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Analysis of the Green Mile Essay

Decent Essays
Knaub 1

Jill Knaub
Professor Janet Ward
English 110
November 3, 2011 Summary of the Novel, “The Green Mile”

A summary of any novel by Stephen King has to include a small biography of the horror novelist, himself. Publishing this novel in 1996 as a serial novel, with the first edition actually coming out as one of six small paperbacks that were eventually made into one novel. Stephen King is well known for his horror novels, therefore, this summary of the novel “The Green Mile” shows this book set in the 1930's and is a deviation from some of his other works.

The story is told in the first-person narrative by Paul Edgecombe, switching between Paul as an old man in the nursing home in 1996 and his time as block supervisor
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Percy is offered a job at Briar Ridge psychiatric hospital and Paul and the other guards think they are finally rid of him, however, Percy refuses to leave until he supervises an execution. Paul hesitantly allows Percy to run Dels execution. Percy the snake he is, deliberately avoids soaking a sponge in water, which are supposed to be tucked inside the electrodes; this ensures a quick death in the electric chair.

Paul, over time, realizes that John possesses unexplained healing abilities, which he uses to cure Paul's Urinary infection as well as reviving Mr. Jingles after Percy stomps on him. John Cofey is very sensitive to the thoughts and feelings of others around him. One night the guards drugged Wharton (“Wild Bill”), and then put a straitjacket on Percy and locked him in the padded cell so they could smuggle John Cofey out of the prison to take him to the home of the Warden Hal Moores. Hal's wife Melinda has a deadly brain tumor, which John Cofey cures. When they returned to the mile, John passes the “disease” from Melinda into Percy, causing him to go mad and shoot “Wild Bill” to death before going into a catatonic state from which he never recovers.

Knaub 3
Paul’s suspicions about John Cofeys innocence is proven when he discovers that it was actually “Wild Bill” who raped and murdered the two girls and that John was trying to revive them when he was discovered holding the two in his arms. John tells
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