Stephen King is the most influential author of the second half of the 20th century

As he said in the comments, influential can be determined by all of those factors. The Shining. Carrie. The Stand. The Green Mile. Titles that have rightfully earned their spots in literary history as some of the greatest pieces of fiction ever devised. His books all together have sold more than 350 million copies and most of them have been converted into other mediums such as movies, television shows, and even comic books. With even this basic understanding of what Mr. King has accomplished, it becomes increasingly apparent how this amazing author easily takes the spot of the most influential author of the second half of the 20th century. Since the resolution states in the second half of the 20th century, I'd appreciate it if my opponent could refrain from referencing King's pieces of literature written after 1999, such as Doctor Sleep and Under the Dome. Since influence is what we're primarily concerned with, I'll define the term. Influence is defined as "the capacity or power of persons or things to be a compelling force on or produce effects on the actions, behavior, opinions, etc. , of others," according to Dictionary. com. Now that it's clear what we're debating, I'll elaborate. My first experience with King's work came in the form of The Stand (Complete and Uncut Edition). Even tallying out around a whopping 1,400 pages, I never lost interest in the plights of the characters or the experiences taken place. The Stand is more than just a post-apocalyptic tale of survival. It's a biblical epic about the fall of man and the steps needed to be taken towards salvation. Since The Stand primarily revolves around Christian based themes, I'll try to refrain from personal bias just for the sake of the topic. What The Stand excels at is making the reader truly evaluate and reconcile on what their own moral stances are, and does this by discreetly making a solid point: Would you take the path towards Las Vegas or Boulder? This compelling force is intended to make the reader look at his life from a different perspective, which in turn is a very influential force. Secondly, I'd like to cite Carrie. Carrie is the story of a girl who is constantly harassed and bullied by her classmates. However, unbeknownst to them, Carrie has the power of telekinesis, and once she truly harnesses its ability, she uses it to exact her revenge. One of the big points that Carrie was able to make was simply one of anti-bullying. While a girl using telekinesis to murder hundreds of people as a way to get back at their harsh crimes is a pretty extreme way of demonstrating it, the message is still blunt. Carrie was actually King's first published work and was made into a feature film directed by Brian de Palma a few years after starring Sissy Spacek. If the plot of Carrie isn't enough to influence someone to take a stand against bullying then I doubt few things will. Carrie is less of a horror story and more of a human tragedy,as I like to think most of King's books are. While they're found in the horror section of libraries and bookstores, there's so much more to them than just cheap thrills. 'It' is the struggle of a group of adults fighting their inner demons. 'The Shining' is the descent into insanity and the loss of mutual love. 'The Shawshank Redemption' is the fight and dedication of ideals. So as you can see, King's works contain messages and themes that the majority of authors simply aren't able to match. For decades, Stephen King has been influencing people of all ages to reconsider their moral grounds and taught them how to endure even in the greatest of hardships. I now turn the debate over to my opponent