Night Shift

The motif of possession (in the demonic sense) allows King to explore the term’s more everyday meaning, questioning the human relationship to the objects and tools in their lives, as well as their relationship with their own bodies. The possession that occurs in “The Mangler” sets the stage by offering a familiar type of possession: a Christian demon exorcised according to Christian procedures. However, the two object-related possessions that follow complicate standard notions of possession. “Battleground” sees an autonomous collection of toy soldiers bring the full weight of their unthinking malignancy to bear upon Renshaw. The force powering them remains undefined, but this is of little issue; in becoming a vessel for the spiteful and latent energies in the universe, they are “possessed” in the most significant sense. The same vague but distinct vindictiveness inhabits the industrial vehicles of “Trucks.” Through these stories, King creates fear of innocuous objects, placing paranoia back into comfortable environments and asking readers to re-examine their relationships with the objects that they own and use.

King also depicts human bodies taken over and utilized by forces outside of their control, leaving their consciousnesses reeling and their minds filled with guilt and horror. Again, the motif first appears in a familiar form.