Comparing The Speckled Band by Sir Arthur Concan Doyle and Lamb to the Slaughter by Roald Dahl
The Speckled Band by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, which was written in the
late 19th century, and Lamb to the Slaughter by Roald Dahl, which was
written in the 20th century are both detective stories in which
readers have different expectations of them. This essay will compare
and contrast the two.
Dr Watson, who is the detective's companion, narrates the 'Speckled
Band'. The story is about the mysterious death of a young woman, Julia
Stoner, stepdaughter of Dr Grimesby Roylott. The mysterious thing
about the death was that there was no mark on the body and so the
death was unexplained. The victim's twin-sister, Helen Stoner, comes
to Sherlock Holmes seeking help and answers to the cause of her
sister's death. She firstly tells Holmes about her stepfather's life
and violence and then about her sister's extraordinary death and fears
the same fate since she has to move to the room Julia died.
They arrange to meet in Helen's old mansion where Holmes and Watson
inspect the room in which Julia died. There they spend a tense, nerve
racking and an anxious night investigating the mystery.
'Lamb to the Slaughter' is narrated in third person. It is about the
death of a detective called Patrick Maloney, husband of Mary Maloney.
Patrick comes home from work and is tired so he sits down. Patrick's
wife Mary who is 6 months pregnant hassles Patrick and insists on
eating his dinner. Patrick refuses and confesses something shocking,
but Mary is still willing to cook dinner. Mary goes to the kitchen and
pulls out a piece of lamb from the freezer. She goes b...
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... clues and Sherlock
Holmes also gives his conclusion during which he explains how he
arrived at the mystery's solution. In addition to the 'Speckled band',
it has more suspense and tension. When Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson
stay for the night in Julia's room, the atmosphere is very intense. In
the story the author creates a tense and suspense atmosphere by
describing the feelings of Dr Watson, the choice of words and the
description of what he is hearing. For example, when Holmes and Dr
Watson sit in the dark, Dr Watson describes the outside noises of the
birds and the whining of the cheetah. Furthermore the choice of words
used to describe the suspense and tension makes the scene unexpected,
tense and suspense.
In conclusion, I think the 'Speckled Band' fulfils my expectations as
of a classical detective story.
Many people have researched into this. They have uncovered unbelievable facts and have developed extremely intriguing theories. Theories which get even professionals to rethink their opinions on his death actually happening.Even the most skeptical people have changed their opinions. I am not writing this essay to change people opinions. I am writing this essay to bring out all of the facts and theories. By doing this I can perhaps bring people to see what can be a monstrous coincidence or the greatest scam I have ever heard of in my life.
After thirty years undisturbed in the tomb, Sister Marie Bernard's body was exhumed for examination. The cause for sainthood had begun. When the stone was lifted from the vault, the coffin was immediately seen. It was carried to the room prepared for it and placed on two trestles covered with a cloth. On one side was a table covered with a white cloth. The remains of Bernadette were to be placed on this table. The wooden coffin was unscrewed and the lead coffin cut open to reveal the body in a state of perfect preservation. There was not the slightest trace of an unpleasant smell. The Sisters who had buried her thirty years earlier noted only that her hands had fallen slightly to the left. The words of the surgeon and the doctor, who were under oath, speak for themselves:
Science, Technology and Human Values in Henrik Ibsen's Enemy of the People and Kurt Vonnegut's Slaughterhouse-Five
head. She might just have hit him with a steel club.' As you can see,
Now as you know the poor girl did die, but how do you know that it
Dahl, Roald. "Lamb to the Slaughter." Lamb to the Slaughter and Other Stories. London: Penguin, 1995. N. pag. Print.
Both of these stories served as mile markers in the history of children's literature, and marked turning points in our Society. For the first time, children were allowed to think freely, and learn. They independently formed their own thoughts on life, God, and many of the other highly regulated aspects of their society. Until this time most of the children were taught to think as their parents or feel the wrath of vengeful and often cruel God.
In the short story ‘Lamb to the Slaughter’ by Roald Dahl, the author is able to build up a heavy amount of suspense throughout the story. For example in this sentence “ she [hears] the ice cubes clinking against the side of the glass” (pg. 2) he illustrates the suspense through“ the ice cubes clinking” because the clinking of ice cubes is a weak auditory, this suggests the silence in the room that is required to hear the clinking of the ice cubes.
When describing the Landlady in “The Landlady” by Roald Dahl, readers can conclude that she is clever. The Landlady is clever because her plans are well thought out to kill people who visits her house. Dahl writes,”There was a baby grand piano and a big sofa and several plump armchairs, and in one corner he spotted a large parrot in a cage, animals were usually a good sign in a place like this, Billy told himself.” She tries to pretend to make other people think that it’s a safe, peaceful and comfortable place to stay at her home by making fake animals. Especially, waiting for Billy Weaver to come. Also, the Landlady is clever when Billy was so attracted into the BED AND BREAKFAST title at the window. Dahl writes,”BED AND BREAKFAST, it said.
Lord of the Flies, by William Golding, "The Lottery", by Shirley Jackson, "The White Circle", by John Bell Clayton and "The Vigilante" by John Steinbeck all share the theme of mans inherent evil. Lord of the Flies takes place on an island in the Pacific ocean during an atomic war, and there is no adult supervision. "The Lottery" takes place in a small farming community in the present day. "The White Circle" is set in the turn of the century Virginia on a Large farm. "The Vigilante" takes place down south in a town with strong racist beliefs. Jack from Lord of the Flies is an insecure boy who leads a group of savages through injustice and violence. The Townspeople in "The Lottery" are focused as a group to keep up the traditions of their town, that include an annual stoning of a random person(Tess). Tucker, a normal boy in "The White Circle" is driven into violence after consistent torment from his neighbor Anvil. Mike in "The Vigilante" is a mild mannered southern white with racist beliefs that are carried out on a black man. Ralph who is against Jack in Lord of the Flies is being over-run by Jacks violence and bloodlust, until an officer rescues the group to find out that the boys aren’t playing and have reached the end of their innocence. The towns people gather annually to choose through a lottery the victim of a violent stoning for the harvest, when a prominent citizen Tess is chosen she tries to over turn the verdict, she is killed. Tucker is the son of a wealthy farmer and is under constant torment by his neighbor Anvil, he cracks and attempts to kill Anvil in a brutal attack with hay forks, Anvil avoids death and realizes Tuckers deep rooted evil. Mike along with the men of his village decide to take the law into their own hands against a black man, they beat and kill him then hang him from a tree. Mike realizes later how satisfied he is from this act. These violent plots all have a very important
... specify, but there has to be something since he refers to a dead physical body of an important person having meaning.
Tobias Wolff’s “Hunters in the Snow” is a suspense type of story, with an unexpected turn in the end, while William Faulkner’s “A Rose for Emily” could far into the horror genre, because of the baffling atmosphere. These two short stories have similar focuses on symbolism, foreshadowing, settings, atmosphere, and themes; with this in mind they also have many differences such as the writer’s style.
The author of Animal Farm, Orwell, tells a story of a farmyard tragedy and the deadly lives of a group of animals. Due to the disappearance of humans, Napoleon abuses his power and gradually transforms into a human. Orwell also used animals to clarify that humans are corrupted due to power. The author of Lord of the Flies, Golding, shows a similar story where it is about life and death situation for a group of lost boys on a island that is trying to establish a democracy while on the island. Both authors of novels, Lord of the Flies and Animal Farm demonstrate the comparison between the theme of human and animal nature in settings where traditional authority absent.
The musical, Matilda, by Roald Dahl was performed on a thrust stage, at the Winspear Opera House in Dallas. Matilda is a story of an astonishing little girl who despite has a bad beginning controlled by evil parents and a scary headmistress, she decides to make her story the greatest of them all.
Elwyn Brooks White, or E.B White is best known for his children’s books The Trumpet of the Swan, Stuart Little, and one of his best known books; Charlotte’s Web. E.B was not a children’s writer from the beginning, he wrote pieces such as poems and short stories for Harper’s Magazine. For that magazine, E.B “wrote three children’s books- Stuart Little, Charlotte’s Web, and The Trumpet of the Swan- which became classics” (The New Yorker 375). White has a very different style that he writes with, “White developed his books for children in the manner of Kafka, The books are Kafka with an American twist, they are Kafka with happy endings” (Epstein 380). William Dean Howells had once said, “What American public wanted ‘was a tragedy with a happy ending’” (Epstein 380). “The combination of seriousness and whimsy, or of the minute and the momentuous, is effective, and at times profoundly true. Because human experience is a curious mixture of shifting tones and moods there is a basic honesty in White’s writing: he reveals himself as a man unafraid of surface contradictions or of simple and natural responses” (Sampson 530). White used experiences he had throughout his life and incorporated them into his children’s books. He also uses animals in his books, because “children love living things and have their own fascination with the animal world. Children, they are permitted to love things they do not understand” (Epstein 380).