Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Shining, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Fear, the Paranormal, and Reality
Precognition, Second Sight, and the Shining
Family
Isolation and Insanity
Alcoholism and Abuse
Time
Summary
Analysis
Danny comes back to the lobby and Wendy asks him what he was talking about in the car with Hallorann. Danny shrugs, and Wendy can see Jack in the gesture. Danny and Jack are so close—both in likeness and their relationship—that Wendy often feels like an “outsider.” Wendy realizes with shame that she is jealous of Jack’s relationship with Danny, and she is horrified that she is beginning to act like her mother. Ullman approaches the Torrances and offers a quick tour of the hotel. As they walk across the lobby to the elevator, they pass Watson, who gives Wendy a wink and a “lecherous” smile that makes her uncomfortable.
As the great-grandson of the Overlook’s first owner, Watson has the closest connection to the hotel; however, it isn’t clear if Watson how, if at all, connected to the hotel’s darker side. The fact that Watson is inappropriate and a bit threatening suggests that he might be. Wendy struggles with her feelings of jealousy for most of the book, and she fears that jealousy will ruin her relationship with Danny like it did with her own mother.
Themes
They get on the antique elevator and Danny looks nervous. Ullman tells him not to worry. The elevator was installed in 1926 and has been running without issue ever since. Wendy isn’t consoled, and she imagines them, alone in the hotel, stuck between floors in the ancient elevator. She thinks again of the Donner Party and makes a mental note to stop obsessing. The elevator climbs to the third floor, and when they step out, Danny is frozen with fright. The carpet is the same bright blue and black carpet from his vision.
Again, Wendy is intimidated by their isolation. There will be no one at the Overlook to help the Torrances, and if they were to get stuck in the elevator, they would slowly starve to death—or resort to cannibalism like the Donner Party. Meanwhile, the carpet that corroborates Danny’s vision proves that his shining is legitimate and that his premonitions should be taken seriously.
Themes
Ullman shows Jack, Wendy, and Danny to room 300, the Presidential Suite, and opens the door. Three presidents have stayed in the suite, including President Nixon, and Jack says he isn’t sure Ullman should be proud of that. As they walk in the room, Ullman points out the spectacular view, which Jack and Wendy are clearly impressed with, but Danny can’t take his eyes off the red and white wallpaper. The walls are splattered with blood and brain matter. This must be what Hallorann was talking about, Danny thinks to himself. When Danny looks again, the blood stains are gone.
Judging by Jack and Wendy’s positive reactions to the room, the blood and brains Danny sees splattered on the walls are evidently only visible to him. This is an example of what Hallorann told Danny about people who shine being able to see remnants of the Overlook’s past that others can’t perceive. The blood and gore likely mean that someone was murdered in this room, though it isn’t clear when this happened or to whom. Nevertheless, the Overlook seems to have somehow absorbed all the terrible things that have happened there, and Danny’s ability to shine blurs the lines between these past horrors and the present.
Themes
Ullman leads them out of the Presidential Suite and back to the elevator. As Danny looks over his shoulder on the way out, he sees that the blood stains are back, and notices that he has bitten his lip hard enough to draw blood. Ullman then shows the Torrances to the second floor and walks right by room 217 without stopping. He explains to Jack that all the windows in the hotel must be shuttered. Danny stares at the old-fashioned fire extinguisher and hose affixed to the wall, disturbed by the object without knowing why. The hose of the extinguisher is coiled and has a brass nozzle at one end. Ullman directs them to the first floor to their living quarters. Hallorann lives in the room during the season, and while there isn’t a kitchen, they should be very comfortable. Wendy agrees that the room is more than adequate, and they leave to walk Ullman out.
The fire extinguisher is yet another example of how the Overlook seems to retain negative experiences and energy. Given the legitimacy of Danny’s intuition about the hotel thus far, it's safe to say that something sinister related to the extinguisher will, indeed, come about. Meanwhile, the areas of the hotel that are frequented by Hallorann— mainly the kitchen and his living quarters—generally feel warm and inviting because of their connection to Hallorann, suggesting that the hotel retains positive energy as well.
Themes
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Back in the lobby, the Torrances pass Watson, who is also preparing to leave. He reminds Jack to keep a close eye on the boiler and gives Wendy another lustful look. As Ullman picks up his bags to leave, he reminds Watson to be back by May 12th. Watson nods, and Danny catches Watson’s thoughts. Watson really hates Mr. Ullman, Danny thinks. As Watson and Ullman walk out to their cars, Danny feels as alone as he has ever felt in his life.
Danny is isolated by both the extreme location of the hotel and his ability to shine, compounding his feelings of loneliness. Again, Watson is inappropriate and makes Wendy uncomfortable, similar to of the hotel itself. This further implies that Watson may somehow be connected to the hotel’s sinister energy.
Themes
