The Dead Zone

King portrays Part 3 as an epilogue, providing further explanation and context for Johnny’s actions and the immediate results. Johnny’s letter to his father is a confession. Vera died mired in conspiracy theories and religious scams; her credulity was her downfall and she refused to engage with anyone who tried to explain or debate the issues with her. Johnny knows how much Vera’s obsession and death hurt Herb and that Herb longs for Johnny to come home. The confession is an apology, a way to provide Herb with some insight and justification into why Johnny felt he must attack Stillson. Unlike Vera’s death, Herb has the opportunity to understand the reasoning and the motivation behind the loss of his son. The letter is a confession not just to the crimes that Johnny is about to commit, but to the emotional pain that Johnny knows he will cause. The letter also shows Herb that Johnny was acting in a rational manner and that he had completely run out of other options. Herb’s response is never shown, but the presentation of the letter means that Johnny is able to speak from beyond the grave and reach out to comfort his father after his death.

The congressional committee hearing provides a more detailed explanation of Stillson’s downfall while also showing the limitations of Johnny’s abilities. Johnny saw a future in which Stillson killed millions and then, after the attack, he saw a future in which Stillson’s rise was halted. However, Johnny does not know how or why Stillson fails. Johnny’s actions forced Stillson to abandon his pretense and reveal his true self to the world. The self-serving psychopath that kicked a dog to death in the opening chapters is the same man who would use a child as a human shield. Johnny did not know about Stillson’s past, nor how Stillson would react. The committee hearings show the political attempt to understand the minutiae of the attack and the consequences, whereas Johnny only had the broadest possible understanding. King also uses the hearing to explore political corruption on a broader level and portray the continued reluctance of the larger public to acknowledge to role of supernatural abilities in the events. Only Dr. Weizak insists that Johnny’s actions were not delusional.

Sarah’s goodbye is a poignant moment because she once again mourns the loss of what might have been. Whenever she thinks about Johnny and the car crash, she imagines the many ways in which their lives might have changed. She thinks about how Johnny could have avoided the car crash and how they might have spent their lives together. Johnny’s death brings a finality to these speculations. She knows for certain that they can never be together, so she is mourning the final death of any potential relationship she might have had with Johnny. Ultimately, the brief time they spent together is symbolized by the ghostly touch that she feels at her neck when standing over his grave. Her time with Johnny was short and fleeting but also meaningful. When she searches too hard for it, however, she finds out that there is nothing left of it at all.