Salem's Lot
by Stephen King
Character Analysis
Development
1) The theme of belief is vital in this novel. It seemed that those who truly believed were the ones who began to take steps towards fighting the vampires, and ultimately survived longer than the rest. For example, Mark Petrie believed in everything that was going on due to his innocence. He had seen this all before in his comic books and knew how to fight it. When it happened in real life, he didn't question it because unlike most adults, he didn't need rational solutions to every problem that arose. Another example would obviously be Ben Mears. Although Ben is a rational individual, he is also a writer, therefore his imagination allows him to believe in what was going on in Salem's Lot. Both Mark and Ben were the two survivors from the Vampire outbreak and were able to escape the town, but not before they set it on fire. The theme of belief aided in developing the plot because slowly we were able to realize that those who believed the most were the ones who were ultimately going to come out alive. It made it interesting to see who would last longer without becoming part of the living dead.
2) Another recurrent theme in Salem's lot is the idea of the bad that exists in everything that is good. Salem's lot is your typical town, with a humble population and everyone knows everyone else's ordeals. Everyone is extremely comfortable and happy in Salem's lot because they've always known it to be a good place. However, the darkness in the town began to override the light once the vampires spread. This theme advances the plot of the story by painting a picture perfect town and demonstrating how even somewhere like Salem's lot has it's dark secrets. As the darkness takes over, it peaks the reader's interest to see how the seemingly normal town reacts.
3) One last theme in Salem's lot is sacrifice. Ben Mears' love interest, Susan Norton, eventually becomes part of the living dead. She was laying dormant in the Marsten house basement when Ben and his team- which consisted of Mark Petrie, Father Callahan, Matt Burke, and Jimmy Cody- decided to enter the house and put a stake in the hearts of the vampires. When it came time to kill Susan, the team knew that the only person for the job was Ben. It was extremely hard for him to do but eventually he killed her because he knew that it was for the better. This is an act of sacrifice because Ben sacrificed his feelings for Susan for the safety of the survivors in the town. This aids in the development of the plot because it demonstrates how determined Ben was to end the spread of the vampire epidemic. It led the reader to believe that Ben wouldn't stop until his job was completely done.
1) Stephen King was able to characterize Ben Mears in various different circumstances throughout the novel. King portrayed Mears as a passionate man in many different ways. The fact alone that Ben Mears moved to Salem's lot primarily to gather information for his new novel shows you how passionate he is about his career as a writer. Ben's passion for his career was exemplified further as the novel developed. The narrator explains on many different occasions how Ben would be up at all hours typing on his typewriter in his room at Eva Miller's boarding house, where he was staying in Salem's lot. This aids in developing the novel because it shows the reader that when Ben set his mind to something, it was going to get done correctly. Therefore, the reader knew that anything Ben did he did with conviction.
2) King made it evident that Mears was a courageous person. It took a lot of courage for him to revisit the Marsten house, where he had last seen Hubie Marsten hanging from the ceiling. Not only did Ben revisit the house, he tried to live in it. This obviously took an immense amount of courage. Also, Ben exemplified courage when he was left with no other option than to put a stake through Susan Norton's heart. He knew that she would only be set free if her love interest was the one that killed her, and Ben was the man for the job. This aids in developing the novel because it lead the reader to believe that Ben had the best chance of surviving in Salem's lot.
3) Lastly, King painted Ben Mears to be extremely dependable. Matt Burke suffered a heart attack and asked Ben to get him books from the library and he did. Also, Matt instructed Ben to make dozens of stakes for the vampire's hearts and Ben obeyed. Ben was also had extremely dependable insight, because he always seemed to know the right way to go about things and constantly looked out for others as well as himself. This was exemplified when he suggested the group not split up because there was power in numbers. Those who remained with him were safe, and those who strayed away became a part of the living dead. This aids in the development of the novel because it allowed the reader to realize early on that any person that stayed with Ben was going to survive. Throughout the novel, Mark Petrie remained by Ben's side, and the two escaped in the end.