Talk:The Long Walk
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I visited this page a while ago, and it had a lot more information then, including the common interpretation that the dark figure at the end is Randall Flagg. Why was all of that removed? Just because you don't agree with the Flagg interpretation doesn't mean it's not relevant; please don't remove information without explanation. -- Minaker
Is the dark figure at the end also the Dark Man? Personally, I don't think so, but I think it's an interesting interpretation, and more importantly, it's a theory that is so widely speculated among Stephen King fans that it has found its way into publication by respected authors within the genre (I cited the authors within the body of the article). The interpretation should therefore not be dismissed outright within the article; to do so would be unencyclopedic unless you have the citation needed to back it up; otherwise, all you're doing is editorializing and stating a personal opinion, which has no place in an encyclopedic entry, although you're free to do that here in the discussion page. Again, a conclusion that a certain interpretation is unlikely is too subjective for inclusion on an encyclopedia page. -- Minaker
Some way needs to be found to integrate into the synopsis the fact that the story takes place in some kind of parallel universe that is very similar to but not identical to our own, an idea that King explored much more extensively in later works. The primary evidence of this is that one of the characters in the story refers to Hank Aaron hitting seven hundred and thirty nine home runs.
Done. I changed 'near future' to 'alternate history' with a link to alternative history (fiction) - from what I recall, there's also a reference to fighting Nazis in Central America in the book as well. NickBarlow 22:38, 7 Feb 2005 (UTC)
I don't recall anything that implies The Long Walk was set in a world where the Nazis won WW2. It doesn't really go into very much detail on the world outside the Long Walk, as I recall. And I believe they never actually say precisely what the Prize is, though I could be wrong. Tuf-Kat 06:13, 18 September 2005 (UTC)
You're exactly half right. I just finished re-reading the book, and I agree that it doesn't imply anything about WW2; this is purely reader speculation. However, the prize is discussed quite explicitly and frequently in the novel.
No it doesn't, there is a part where Garraty sees a sunset or something and he says it reminds him of when the Germans bombed the East coast at the end of WW2, clearly implying the US lost.
- I don't recall that, but the Germans could have bombed the East Coast without winning the war. Tuf-Kat 09:47, 11 February 2006 (UTC)
