[Lonesome Dove] compared to [The Stand] (Spoilers for both novels)

Well, my first attempt at this, so here goes:

I was trying to think of books that I have read recently that might have some sort of basis for comparison, and my mind kept going back (jokingly at first because they're both so long) to Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry and The Stand: complete & uncut edition by Stephen King. Once I started to really consider it, I was surprised by how closely related these two novels are (and it's not just because one of the main characters of The Stand is from Texas!)

In The Stand, a super-flu plague wipes out most of the world's population and the protagonists are drawn into a trek across the nation to join together as a force of good, and to eventually stomp out evil.

In Lonesome Dove, poverty and drought (and, lets face it, boredom) cause our protagonists to gather a herd of cattle and drive them across the nation to make a better life for themselves.

Both books involve a great journey of many unexpected and unknown hardships. Many sacrifices are made along the way and most of our heroes will give their lives to help the lesser members of the group to succeed in the quest. But the similarities do not end there. While Lonesome Dove isn't as obvious in its battle of good versus evil, the main antagonist (Blue Duck) is strikingly similar to King's Walkin' Dude (Randal Flagg).

Both of these characters are the epitome of pure evil. There is no gray area, there is no glimmer of good or any redeeming quality what-so-ever, they are just 100% evil. They surround themselves with the same sorts of people: those that either have little to no morale values or are too stupid or scared to know that what they are doing is wrong. Both men have no regard for women and encourage their followers to behave in the same manner. Also, both men truly believe that they are indeed indestructible (and both are proven to be incorrect for the most part.) Flagg as a character does have more of a super-natural vibe than Blue Duck, but there is plenty of mystery and possible super-natural ability to him as well.

As for the protagonists, they are strikingly similar as well. The group of cowboys in Lonesome Dove compares fairly favorably with the main group of heroes in The Stand.

Stu Redman, Larry Underwood - Capt. Call and Augustus McRae : The unquestioned leaders of the group. Stu shows more characteristics of Capt. Call in his way of thinking, but he also share Gus' more caring and sympathetic side. Larry is more of the fun side of Gus, but also has a little bit of Call's insecurity about things.

Glen Batemant - Deets : Giver of sage-like advice and wisdom. Usually called upon to give his opinion before big decisions are made. Doesn't take much leadership, but nudges the group into making the correct choices.

Ralph - Pea Eye : Important to the group in the day to day of things. Ralph and Pea Eye are looked upon favorably and have some authority over the underlings, but mainly just add some flavor to the broth of the story.

Frannie - Laurie : The love interests. Both women start out as fairly insecure almost tag-a-longs but by the end, we see that both of them have a lot of inner strength and courage.

Joe/Leo - Newt : The youth of the group. Provide insight into things that the older characters don't quite see. Develop strong attachments to the other characters to help us feel the hardships a little more clearly.

Nadine Cross, Harold Lauder - Jake Spoon : The traitor of the group. All have the inclination and/or intention at one point or another to turn back to good, but eventually are too caught up in the tide of their evil doings to turn back. All of them manage to gain some sort of redemption in the end.

Mother Abigale, Clara Allen - Strong female character, set in their ways. The party is drawn to them and after encountering them, their resolve to finish the task at hand is strengthened. Both appear in dreams from time to time and provide a motivation for some, if not all of the characters.

Rest of the survivors - Cattle : Supporting cast. Go along with what the protagonists want them to do and provide some additional color to the story from time to time

Kojak - Pigs : Everybody needs a cute animal companion!

Anyway, I found it odd, but there are several similarities both plot and character wise between the two books. I would have never thought that a book about a cattle drive would have as much in common as a book about a super plague, but go figure.

This is fascinating! Lonesome Dove is one of my favorite books of all time, and I read part I of The Stand some years ago and enjoyed it. I would never have thought to compare them -- but you're right, there is a lot of similarity. Also, both novels are set in a dying world. In The Stand, it is the contemporary world we live in today (or did at the time of the novel's publication), while in Lonesome Dove it is the world of cowboys and the open range.

A strength of both novels (especially Lonesome Dove) is the characterization, but it is also true, as you suggest, that many of the characters fit certain archetypes. It would be interesting to compare these two novels with other novels centered on groups of people with common goals -- for example, most war novels.

Thanks for a thought-provoking comparison!

I love both these novels, but I think that most epic travelogues probably have as many similarities and archetypes, as you need a multitude of characters and plot twists to fill out 1000 pages. I would also lump in Swan Song, by Robert R. McCammon (really an imitation of The Stand, but a lot of fun), and Oliver Twist, by Charles Dickens, who excelled at these soap opera-like behemoths.

Margad, I hadn't thought about the dying world aspect. That makes the connection even better. Thanks for the kind words.

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Interesting point ShelfMonkey. I'll have to pay closer attention when I'm reading other epic travelogue type novels and see how closely the events and cast of characters match up with these two. I hadn't considered broadening it out. Maybe we've discovered a sort of sub-genre.

Intriguing comparison! I would list both these books in my all-time favorite top ten books. Perhaps these similarities are why they both appear in that list (although until you pointed it out, I didn't make the connection). In simple terms, they are books about good vs. evil - and the good guys win (eventually).

Writestuff, what other books are in your top ten list? It would be interesting to compare and see what other similarities might turn up!

These are the ones I would put in the top ten (although I JUST read To Kill A Mockingbird and think that should be in here as well - but I don't know which one to remove to put it there!!)

1. The Pillars of the Earth
Author: Ken Follett

2. The Book Thief
Author: Markus Zusak

3. Suite Francaise
Author: Irene Nemirovsky

4. Half of A Yellow Sun
Author: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

5. The Stand
Author: Stephen King

6. The Grapes of Wrath
Author: John Steinbeck

7. Winterdance
Author: Gary Paulsen

8. The Hotel New Hampshire
Author: John Irving

9. Lonesome Dove
Author: Larry McMurtry

10. War and Peace
Author: Leo Tolstoy

Interesting list. I've only read half the books on it. John Irving is one of my favorite authors, but I haven't read The Hotel New Hampshire. Will have to get around to it.

The Pillars of the Earth is another book about a group of men and a big project. Perhaps one of the distinctions between Pillars and Lonesome Dove and The Stand is that the latter two are about dying worlds, while Pillar is in some sense about a world being born. That was some age - the age of cathedral-building.

I'm waiting to see which two books you pick to compare!