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Morality

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Chad, an aspiring writer who is teaching school until he lands a publishing contract, and his wife, Nora, who is working as a home nurse for a retired minister are, like most people these days, struggling financially. Nora is approached by her employer with a proposition that could make their dream of a home in Vermont a reality. But will it be worth the moral consequences?

Morality is a novella by Stephen King published in the July, 2009 issue of Esquire. It was then included as a bonus story in Blockade Billy, a novella published on May 25, 2010, and later collected and re-introduced in the November 3, 2015 anthology The Bazaar of Bad Dreams.

34 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 2009

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1737 people want to read

About the author

Stephen King

2,413 books887k followers
Stephen Edwin King was born the second son of Donald and Nellie Ruth Pillsbury King. After his father left them when Stephen was two, he and his older brother, David, were raised by his mother. Parts of his childhood were spent in Fort Wayne, Indiana, where his father's family was at the time, and in Stratford, Connecticut. When Stephen was eleven, his mother brought her children back to Durham, Maine, for good. Her parents, Guy and Nellie Pillsbury, had become incapacitated with old age, and Ruth King was persuaded by her sisters to take over the physical care of them. Other family members provided a small house in Durham and financial support. After Stephen's grandparents passed away, Mrs. King found work in the kitchens of Pineland, a nearby residential facility for the mentally challenged.

Stephen attended the grammar school in Durham and Lisbon Falls High School, graduating in 1966. From his sophomore year at the University of Maine at Orono, he wrote a weekly column for the school newspaper, THE MAINE CAMPUS. He was also active in student politics, serving as a member of the Student Senate. He came to support the anti-war movement on the Orono campus, arriving at his stance from a conservative view that the war in Vietnam was unconstitutional. He graduated in 1970, with a B.A. in English and qualified to teach on the high school level. A draft board examination immediately post-graduation found him 4-F on grounds of high blood pressure, limited vision, flat feet, and punctured eardrums.

He met Tabitha Spruce in the stacks of the Fogler Library at the University, where they both worked as students; they married in January of 1971. As Stephen was unable to find placement as a teacher immediately, the Kings lived on his earnings as a laborer at an industrial laundry, and her student loan and savings, with an occasional boost from a short story sale to men's magazines.

Stephen made his first professional short story sale ("The Glass Floor") to Startling Mystery Stories in 1967. Throughout the early years of his marriage, he continued to sell stories to men's magazines. Many were gathered into the Night Shift collection or appeared in other anthologies.

In the fall of 1971, Stephen began teaching English at Hampden Academy, the public high school in Hampden, Maine. Writing in the evenings and on the weekends, he continued to produce short stories and to work on novels.

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5 stars
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728 (42%)
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 186 reviews
Profile Image for Peter.
4,077 reviews805 followers
April 5, 2020
A young couple, short of money, gets convinced by an out of service church minister to do something sinful. For money. For a lot of money. Will they leave their straight life dominated by hard work and grim perspectives to enter a different path of life? How does the prospect of money change their relationship? How does the single "sinful" deed change the woman? An interesting philosophical story by Stephen King showing that one misstep can change your life forever. I liked this story (it is also included in King's anthology Bazaar of Bad Dreams). Recommended!
Profile Image for Calista.
5,432 reviews31.3k followers
October 7, 2021
From the collection 'Bazaar of Bad Dreams'. This was a great story having nothing to do with the supernatural. This is about the corrupting power of money. It reminds me of Indecent Proposal on some level, but King's own thing.

I think this is a great story, but I love the intro Stephen writes even more. Stephen talks about his early years and the fact he was willing to write students term papers in college for money to live on. Things were tight for him. He says he realized this was whoring out himself as much as "selling my ass" would. This experience really began to bring up questions of morality that he is still analyzing today.

The story is of a married couple, the wife a nurse. She works for a minister, retired and needing help. He makes a proposal to her and now she and her husband have to decide to take the money or not. Stephen holds out what the proposal is till the last 3rd of the story where we see what it is.

It's a very King-ian story.
Profile Image for Amirreza Esfehani.
46 reviews8 followers
November 23, 2024
فقط توی یه کلمه خلاصه میشه
بی نظیر بود
بسیار بسیار عالی
کتابی که توی ۱ ساعت میتونی بخونی و قشنگ بفهمی که یه اثر ادبی بسیار قویه
Profile Image for Ruth Turner.
408 reviews125 followers
June 8, 2015

(Included as a bonus story in Blockade Billy, and collected in The Bazaar of Bad Dreams)

A great short story, but the ending seemed a little rushed and left me feeling flat. But overall, a good read.

Profile Image for Karla.
1,455 reviews367 followers
July 8, 2022
Story 3 stars**
Audio 3.75 stars**
Narrator Mare Winningham
Profile Image for مجید اسطیری.
Author 8 books549 followers
November 27, 2019
این داستان را می‌توانید در یک ساعت و نیم بخوانید. من دیشب که می‌رفتم سمت خانه نصفش را در اتوبوس خواندم و امروز که می‌آمدم تمامش کردم. یک قصه جمع و جور که به نظرم مضمونی دقیقا برعکس ادعای نویسنده در نخستین جمله کتابش دارد:
اخلاقیات یک امر ثابت و همیشگی نیست
یکشنبه 10 آذر در کارگاه بررسی داستان های سه پرده ای با حضور مجید قیصری قرار است این داستان خوش ساخت را بررسی کنیم. اگر خوانده اید تشریف بیاورید و اگر نخوانده اید همین امروز بخرید و بخوانید
Profile Image for Kandice.
1,652 reviews354 followers
June 24, 2016
King is, well...the King at creating interesting situations and this was no exception. Yuck! Just yuck.

The ending felt rushed and incomplete, but his endings often do so I am no longer surprised or disappointed by that.
Profile Image for Amir Sahbaee.
389 reviews21 followers
April 14, 2025
عیدی سال ۱۴۰۴ از شعیب و بهاره در جلسات کتاب.
دومین کتابی که از استفن کینگ خوندم.
--
داستان نسبتا کوتاه با نام اصلی "اخلاقیات". روایت یک زن و شوهر که در خرج‌ها و قبض‌ها موندن و با یه دوراهی مواجه می‌شن که یه رفتار غیراخلاقی می‌تونه وضعیتشون رو عوض کنه.
ازون داستانا بود که کوتاه بودنش از محاسنش بود. همه‌چیز با سرعت پیش‌میره، توصیف الکی و خسته کننده نداریم، حتی درونیات آدم‌ها خیلی مورد بحث قرار نمی‌گیره و نویسنده حتی تلاش نمی‌کنه یه نفر در داستان داشته باشه تا از زبان اون نظرات خودش رو بگه.
این روایت سریع و به شکل گزارش(بدون اینکه دانای کل یا حتی اول‌شخصِ پرحرفی وجود داشته باشه) کمک می‌کنه تا همه‌چیز شبیه تلنگر باشه. که آدم سعی کنه جواب خودش برای سوال رو پیدا کنه.
شیوه‌ی روایت جذابه، تعلیق و کشش داره و پایان‌بندی و شروع هم خوب و حساب‌شده‌ست.
حتی تغییرات کاراکترها فقط روایت می‌شه و نویسنده سعی نمی‌کنه چیزی رو به چیزی ربط بده.
--

ترجمه:
با توجه به اینکه این داستان اول در یک روزنامه چاپ شده و چندسال بعد در یک مجموعه داستان اومده، واقعا نمی‌دونم که چقدر ممکنه نسخه‌های متفاوتی ازش وجود داشته باشه.
من یه پی‌دی‌اف از کتاب دانلود کردم که به شکل عجیبی با ترجمه‌ی فارسی تفاوت داشت. یه جاهایی کمتر داشت، یه جاهایی بیشتر داشت و حتی پایان‌بندی یه مقدار تفاوت داشت.
در نهایت به مترجم پیام دادم و بهش گفتم آیا به متن وفادار نبودید یا چند نسخه هست؟ ایشون نوشتن که متن کتاب رو نشر افق در اختیارشون گذاشته و گاهی نسخه‌های ای‌بوک تفاوت‌هایی دارن.
این مساله کلا برای من حل نشد و خیلی عجیب بود.
اما ضمن احترام به مترجم و پاسخی که بهم دادن، ترجمه مطلوب نبود. اشتباهات فاحشی داشت. دقتش کم بود. حتی جاهایی که دیگه تفاوت در متن نبود و مشخص بود که ایراد ترجمه‌ست.
--
از استفن کینگ اینجوری بهت می‌رسم که اون کتاب قبلیش رو خیلی دوست داشتم و دلم می‌خواست درموردش باهات حرف بزنم ولی نبودی. مثل الان.
Profile Image for Amir hossein .M.
122 reviews6 followers
February 11, 2025
هر حرف و اشاره‌ای که از اعماق روح بشر میاد فقط یک توهم و خیال باطله.


با اینکه استفن کینگ نویسنده رمان‌های ترسناک و تعلیق و جنایی شناخته می‌شه، در این اثر که از زندگی خودش هم تاثیر گرفته به بیان شناخت مصادیق اخلاق و خیر و شر و تاثیر فضائل و رذائل اخلاقی بر زندگی افراد پرداخته.

داستان درباره زن و شوهری است که به مشکلات مالی خورده‌اند. چاد معلم جانشین است و دستی بر قلم دارد و زن‌ خانواده، نورا به کار نزد سالمندی به نام وینی می‌پردازد که سکته کرده و سمت راست بدنش از کار افتاده.
وینی روزی از نورا می‌خواهد از طرف او مرتکب گناهی شود و در عوض وینی به اون دویست هزار دلار می‌دهد. نورا در مقابل این درخواست فکر می‌کند و سرانجام تصمیم به انجام آن می‌گیرد و ...

در کل اثر قابل توجهی بود ولی شاهکار نه.
Profile Image for Mary 🍀.
170 reviews12 followers
October 15, 2023
Instagram.com/marco_ketab
#ادبیات_آمریکا 🇺🇲‌
جانشین‌
نویسنده: استیون کینگ‌
مترجم: شیوا مقانلو‌
نشر: افق‌


برشی از کتاب‌

یک‌بار که بعد از اهدای خون به دانشگاه برمی‌گشتم، ناگهان به فکرم رسید اگر معنای روسپی‌گری فروش بدن در ازای پول باشد، پس کار من هم همین است! نوشتن مقاله برای درس ادبیات انگلیسی و درس جامعه شناسی هم همین است! ... حالا به اینجا رسیده بودم: یک تن فروش شده بودم که به جای بدن، کمی خون و چندتایی مقاله می فروختم! ... تحت شرایطی خاص، هر کسی شاید چیزی بفروشد... و البته بعدش با پشیمانی به زندگی ادامه دهد.‌


و اما قصه از چه قراره‌

نورا پرستاری که از بیماران مسن مراقب میکنه و چاد معلم جانشینی که نویسنده اس! زن شوهری که به همراه وینی شخصیت های این کتاب کم حجم و جالب رو تشکیل دادن، حالا وینی کیه؟ میزارم برای خودتون که کتاب رو بخونید.‌
به نظرتون شما بخاطر پول حاضرید از چه چیزهای بگذرید؟‌
این سوال نکته ی که شما رو به داستان وصل میکنه.‌

برشی که برای پست انتخاب کردم از مقدمه و صحبت های نویسنده اس، حتمن بخونید و ازش نگذرید، سخن مترجم هم همین طور. مثلن همونطور که براتون استوری کردم، مترجم اول کتاب برامون میگه اسم اصلی کتاب چیه و چرا اون رو "جانشین" گذاشته. البته اگه اوایل کتاب نفهمید قصه اسمش رو حتمن آخرای داستان به این موضوع میرسید.‌

telegram.me/marco_ketab
Profile Image for LindaJ^.
2,525 reviews6 followers
May 24, 2017
Lost my review last evening so starting over. The 4th star for this novella is solely for how good the narrator was. The story, as one might expect from King, was strange and unsettling. Chad and Nora have been married for a few years and have fallen on hard times. Chad is a substitute teacher and aspiring author. Nora is a home care nurse currently taking care of a retired minister who had a stroke. They have bills that have them feeling underwater. Nora comes home one day and tells Chad about a very disturbing proposal her retired minister employer has made -- if she will commit a specific "sin" and videotape it for him, he will give her $200,000. Nora's decision changes all three of their lives and not in a good way.
Profile Image for David.
319 reviews159 followers
August 18, 2018
3.66 Stars

What happens when a couple is in desperate need of money, and a self-inferring moral person can tip them off for performing a deliberate sin by proxy? Therein comes the doubt and question of morality - about how much can it be stretched afar - and the impact it can make on those who play these dangerous games!!

A good plot, well-executed; but seemingly with a rushed ending. A good read though.
Profile Image for Brina.
2,049 reviews122 followers
December 17, 2015
Am 18. Januar 2016 erscheint "Basar der bösen Träume", eine Kurzgeschichtensammlung von Stephen King, im Heyne Verlag. Um dieses Buch noch mehr zu promoten, werden nun häppchenweise einige der Kurzgeschichten vorab als Ebook veröffentlicht. Als großer Fan von Stephen King musste ich somit einige der Geschichten direkt kaufen und habe diese auch sofort gelesen.

Während mich zum Beispiel die Kurzgeschichte "Ein bisschen angeschlagen" von Anfang bis Ende gepackt hat, fand ich bei "Moral" leider nur die Hälfte sehr spannend und interessant, danach plätscherte die knapp fünfzig Seiten starke Geschichte zu sehr vor sich hin, sodass mich auch das Ende leider nicht mehr überraschen konnte.

Dennoch hat Stephen King herbei wieder ein interessantes Thema auswählte, das mir allerdings nicht genug ausgearbeitet war, was man ihm allerdings aufgrund der Kürze der Geschichte nur schwer vorwerfen kann. Die Geschichte liest sich trotz der Schwächen flüssig, die Dialoge sind interessant und hinterlassen Eindruck und auch die Figuren sind zum Großteil gut ausgearbeitet.

Mit Chad, seiner Frau Nora und dem Pfarrer lernt man interessante Figuren kennen, die anfangs eine gewisse Anziehungskraft besitzen, danach aber stark nachlassen. Allen voran Nora, die anfangs aufgrund ihrer Gedankengänge sehr interessant war, entwickelt sich im Laufe der Geschichte immer mehr zu einer Person, die man privat nicht zwingend kennen lernen möchte. Chad tat mir dagegen während der gesamten Geschichte über leid und beim Pfarrer war ich bis zum Schluss zwiegespalten. Das Angebot, das er Nora unterbreitet, ist relativ hart und vollkommen unmoralisch, dennoch konnte ich ihn auf gewisse Art und Weise verstehen.

Hier geht es allerdings nicht nur um das Thema Moral, sondern auch um das Eheleben. Chad und Nora hatten von Beginn an ihrer Beziehung immer wieder mit Geldsorgen zu kämpfen und plötzlich waren diese wie weggeblasen. Dass sich dadurch auch schlagartig etwas verändert, wenn man plötzlich nahezu sorgenfrei ist, hat wohl keiner von ihnen erwartet.

Das Cover dürfte keine Überraschung sein, denn dies ist einfach das selbe wie auch bei "Basar der böse Träume", was allerdings gut passt. Die Kurzbeschreibung liest sich vielversprechend und hat mich direkt neugierig gemacht.

Insgesamt ist "Moral" eine nette Kurzgeschichte, bei der mir allerdings die Spannung und das gewisse Etwas gefehlt hat. Ich habe zwar verstanden, was mir Stephen King mit der Geschichte sagen möchtee, allerdings war mir dies insgesamt zu wenig. Dennoch: Für Fans von Stephen King ist auch diese Geschichte ein absolutes Muss.
Profile Image for Taylor Casey.
30 reviews12 followers
June 26, 2016
Morality is one of those stories that has a really, really good premise. King set up everything pretty perfectly, and left me wondering what in the world was going to come of the characters. The last five pages, however, left me feeling empty. It was good. It wasn't great. By the end of the story, I felt like something was missing. I was left wondering, "Is that all? That's really all we're going to get?" I think this one could've been great if it had been followed through in a different way.
Profile Image for Kelly Jenkins.
58 reviews7 followers
August 22, 2017
This was an ok short story to fit in with the other ok short stories collected in the Bazaar of Bad Dreams. Not terrible but not wonderful either.
Profile Image for Nima.
13 reviews18 followers
July 11, 2021
یه کتاب کوتاه و جمع و جور
Profile Image for Benjamin Stahl.
2,274 reviews73 followers
February 9, 2016
After First Reading

This was an odd story. I definitely preferred it over Blockade Billy, and I'll admit that it had me hooked, wanting to know where Mr Stephen was going to take it. But all things considered, it was just an average story worth reading, but not all that worth remembering.

After Second Reading

What can I say? I liked this much more the second time. Thanks to Stephen's interesting autobiographical introduction featured in Bazaar Of Bad Dreams, it becomes much more obvious what he was going for here.
Profile Image for Sue.
1,506 reviews6 followers
June 26, 2023
Chad and Nora have a chance to change their life but to do so, Nora has to commit a sinful act. And the sinful act involves a child. The amount of money involved is a lot! $200,000! For that much money it seems simple enough and also anonymous enough that maybe she could do it?? Well, this story is about what happens when you decide that money is important and that a little discomfort to a child who will never see you again might just be okay. Will it?
Profile Image for Persy.
1,078 reviews26 followers
March 6, 2024
“Teaching was like having a pair of jumper cables attached to some critical part of your brain. It was good that the kids could draw from that part, but there was precious little left over.”

This story went places I didn’t think it would and I thoroughly enjoyed every unsettling moment. Everyone has a price. How much would you charge to do the unthinkable?
Profile Image for Amy Mason.
1,063 reviews11 followers
May 1, 2021
Weird. Definitely not one I’ll revisit. Listened to the audiobook and loved Mare Winingham.
Profile Image for Paul.
334 reviews
December 4, 2018
An old priest wants to do something bad just once before he dies, so after a stroke prevents him from doing anything of his own accord, he persuades his nurse to do something awful. She would never do it on her own, but the promise of a great deal of money will get them out of the City and allow her and her husband to escape drudgery and make their dreams come true – but not all dream are good dreams.
Profile Image for Erika Powers.
370 reviews
September 28, 2018
Not that interesting. Not funny. Not juicy. I listen to this song on CD and the woman who read it was lackluster and somber throughout the entire story; monotone. This is the one where a woman is paid $200,000 for punching a kid in the face. I don’t recommend it. There’s better stories.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
138 reviews
September 10, 2019
Felt like the beginning and end of this were very catchy, the suspense built throughout but the ending felt quite flat.
Profile Image for Maria Karousi.
77 reviews21 followers
January 2, 2021
There are ✌ things I got from this story.
1.Our lives depend on every step we take, even the smallest ones.
2. 💵💰 cannot buy happiness.
Profile Image for Mo Majid.
50 reviews5 followers
January 3, 2022
The things people do for a quick Buck to the detriment of their long term morality. Money truly is the root of all evil. And King certainly writes evil very well indeed.
Profile Image for Payam Ebrahimi.
Author 71 books172 followers
May 6, 2025
داستان بدتر بود یا ترجمه؟
طبیعتا از یک نویسنده‌ی عامه‌پسند نباید انتظار داشت داستان خوبی بنویسه و طبیعتا یک نویسنده‌ی عامه‌پسند‌نویس بلده کلی به‌به و چه‌چه بگیره. ولی خب آب بستن و تعلیق الکی هم حدی داره. نصف کتاب به این گذشت که ما بفمیم اون ذلیل‌مرده چی گفته. خب همون اول بنال جناب کینگ. دنبال چی هستی شما؟ مخاطب رو به‌زور بکشونی دنبال خودت و آدرس غلط بدی که گمراهش کنی و … پوآروئه مگه؟
در ادامه هم البته دست نویسنده کاملا خالی بود. با دو تا مشت و لگد و بی هیچ عمقی سروته ماجرا رو هم‌آورد. آقای کینگ، دانشجوی ترم یک داستان‌نویسی
مترجمی اینچنین باسابقه اما انگار همون ترم یک رو هم نگذرونده بود. جملات غیرفارسی، کلمات بی‌ربط به سبک ادبی و و و... نصف گیومه‌ها هم فراموش شده‌بود. تقریبا مشخص بود همه از دم بزن‌دررو کار کرده‌بودن. از نشر افق حقیقتا بعیده.

و نکته‌ی آخر: «پیشنهاد بی‌شرمانه» رو ندیده‌بودی دیگه آقای کینگ؟ حداقل کپی‌کاری می‌کنی هم قشنگ کپی کن. وقت بذار. دل بده به‌کار.
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