The End of the Whole Mess
"The End of the Whole Mess" is a short
science fiction story by
Stephen King which was first published in
Omni Magazine in 1986, and later published in the
Nightmares and Dreamscapes collection.
The story, written by Howard Fornoy, recounts the life of his genius younger brother, Robert. Bobby, a child prodigy whose adult interests led him to study a variety of scientific disciplines, discovered a chemical that reduces the aggressive tendencies of humans and other organisms. While doing sociological research in Texas, Bobby used crime statistics to create a sort of
topographic map which displayed a geographical pattern of violent crime. Examining the map, Robert noted diminishing levels of crime centered around the town of La Plata. When he arrives to investigate, he finds that this town has
never had
any crime. Bobby is ultimately able to determine that the cause of the non-aggression is the presence of a chemical to the town's
water supply, a phenomenon that is mentioned in King's earlier novel
It. Even minimal exposure to the chemical will calm down an angry person or animal, and Bobby has been able to isolate the chemical and reduce it to concentrated form.
At a time of international chaos suggestive of an approaching total nuclear war, Bobby and Howard, with the aid of a volcano, disperse a large quantity of this substance throughout the world, in the hope of preventing a catastrophe. Indeed, the effects are quick and expected: a massive decrease in hostilities around the globe.
To the Fornoys' horror, there was
another constant about
La Plata that was not studied until after the substance was released: a constant higher-than-normal tendency for residents to develop
Alzheimer's disease,
mental retardation, and premature
senility.
Near the end of the story, the writer's words and writing styles become significantly hampered. It is then the reader understands hints given earlier: the brothers, remorseful of having doomed the world to a senile existence - and possible extinction - have decided to go through with a
suicide pact by injecting themselves with a lethal dose of the miracle chemical. Bobby died first, and Howard was charged with writing a note to explain what had happened.
In the end, Howard does not even understand what he wrote, or even if he really
did write it. His final lines tell us that he is going to put the pages into a "bocks full of quiyet air to last a milyun yrz", and also to tell his brother that "it wuz not yor falt i love you".
The eventual decline of Howard's narration, mirroring his eroding intelligence, is somewhat similar to the second half of
Flowers for Algernon.
Television
"The End of the Whole Mess" was included as the fourth installment of
Turner Network Television's
Nightmares & Dreamscapes: From the Stories of Stephen King, starring
Ron Livingston as Howard and
Henry Thomas as Bobby. It originally aired on July 19, 2006. In this version, Howard is a documentarian instead of a writer, and he tells his story in front of a video camera. Also, the events of 9/11 are incorporated into the story and are used a catalyst for Bobby's inspiration.
