The Breathing Method
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| Author | Stephen King |
|---|---|
| Country |  |
| Language | English |
| Genre(s) | Drama |
| Released in | Different Seasons |
| Publisher | Viking Press |
| Media Type | Anthology |
| Released | 1982 |
The Breathing Method is a novella by Stephen King which was released as part of his Different Seasons collection in 1982. It is placed in the section entitled "A Winter's Tale".
[edit] Synopsis
The novella's plot focuses on David, the narrator of the frame tale, a middle-aged Manhattan lawyer who joins a strange men's club where the members, in addition to reading, chatting and playing pool and chess, tell strange stories. On the Thursday before Christmas, the elderly physician Dr. Emlyn McCarron tells the story of a patient of his who was determined to give birth to her illegitimate child, no matter what.
The patient masters a mysterious breathing method to help her with her eventual labor pains. On the way to the hospital, her taxi crashes and she is decapitated. Dr. McCarron arrives at the crash site and realizes the patient, using the breathing method, is still alive (her lungs in her headless torso somehow still pump air). He manages to deliver the baby.
On a sweet but haunting end note, the patient tells him "thank you" -- her decapitated head mouthing the words while they come out distorted from the throat jutting from her headless body.
[edit] Filming
The Breathing Method is the only novella in Different Seasons for which no movie adaptation exists, as Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption, Apt Pupil, and The Body have all been filmed as The Shawshank Redemption, Apt Pupil, and Stand by Me, respectively.
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