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The Dark Tower II: The Drawing of the Three Characters

Stephen King

A gunslinger with two fingers left draws three strangers through doors on a beach.

Who drives the story

Main characters

Roland of Gilead

The last gunslinger, maimed by a lobstrosity in the opening pages and fighting infection for most of the book. He draws three companions through doors on the beach, knowing he may one day have to sacrifice them to reach the Dark Tower.

Appears in:
Part 1: Lobstrosities and the First Door
Part 2: The Lady of Shadows
Part 3: The Pusher
Part 4: Renewal
Themes:
Bodies as currency
The divided self
Addiction and withdrawal
Fate versus sacrifice
The number three

Eddie Dean

A young heroin addict smuggling cocaine for mob boss Enrico Balazar when Roland pulls him through a door. He survives his brother Henry's death, kicks the habit through painful withdrawal, and yells 'I'm Eddie Dean, and I'm a gunslinger!' during the shootout at the Leaning Tower.

Appears in:
Part 1: Lobstrosities and the First Door
Part 2: The Lady of Shadows
Part 3: The Pusher
Part 4: Renewal
Themes:
Bodies as currency
The divided self
Addiction and withdrawal
Fate versus sacrifice
The number three

Odetta Holmes / Detta Walker / Susannah Dean

A wealthy civil rights activist missing both legs below the knee, sharing a body with Detta, a violent second personality born of head trauma. Watching Jack Mort die merges them into Susannah Dean, a third and stronger self.

Appears in:
Part 2: The Lady of Shadows
Part 3: The Pusher
Part 4: Renewal
Themes:
Bodies as currency
The divided self
Addiction and withdrawal
Fate versus sacrifice
The number three

Jack Mort

An accountant with a secret sadism: he drops bricks on strangers and pushes them in front of trains. He maimed Odetta, killed Jake's chance at a normal life, and dies under the same subway that took her legs.

Appears in:
Part 1: Lobstrosities and the First Door
Part 3: The Pusher
Themes:
The divided self
Fate versus sacrifice

Also in the story

Supporting characters

Enrico Balazar

The New York mob boss who runs the Leaning Tower bar, takes Henry Dean hostage, and causes Henry's death by overdose. His bathroom antibiotics save Roland's life.

Appears in:
Part 1: Lobstrosities and the First Door
Themes:
Addiction and withdrawal

Henry Dean

Eddie's older brother, a heroin addict, kidnapped by Balazar to force Eddie's hand. He dies of an accidental overdose given by Balazar's men while Eddie fights for him.

Appears in:
Part 1: Lobstrosities and the First Door
Themes:
Bodies as currency

How they are connected

Key relationships

Go deeper

The Dark Tower II: The Drawing of the Three themes & symbols

Bodies as currency · The divided self · Addiction and withdrawal · Fate versus sacrifice

Themes explained

Read the full The Dark Tower II: The Drawing of the Three summary

The full story act by act, the ending explained and a quick quiz.

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