Plot
The plot of "The Body" by Stephen King takes place in 1960. "It happened in 1960, a long time ago...although sometimes it doesn't seem that long to me" (293). Four teenage boys from Castle Rock go off and find a young boy's dead body. The boys face problems with nature, gangs and within themselves. The pace of the story is pin point because once the boys get there, their brothers and their friends find them trying to turn in the body. The organization of the plot plays out the conflict very well because they arrive at the scene at the same time.
Point of View
The point of view of the story is from Gordon's perspective. "I was twelve going on thirteen when I first saw a dead human being" (293). Gordan retells the story from his childhood as an adult. He becomes a writer so the story is explained very well and every detail is mentioned. The downfall of him telling the story is he only gives his view on what happened. We don't get to see the other boys views on their situation. Gordan is the only one who could tell the story well because he is the smartest, has a future, and is a writer.
Characterization
The characters are significant to the story because they are young teenagers looking for something to do. "So anyway, you want to go see it?"(304). If Vern would have never heard Charlie and Billy they would have never went on that adventure. Gordon is the main character and is telling the story exactly how it happened. Gordon questions Chris is to why he brought a gun with them and eventually they needed it to protect themselves from getting beat up and so they could claim the body. All of the characters have a significant role in the story.
Setting
The story takes place is Castle Rock. The boys spend most of their time in their tree house. "We had a tree house in a big elm which overhung a vacant lot in Castle Rock"(293). The tree house is where they had all of their gatherings. They were also enjoying the nature on their way to see the dead boy. Most of the story took place while they were in the nature trying to find the boy.
Theme
The theme of the story is if you want something then go for it. There is nothing stopping you from what you want to have. The boys wanted to claim the dead body so they tried and didn't let the gang from stopping them. Another major theme is your best friends will always be there for you when u need them. Your friends can help you get through anything even if the times are rough. They were always there for each other and backed each other up. "Ace, if you don't stand still I'm going to shoot you"(414). Chris is standing up for his friends by scaring the bigger kids with his gun.
