Spangler looks again, the duct tape is gone. As Carlin relates the history of a high school boy who saw the Reaper and disappeared without a trace, Spangler becomes ill and rushes out of the second floor as Mr. Carlin remains behind to wait.

Publication

King wrote "The Reaper's Image" at age 18 in summer 1966, shortly before beginning college. [1] It was first published in issue 12 of Startling Mystery Stories in spring 1969. He was paid $35 (equivalent to $291in 2023) for the story, which was his second to be published commercially (the first being "The Glass Floor", published in autumn 1967). [1] [2] [3] In 1985, a revised version was collected in King's second book of short stories, Skeleton Crew .

Reception

Literary critic Michael R. Collings writes that although it draws on Edgar Allan Poe and H. P. Lovecraft, "The Reaper's Image" was "a stronger, more independent piece of atmospheric horror than King had yet produced", making use of flashbacks, self-consistent characterizations, and "allow[ing] the mystery of the Delver mirror to develop its own power rather than imposing a mystery upon the characters, as he had done in 'The Glass Floor'." [4] Similarly, Darrell Schweitzer comments "The story is quite similar to 'The Glass Floor', but is told more skilfully". [5] Tyson Blue describes the story as "a traditional Stephen King tale [...] one of his nods to his literary forebears", suggesting the story was influenced by the works of Edgar Allan Poe. [6]

Adaptations

A short film adaptation of The Reaper's Image was released in 2013.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cthulhu Mythos</span> Shared fictional universe based on the work of H. P. Lovecraft

The Cthulhu Mythos is a mythopoeia and a shared fictional universe, originating in the works of Anglo-American horror writer H. P. Lovecraft. The term was coined by August Derleth, a contemporary correspondent and protégé of Lovecraft, to identify the settings, tropes, and lore that were employed by Lovecraft and his literary successors. The name "Cthulhu" derives from the central creature in Lovecraft's seminal short story "The Call of Cthulhu", first published in the pulp magazine Weird Tales in 1928.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Horror fiction</span> Genre of speculative fiction

Horror is a genre of speculative fiction that is intended to disturb, frighten, or scare. Horror is often divided into the sub-genres of psychological horror and supernatural horror, which are in the realm of speculative fiction. Literary historian J. A. Cuddon, in 1984, defined the horror story as "a piece of fiction in prose of variable length ... which shocks, or even frightens the reader, or perhaps induces a feeling of repulsion or loathing". Horror intends to create an eerie and frightening atmosphere for the reader. Often the central menace of a work of horror fiction can be interpreted as a metaphor for larger fears of a society.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stephen King</span> American writer (born 1947)

Stephen Edwin King is an American author. Widely known for his horror novels, he has been crowned the "King of Horror". He has also explored other genres, among them suspense, crime, science-fiction, fantasy and mystery. Though known primarily for his novels, he has written approximately 200 short stories, most of which have been published in collections.

<i>Skeleton Crew</i> (short story collection) 1985 short story collection by Stephen King

Skeleton Crew is a short story collection by American writer Stephen King, published by Putnam in June 1985. A limited edition of a thousand copies was published by Scream/Press in October 1985 (ISBN 978-0910489126), illustrated by J. K. Potter, containing an additional short story, "The Revelations of 'Becka Paulson", which had originally appeared in Rolling Stone magazine, and was later incorporated into King's 1987 novel The Tommyknockers. The original title of this book was Night Moves.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Tell-Tale Heart</span> 1843 short story by Edgar Allan Poe

"The Tell-Tale Heart" is a short story by American writer Edgar Allan Poe, first published in 1843. It is told by an unnamed narrator who endeavors to convince the reader of the narrator's sanity while simultaneously describing a murder the narrator committed. The victim was an old man with a filmy pale blue "vulture-eye", as the narrator calls it. The narrator emphasizes the careful calculation of the murder, attempting the perfect crime, complete with dismembering the body in the bathtub and hiding it under the floorboards. Ultimately, the narrator's actions result in hearing a thumping sound, which the narrator interprets as the dead man's beating heart.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Richard Barham Middleton</span> English poet and story writer (1882–1911)

Richard Barham Middleton was an English poet and author. He is remembered most for his short ghost stories, in particular "The Ghost Ship".

Theodore "Eibon" Donald Klein is an American horror writer and editor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lovecraftian horror</span> Subgenre of horror

Lovecraftian horror, also called cosmic horror or eldritch horror, is a subgenre of horror, fantasy fiction and weird fiction that emphasizes the horror of the unknowable and incomprehensible more than gore or other elements of shock. It is named after American author H. P. Lovecraft (1890–1937). His work emphasizes themes of cosmic dread, forbidden and dangerous knowledge, madness, non-human influences on humanity, religion and superstition, fate and inevitability, and the risks associated with scientific discoveries, which are now associated with Lovecraftian horror as a subgenre. The cosmic themes of Lovecraftian horror can also be found in other media, notably horror films, horror games, and comics.

Joseph Payne Brennan was an American writer of fantasy and horror fiction, and also a poet. Of Irish ancestry, he was born in Bridgeport, Connecticut and he lived most of his life in New Haven, Connecticut, and worked as an Acquisitions Assistant at the Sterling Memorial Library of Yale University for over 40 years. Brennan published several hundred short stories, two novellas and reputedly thousands of poems. His stories appeared in over 200 anthologies and have been translated into German, French, Dutch, Italian and Spanish. He was an early bibliographer of the work of H. P. Lovecraft.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dennis Etchison</span> American writer (1943–2019)

Dennis William Etchison was an American writer and editor of fantasy and horror fiction. Etchison referred to his own work as "rather dark, depressing, almost pathologically inward fiction about the individual in relation to the world". Stephen King has called Dennis Etchison "one hell of a fiction writer" and he has been called "the most original living horror writer in America".

Ray Russell was an American editor and writer of short stories, novels, and screenplays. Russell is best known for his horror fiction, although he also wrote mystery and science fiction stories.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Darrell Schweitzer</span> American writer, editor, and critic (born 1952)

Darrell Charles Schweitzer is an American writer, editor, and critic in the field of speculative fiction. Much of his focus has been on dark fantasy and horror, although he does also work in science fiction and fantasy. Schweitzer is also a prolific writer of literary criticism and editor of collections of essays on various writers within his preferred genres.

<i>Who Fears the Devil?</i>

Who Fears the Devil? is a collection of fantasy and horror short stories by American author Manly Wade Wellman. It was released in 1963 by Arkham House in an edition of 2,058 copies and was Wellman's only book released by Arkham House. The collection consists of all of Wellman's Silver John stories that had been published at the time. They had all previously appeared in The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction. Wellman contributed new short sketches to the collection. The book is dedicated to Wellman's friend, the North Carolina folkorist and musician Bascom Lamar Lunsford.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael R. Collings</span> American writer

Michael Robert Collings is an American writer, poet, literary critic, and bibliographer, and a former professor of creative writing and literature at Pepperdine University. He was Poet in Residence at Pepperdine's Seaver College from 1997 to 2000.

According to books by Tyson Blue, Stephen J. Spignesi, and Rocky Wood et al., there are numerous unpublished works by Stephen King that have come to light throughout King's career. These allegedly include novels and short stories, most of which remain unfinished. Most are stored among Stephen King's papers in the special collections of the Raymond H. Fogler Library at the University of Maine, some of which are freely accessible to the library's visitors. However, others require King's permission to read. Additionally, there are a number of uncollected short stories, published throughout King's long career in various anthologies and periodicals, that have never been published in a King collection.

<i>The Neil Gaiman Reader</i>

The Neil Gaiman Reader: Essays and Explorations is a collection of essays on fantasy and horror writer Neil Gaiman and his works, edited by Darrell Schweitzer. It was first published in hardcover and trade paperback in 2007 by Wildside Press.

Bibliography of dark fantasy, horror, science fiction and nonfiction writer Darrell Schweitzer:

<i>The Shattered Goddess</i> 1983 fantasy novel by Darrell Schweitzer

The Shattered Goddess is a fantasy novel by American writer Darrell Schweitzer, illustrated by Stephen Fabian.

"The Glass Floor" is a short story by Stephen King, first published in the autumn 1967 issue of Startling Mystery Stories. It was King's first professional sale.

<i>The Mysteries of the Faceless King</i> 2020 collection of short stories by Darrell Schweitzer

The Mysteries of the Faceless King: The Best Short Fiction of Darrell Schweitzer Volume I is a collection of fantasy short stories by American author Darrell Schweitzer. It was first published in hardcover by PS Publishing in April 2020 as the first of its two volume set The Best Short Fiction of Darrell Schweiter.

References

  1. 1 2 Wood, Rocky (2011). Stephen King: A Literary Companion. McFarland & Co. p. 145. ISBN   9780786458509.
  2. Vincent, Bev (2022). Stephen King: A Complete Exploration of His Work, Life, and Influences. becker&mayer!. p. 98. ISBN   9780760376812.
  3. Beahm, George (1998). Stephen King from A to Z: An Encyclopedia of His Life and Work. Andrews McMeel Publishing. p. 173. ISBN   9780836269147.
  4. Collings, Michael R. (1985). The Many Facets of Stephen King. Mercer Island, Washington: Starmont House. p. 18. ISBN   9780930261146.
  5. Schweitzer, Darrell (1985). Discovering Stephen King. Starmont House. p. 49. ISBN   9780930261061.
  6. Blue, Tyson (1989). The Unseen King. Borgo Press. p. 41. ISBN   9781557420725.