Analysis
The short story “The Man Who Loved Flowers” written by Stephen King has a structure where tension is constantly rising, culminating in a dramatic climax which also includes a huge plot twist. Several foreshadowing elements hint that the main character is actually a killer.
The main character (the young man) is the most important character. His main characteristic initially seems to be that he is head over heals in love with a woman. However, it eventually becomes clear that he is obsessively in love with a dead woman, which makes him keep searching for her and kill women who are not her.
The setting of the story is 1960s New York during a spring evening. The idyllic setting provides a clear contrast to the sudden and brutal murder in the ending.
The story is told by a third-person narrator who is outside the plot but who has extensive knowledge of most of the characters’ points of view. Despite being omniscient, the narrator adopts a limited knowledge position, intentionally hiding details about the main character to build up to the plot twist.
The language used in the story includes examples of repetition, which helps enhance the climax of the story, and various imagery such as metaphors and similes.