The Man Who Would Not Shake Hands
- The Man Who Would Not Shake Hands
Infobox short story |
name = The Man Who Would Not Shake Hands
author = Stephen King
country = United States
language = English
genre = Horror short story
published_in = "Shadows 4" (1st release),
"Skeleton Crew"
publisher =
publication_type = Anthology
media_type = Print (Paperback)
pub_date = 1982
preceded_by =
followed_by =
"The Man Who Would Not Shake Hands" is a short story by Stephen King first published in the 1982 horror anthology "Shadows 4", edited by Charles L. Grant, and collected in "Skeleton Crew" in 1985.
Like the novella "The Breathing Method" from King's collection "Different Seasons", the story takes the form of a nested narrative told in a strange 'club' in Manhattan.
Plot summary
It entails an aged, wealthy man recounting a card game he played in many years ago where he met an odd man who refused to touch anyone, recoiling from contact in fear. After the odd man wins the game, a young player leaps up and shakes his hand enthusiastically. The odd man screams and bolts from the room. The narrator then makes it his mission to find him and give him his winnings. It is revealed shortly thereafter that the young player who shook the odd man's hand died of a brain aneurysm. The narrator speaks with an old associate of the man, who tells him the title character was cursed by an Indian shaman after an unfortunate accident where the "Shake Hands Man" accidentally caused the death of a boy. The man is cursed to cause the death of any person he touches. The narrator then finds that the odd man died in a seedy inn, one hand firmly clasping the other.
External links
Wikimedia Foundation.
2010.
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