The other day I read Stephen King’s *Apt Pupil* and I can’t seem to make my mind up as to what is the most disturbing scene out the following:
1) the description of Todd’s first wet dream in *Apt Pupil* which he has while fantasting performing medical experiments on a Jewish girl in a concentration camp.
2) the awkward sex performed by members of the Loser Club after defeating It the first time round in *It".
3) or the short story *Dedication* which involves a writer spending the majority of time masturbating, for reasons I have forgotten he is holed in motel. He allows his mess to cover the sheets etc and a maid who is pregnant decides to consume the dried semen in belief this will impart creative talent in to unborn child.
4) or finally, the slight misogynist statement in *The Tommyknockers* which describes Ruth McCausland’s masturbatory session as “grim and joyless” as no penis was involved in the climax. Out of the four this is probably the least disturbing but…
I would agree that Apt Pupil is a highly disturbing fucked up story - which covers a number of themes. But is it honestly a great piece of horror? No. King relies far too much on the shock element, which I’m fine with this - sometimes I want to be grossed our. Todd’s wet dream as I have alluded already was pretty awkward - but there is some relatablity, admittedly I have never to my knowledge had one while fantasying about the holocaust it did bring home the memories of my first time - the confusion of what I had dreamt and waking up feeling sticky and not fully realising what it was resurfaced those emotions.
As for the depiction of madness, yes the graphic nature takes some beating but it’s weak on psychology. If you want to explore the slide to madness I urge you to read either the The Brothers Karamazov or Crime and Punishment.
Wowsers dude, you left out War and Peace and Moby Dick!
Your literary superiority is too superior for me! 🤣
Moby Dick is overrated.
More likely overstuffed. He added whole chapters of (fictional) dictionaries description and so on, but in the long run that help building up the story atmosphere and give more impact to the main arc.