The Science of Stephen King

Unfortunately for Paul, Annie is not as helpful as even the less than scientific caretakers of centuries past. She considers herself his biggest fan, yet her violent actions reflect disdain. This phenomenon has been proven to exist, as many celebrities have fallen prey to their self-professed fans. In 1995, singer Selena was murdered at age twenty-three at the hands of her fan club president, Yolanda Saldivar. Star of the TV series My Sister Sam (1986–1988), Rebecca Schaeffer, was shot to death on her doorstep in 1989 by Robert Bardo who had written her numerous fan letters. There are many examples of obsessive fan culture bleeding into violence. Rob Reiner, the director of the 1990 film adaptation Misery, explained the thin line between ardent follower and vicious murderer. “You definitely see in this film why fan is short for fanatic. It’s tricky, because to some degree, getting attention is a real compliment. But if you go one step farther … When you’re an artist, you need an audience. You want people to love you. You just don’t want them to love you too much.”3

In 1990, one year after Rebecca Schaeffer’s tragic murder, the first anti-stalking law passed in California. It is now recognized in all fifty states.

So, what is the cause of nurse Annie’s mental breakdown from devoted fan to torturer? There are several clues in the novel to what can be diagnosed as schizophrenia. This mental ailment has long been confused with dissociative identity disorder, but it is important to note that a person with schizophrenia is not full of disparate personalities. In fact, there are many false ideas of what schizophrenia is and how it affects those diagnosed. In an article for Psychiatry Today, researchers came to the conclusion that “Schizophrenia is the most common illness used today as a metaphor in the media and routinely appears associated with crime and violence with no medical or scientific rigor, reinforcing the stigma against this disorder.”4 They pointed to the use of the word “schizophrenic” as used in metaphor to describe something crazy, absurd, or hard to understand. In fact, data suggests that when people hear that a violent attack by someone with schizophrenia has occurred, they distance themselves from others with the disorder.

Matthias Angermeyer and H. Matschinger were among the first to report a population study of the direct effects of media reports of violent incidents on public stigma in Germany. In this study, the reported incident involved a patient with schizophrenia who attacked prominent German politicians. A comparison of pre-incident and post-incident survey responses suggested a significant increase in the social distance of the public toward people with schizophrenia, as well as an increase in the public belief that patients with psychiatric conditions were “dangerous” and “unpredictable.”5

Socialite and dancer Zelda Fitzgerald, wife of famous author F. Scott Fitzgerald, was diagnosed with schizophrenia at age thirty.

So, what is schizophrenia, really? It is a mental illness characterized by bouts of psychosis. This psychosis manifests differently for everyone, though often comes in the form of hallucination, whether auditory or visual, as well as in the form of disorganized thoughts. With therapy and medication, those living with schizophrenia can improve greatly. Over the decades, doctors have come to understand it as more of an umbrella disease which other conditions fall under, like Schizoaffective Disorder, which is another likely candidate for Annie Wilkes. Why? Because those suffering from this disorder are known to have unstable moods. We’re sure Paul Sheldon would attest to that symptom, especially when she slices off both his foot and thumb!

Unfortunately, the stigma of mental illnesses often negatively affects those suffering. The truth is, it is debatable if schizophrenia and violence go hand in hand. It has been associated with higher incidents, yet many of those involve the use of drugs. Researchers urge us to be cautious when equating mental disorders to murder. “Public stigma is among the most salient barriers to the recovery of people with psychosis and often has negative psychological effects on both patients and their caregivers.” 6