The Stand: Analysis of Major Characters
"The Stand: Analysis of Major Characters" delves into the complex personalities that populate Stephen King's post-apocalyptic narrative. Central characters include Stuart Redman, a resilient and quiet factory worker who emerges as a leader among survivors and confronts the dark forces of Randall Flagg. Frannie Goldsmith, a compassionate pregnant college student, represents hope and nurturing amidst chaos. Harold Lauder, an intelligent but socially awkward teen, illustrates the struggle between desire and morality, ultimately leading to his tragic downfall. Larry Underwood, a rock-and-roll singer, undergoes significant personal growth as he learns to confront his past and embrace responsibility.
Nick Andros, a deaf-mute wanderer, is portrayed as a compassionate leader whose tragic death impacts the morale of the community. Other notable figures include Mother Abigail, a spiritual guide embodying hope and wisdom, and Randall Flagg, the embodiment of evil who manipulates and terrorizes others. Each character's journey reflects themes of survival, morality, and the nature of good versus evil in a fractured world. Through these characters, the narrative explores profound questions about human nature and the choices that define us in times of crisis.
The Stand: Analysis of Major Characters
Author: Stephen King
First published: 1978; revised, 1990
Genre: Novel
Locale: The United States
Plot: Apocalyptic
Time: June 16, 1985, to summer, 1986
Stuart Redman, a widowed factory worker. Big and strong, Stu is quiet and competent. As a survivor of the superflu, he serves as a “lab rat” until the death of his captors, who are government employees. He escapes, joins with others, and leads them to Mother Abigail's and on to Colorado, where he becomes a leader, eventually taking a group to the West to take on Flagg. Injured and left on the way, he is the only survivor of the expedition to Las Vegas.
Frannie Goldsmith, a pregnant, unmarried college student. Tall and leggy, with long chestnut hair, Frannie is “prime stuff.” The object of Stu Redman's affection as well as Harold Lauder's, she is gentle and understanding, a helpmate and colleague to Stu. Frannie's son is the first child born who contracts and survives the superflu.
Harold Emery Lauder, later called Hawk, an exceptionally bright, socially inept teenager. The unwashed, overweight, and unpleasant spoiled child gives way to a hard, determined young man who winds up with the unlikely sobriquet “Hawk.” His intelligence guides him, and those who follow, safely to Mother Abigail's and Colorado, but he becomes twisted because he wants Frannie, who loves Stu. He teams with Nadine Cross to destroy the town leaders. After their escape from Boulder, he is injured and abandoned by Nadine Cross. Realizing that he has been and done wrong, he writes an apology (later found by the Las Vegas expedition) and commits suicide.
Larry Underwood, a rock-and-roll singer. Larry is not a nice guy until he confronts himself after his companion's accidental death. After an infatuation with Nadine Cross, he grows to love Lucy Swann, who supports him. First as group leader, then as community leader, he finds the strength to do the right thing in refusing Nadine and later finds the strength again in Las Vegas to not give in to fear or to Randall Flagg, even in the face of death.
Nick Andros, a deaf and mute wanderer. Small, dark, thin, and younger looking than his twenty-two years, Nick is bright, responsible, honest, generous, and compassionate. He looks after victims of the superflu and after Tom Cullen and is an organizer as well as a leader because of his native intelligence. His death at the hands of Harold Lauder and Nadine Cross demoralizes the people of the Free Zone.
Tom Cullen, a mentally deficient man. Near forty but with the mind of a child, Tom is youthful and Nordic looking. Under hypnosis, he becomes God's Tom, cognizant and righteous, and he is sent to spy on Flagg and the evil in Las Vegas. He is the only man of the Free Zone to enter Las Vegas and survive, finding Stu and helping him on his way back to Colorado.
Glendon Pequod Bateman, an aging sociology professor. Gray-haired and sixtyish, Glen is a scholar and adviser. He helps to organize the people of Boulder into a community. He goes to Las Vegas to confront and confound Flagg.
Kojak, a friendly Irish setter. Kojak is Stu Redman's guardian after his injury. He keeps Stu alive until Tom Cullen comes along to help him return to Boulder. The only dog found alive after the superflu, Kojak is a reminder of destruction until a bitch is found, and then they become the hope of a species.
Nadine Cross, a virgin schoolteacher. Pretty, with dark hair turning prematurely white, Nadine is enigmatic. She is destined to bear Flagg's child, dreaming of him and keeping herself for him. A desperate, rebuffed, last-minute bid for Larry convinces her that she is not wanted. She turns wholly to the evil of Flagg, planning the demise of Boulder's leaders, only to discover her grave mistake when she meets Flagg. Her death at his hands is a turning point for evil.
Leo Rockaway, a disturbed boy. First appearing as the feral Joe in the care of Nadine Cross, Leo begins to blossom, first as a musical prodigy, then as a clairvoyant. He senses evil about Harold Lauder and refuses to go near him; he knows what is happening elsewhere. Nadine Cross's defection sets him back, and he turns to Larry Underwood for care.
Mother Abigail Freemantle Trotts, an old, religious black woman. Mother Abigail, at the age of 108, is thin, with thinning white hair. She is the spiritual leader of the group in Colorado. Survivors have dreamed of her and sought her out. She is the voice of God and the voice of reason, setting people on the paths chosen for them. She dies after a sojourn in the wilderness.
Randall Flagg, a wicked creature. He is dark, but not identifiable as black or white. People dream of Flagg and see no face, only burning red eyes. Flagg is evil. He draws his followers, keeping them with fear and punishing dissidents with crucifixion. The evil he unleashes goes beyond his control, undermining his power.
Lloyd Henreid, a thief, a murderer, and Flagg's right-hand man. Flagg saves Lloyd from having to resort to cannibalism in his jail cell, and Lloyd becomes his first “convert.” Never very bright but easily persuaded, Lloyd is swept along with Flagg until he realizes that he has become smarter. This knowledge comes at about the same time that he notices that things are going wrong.
Donald Merwin “Trashcan Man” Elbert, an imbalanced arsonist. With strange, muddy eyes and one arm a mass of burn scars, Trash is Randall Flagg's secret weapon. He is drawn to instruments of destruction, finally finding the ultimate hardware: a nuclear warhead. He takes it to Flagg in atonement for blowing up his air force. The resultant explosion destroys Las Vegas, Flagg's followers, and some of the surviving members of the expedition from the Free Zone.