Revival

King’s novel is a critique of organized religion, in particular American evangelicalism. Jacobs’s contempt for his congregation, however, seems to extend past religion into a critique of American philosophy and the American way of life. Elaborate on this critique, citing examples from the novel.

Discuss the imagery King uses to characterize Jamie’s glimpse of the afterlife. How does it develop the novel’s themes?

Terry tells Jamie that he agrees with the Terrible Sermon as an adult. What does it say about the adults in Dick and Laura Morton’s generation that all of them are repulsed by the Terrible Sermon?

Jamie doubts that Jacobs ever loved him when he realizes that Jacobs was using him to complete his final experiment and that Conrad suffered aftereffects after all. Does the novel suggest that Jacobs was always a devious character, or does he became devious because of what happened to him?

Consider the aftereffects that Jacobs’s test subjects experience. What form do they take, and why is this significant? How do they develop the theme of The Emotional Cost of Starting Anew?

The novel’s conclusion suggests that people are better off not knowing the truth of Mother, the Null, etc. How does this defense of ignorance intersect with the unknowability that is at the root of much cosmic horror?

Why might King have chosen to call the monstrous entity waiting in the afterlife “Mother”? What associations does the word have? How does it relate to the Christian conception of God?

Consider the role that music plays in the novel. What does Jamie’s hobby/career add to the text?