Jack Torrance is one terrifying character that has been ever portrayed on screen. While he may appear to be a regular working man and father at first glance, he becomes more sinister as he takes on new roles. The most disturbing thing about Jack is his inability to control his emotions throughout the entire process. He didn’t go insane just because he arrived at the hotel.
Jack’s anger and control issues are evident from the beginning. Jack’s problems first appear when his wife is talking to the doctor about Danny’s “accident.” Jack learns that Danny had damaged his work papers, so he grabs his arm and injures Danny. Jack “working” in his hotel study when his wife visits to check on him. He yells at her and tells her not to bother him while he’s working. Both these instances show us that Jack isn’t as stable as he thought. Jack’s behavior escalates once he moves into the hotel. He is very isolated and rarely speaks to his wife once they reach the hotel. He treats her like an inconvenience and alienates further. His paranoia turns into paranoia as he begins to suspect his wife might be telling Danny that he would hurt Danny and her. When Danny is injured again, Wendy blames Jack for the situation. Jack decides to seek alcohol. Jack is driven further into madness by the alcohol. Wendy arrives at Jack to tell him that Danny was attacked in a domestic dispute. Jack also questions Wendy’s mental state. He investigates the area where the woman was found and discovers that there is a naked female in it. He is seduced by the woman and kisses him, only for it to turn out that he was in fact kissing an old corpse. He is adamant about his sanity and lies with his wife to tell her that there is nothing in their room.
Jack’s insanity can also be seen when Jack stands in front his window, looking menacingly at his children and wife. Jack also tells his son that Jack loves it at the hotel. He dreams about his son’s death and how he will take his wife to the grave. These instances show Jack’s insanity and increasing madness in the hotel.
Jack’s true self is revealed to us when Jack’s wife approaches him to discuss their son. She makes the terrible discovery that Jack has done very little work. The audience is more disturbed to discover that the words are repeated on pages after pages. These words were what Jack had been typing when he began to work immediately after they arrived at the hotel. Jack was disturbed right from the beginning of Jack’s stay at this hotel.
Finally, Jack meets Mr. Grady. Grady informs Jack that Jack (Jack) was the hotel’s caretaker for all of this time. Jack is convinced by this episode that Jack must “correct his son” for helping the hotel. Jack attempts to kill his son’s wife and daughter. These occurrences, combined with Jack’s disordered mind, reveal how Jack was “wired” to do this. It only made things worse. Jack was clearly deranged prior to entering the hotel. Only the audience didn’t know.
