Spoilers: This article talks about a major plot point to a novel you should have read 31 years ago. So you know, if you don't like crying please don't read this spoiler laden article.
The film adaptation of Stephen King's novel IT has just hit theaters and the reviews are glowing. However, since this is the internet we can't have nice things. That's why there is a lot of buzz about how the original novel contains a scene where our protagonists, who are twelve, all have sex with the lone female member of the group. This also takes place in a sewer. As a plot device, it was meant to bridge the gap between the childhood and becoming an adult, strengthen the bonds between the characters etc. etc.
“...it’s fascinating to me that there has been so much comment about that single sex scene and so little about the multiple child murders. That must mean something, but I’m not sure what.”
Whenever the subject of It comes up, the internet invariably turns to that particular plot point. King, to his credit, usually tries to clumsily explain that scene to people who obviously offended by it. Regardless how you frame it, King looks bad. Just look at the stuff Julie Muncy had to say about his comments over at Gizmodo. It follows the usual tracks one would write about misogyny in literature.
My take on this is this: It's work of fiction. I don't know if peeked outside your insular little world internet, but, there are people creating fiction that will make you feel uncomfortable, offend your sensibilities, and are not in line with your moral values. Fun fact: A lot of these works of fiction were made before the particular bit of sand in your buttcrack started to itch. Here's the thing: It's fiction. If it's not up your alley, don't indulge in it. Sure, champion against the real life problems. But my argument toward the "well the portrayals of such and such a gender reinforce.." or "this movie promotes [blank] culture" is just as absurd as the religious nuts of the late 20th century who were afraid Elvis Prestley's hips would make women want to have premarital sex and comic books were training kids to be violent criminals. Or if you like a more contemporary example: rap music teaching kids to be gangsters and video games training kids to be violent criminals. I really, really hate to quote Jhonen Vasquez (because he's an angsty douche-nozzle) but it's only entertainment, not a guidebook to damning yourself.
Also, when you look at horror fiction, a lot of the classics are incredibly out dated with the times. If you need an example, pick up anything by H.P. Lovecraft and keep a tally on how many times he presents black people as "less than human". Blatant racism notwithstanding, they are still powerful stories. The same can be said about Stephen King, a lot of his stories have not aged well, however, that does not make them bad. Even I think the orgy scene is unnecssary and crosses a line with me. However, IT is still one of the best damn novels King ever wrote.
That aside, this article isn't about my opinions. I'm here to explain the scene to you. That's why the internet exists, doesn't it? For buzz media sties to dissect every frame of a movie trailer in order to squeeze every minute fact (and joy) out of the material? Is it not the job of intrepid internet writers, such as myself, to tell you EVERYTHING WE KNOW about something that just came out? You know, because everyone on the internet is staring at their screens wall-eyed screaming "WHAT AM I LOOKING AT? I AM INCAPABLE OF PROCESSING THIS! PLEASE TELL ME!" It's my job to give that idiot at work tidbits of junk trivia that they regurgitate to everyone like a fact based Lucifer Valentine movie.
But, I am getting ahead of myself here. Let's start from the beginning....
Stephen King's It Child Orgy Scene: Explained
STEPHEN KING WAS A HOT MESS IN THE 80s.
Anyone who knows anything about Stephen King can tell you the guy had a huge monkey on his shoulder. He was an alcoholic and he was high on drugs all the time. He smoked pot, did coke, Xanax, valium... fuck the guy even drank cough syrup for Christ's sake. During this period of time Sai King wrote IT.
There's your earth shattering mystery behind this.
For a guy who doesn't even remember writing Cujo, asking him to explain his reasoning behind one scene in IT now that he's been clean and sober for over 30 years seems silly in my mind. Oh shit, I'm getting to fact based again. Let me explain it with a list. You like lists don't you internet?
10 Super Fucked Up Things Stephen King Wrote (While High and Drunk, Probably)
1.) The Running Man - The eviscerated protagonist crashes an airplane into a building screaming the N-Word.
2.) The Gunslinger - Young boy almost gets molested by an evil spirit, later the hero drops said boy to his death. Also, there's a gun abortion.
3.) Drawing of the Three - A double amputee civil rights activist who has a split personality. That split personality talks like a minstrel show.
4.) Rage - Axe Wounds. Look it up.
5.) Pet Sematary - You can almost hear that cat being peeled off the lawn.
6.) 'Salem's Lot - Alcoholic priest forced to drink vampire blood.
7.) Thinner - Every gypsy and Italian mobster trope.
8.) Quitters Inc. - Quit smoking or we'll torture your family. Also, you need to lose weight or we'll cut off one of your fingers.
9.) Apt Pupil - "Hey Mister! Can you be a Nazi again?"
10.) The Body - The heart warming tale of some kids who want to go see a dead body.
The point I am getting at here kiddies is that Stephen King wrote a lot of fucked up things during the 70s and 80s. Sex, violence, racial slurs, dead kids littered his literary landscape. They were fucked up because he was fucked up. End of story.