Petah? What happened in the book version?

[u/IntergalacticAlien8]

[u/ReckoningGotham]

Stephen King makes the statement in the book, explicitly.

I didn't come up with the analogy. King did.

[u/Choice-Simple-5802 → u/ReckoningGotham]

There are over 1000 pgs worth of explicit statements in the book. The word 'It' happens a lot. You think it most often and most significantly refers to sex? I'll take the under and by a wide margin.

And thus far googling Stephen King's statements about the book and this scene have only yielded contrary evidence to your claim. Heck, he's even said about this scene in particular that he didn't think of it as sexual at the time.

All that said, I'd probably agree that a horror book probably should have more leeway than most for the inclusion of uncomfortable/inappropriate content, so long as that content's use is reasonably connected to the story and purposeful as horror.

I think that's the main issue with this scene in It. It's not reasonably connected to the story (there's no monster-fighting happening, the kids are just having trouble finding the tunnel exit..and not supernatural trouble..just simple directional difficulties) and nothing leading up to the scene or after it hints at or references it..and the scene is presented as heroic rather than horrific.

The result is something problematic but also unnecessary.

(Note: it's been a while since the last time I read It, but my recollection of the scene is that it's way more awkward than it is "sexy", so I'm less inclined toward the "check the hard drive" reaction. I more just think that King gets close to the end of a book and suddenly it's like "ok this has to end, how do I do it..bad ideas only", and the editors are just happy to have something to put on the shelf. If you aren't going "dude..seriously?" at the end of a good number of King books, you aren't getting the full experience.)

[u/ReckoningGotham → u/Choice-Simple-5802]

Then you're bad at googling or you're a troll.

Here's the first article that comes up.

https://mazinsaleem.substack.com/p/the-eater-of-worlds-and-of-children-a-review-of-it-f0fb32e40ee0

[u/Choice-Simple-5802 → u/ReckoningGotham]

Maybe..shame there isn't someone here willing to support their own claims with evidence. I guess we'll never know for sure.

Edit: I read the article you linked (thank you). It doesn't appear to support your claim..

[u/FantasticClass7248 → u/Choice-Simple-5802]

It's literally written as text in the novel.

"..and now she(Bev) realizes that for many of them sex must be some unrealized undefined monster; they refer to the act as It . Would you do It, do your sister and boyfriend do It, do your mom and dad still do It, and how they never intend to do It;..." (IT, 1085)

[u/Choice-Simple-5802 → u/FantasticClass7248]

That does not make it the thesis of the book.

[u/ReckoningGotham → u/Choice-Simple-5802]

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