88 pages 2 hours read

Stephen King

The Shining

Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 1977

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Part 5, Chapters 38-42Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Part 5: “Matters of Life and Death”

Part 5, Chapter 38 Summary: “Florida”

Hallorann is in Florida when he smells oranges and then immediately hears Danny’s scream. He tries to get out of work but must resort to lying; he tells his boss that his son got shot. All week, for reasons he does not understand, Halloran has been thinking about his own death. He remembers the maid, Delores Vickery, in hysterics. She had seen Mrs. Massy in the 217 bathtub and had been glad when Ullman fired her. That was when Hallorann went to 217 and saw the body. He heard the shouts to unmask and saw the hedge animals moving.

Hallorann remembers many guests who left quickly, or who claimed to have seen things. Unfortunately, he is late and misses his flight to Denver. In the men’s room at the airport, he hears Danny scream again.

Part 5, Chapter 39 Summary: “On the Stairs”

Wendy finds Danny singing an Eddie Cochran song. His lower lip is swollen. He says he called Tony in the bathroom and must have hit his head in a trance. He assures her that Jack did not do it. Then he tells her that the people—and things—in the hotel refuse to let Tony come anymore. He also believes that the Overlook is trying to make Jack feel like it wants him the most.