Any summary of the novel “The Green Mile” by Stephen King has to include a bit about the famous horror novelist, himself˳ He published this novel in 1996 as a serial novel, and the first edition actually came out in six small, paperbacks, which were later made into one novel˳ King is most well known for his horror novels, so as this summary of the novel “The Green Mile” shows, this book, set in the 1930s, is a departure from some of his other works˳
Plot
The summary of the novel “The Green Mile” includes the plot and setting˳ The story takes place in 1932 on the E Block (Death Row) in Cold Mountain Penitentiary in Georgia˳ It is narrated by the main character, Paul, who is the captain of the prison guards who preside over E Block˳ “The Green Mile” of the title is the corridor between the cells of the cell block that leads to the execution room˳ The corridor is covered in green linoleum, hence, the “last” or green mile the inmates take to their death˳
The story follows John Coffey, a large, black inmate convicted of raping and murdering two young white girls, and the other two inmates on death row, along with the guards who watch over them˳ Coffey is special, as Paul discovers, and he has magical healing abilities that become apparent˳ He befriends a small white mouse, who he names Mr˳ Jingles, and heals the mouse when the brutal guard Percy Wetmore tried to kill it˳ He also heals Paul’s kidney infection, and later, Paul spirits him out of the prison to heal the warden’s wife’s brain tumor˳ Coffey “transfers” this brain disease to Wetmore, the sadistic guard who the inmates and staff dislike˳ Wetmore never recovers and spends the rest of his life in a mental institution˳
Eventually, Paul discovers that Coffey is exceptional in many areas˳ It turns out he did not murder the two girls, another inmate (William Wharton) did˳ Coffey does not want to be pardoned, and dies in the electric chair because he cannot bear the cruelties of real life˳ After his death, Paul discovers that each of the people Coffey has healed live extraordinarily long lives˳ Paul is 108 at the end of the book, and Mr˳ Jingles is 64˳ They have no idea how long they will live, and the novel ends˳
Characters
A summary of the novel “The Green Mile” includes the characters in the novel˳
Paul Edgecombe – Paul is the main character of the novel˳ A prison guard, by the end of the story he is an old man narrating this part of his life to a friend who is writing his memoir˳
John Coffey – A nearly 7-foot-tall black man, a convicted murderer awaiting his death sentence on death row in the prison˳ He befriends a white mouse and heals people of their diseases˳
Percy Wetmore – A sadistic prison guard who everyone dislikes˳ He torments the prisoners, tries to kill Mr˳ Jingles, the mouse, and deliberately botches an execution where the inmate suffers terribly˳ He keeps his job because he is related to the governor˳
Eduard Delacroix – A Cajun man convicted of arson, he is essentially a coward˳ He is the man who dies a horrible death at the hands of Wetmore˳
William Wharton – Another convict, it turns out he is the one who actually committed the murder attributed to John Coffey˳ He is wild and frightening, and attempts to disrupt the prison as much as he can before he dies˳
Mr˳ Jingles – The white mouse that lives to be 64 and is befriended by John Coffey˳
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