The Body Snatchers by R.L Stevenson and The Landlady by Roald Dahl
Satisfactory Essays
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- 8 Pages
Comparison between The Body Snatchers written by R.L Stevenson in
1884 and The Landlady written by Roald Dahl in 1960
In this assignment I am going to compare and contrast the way that
Stevenson and Dahl create and maintain dramatic tension.
Both of these texts contain many similarities as they both involve
death and deceit, which is conveyed in the characters. In The Body
Snatchers there are several people involved in the deceit, which
encapsulates the relationship between the characters. The landlady is
the only person involved in the murders, deceit and stuffing of the
victims in The Landlady. This conveys loneliness and she seems to be
withdrawn from society. Both of these stories have a 'back-story', as
they both seem to be an extract or joining the story after the first
few pages.
In The Body Snatchers we meet the main characters in The George, a
public house in Debenham, Scotland. It is quite an ordinary night in
The George but then an extraordinary thing happens, suddenly out of
the blue a "Great Neighbouring Proprietor" was struck down with
'apoplexy', which required the aid of a doctor from London "Dr
Macfarlane". A gentleman by the name of Fettes knew the doctor as they
had somewhat of a past together. They conversed briefly and abruptly
then Fettes asked Dr Macfarlane if he had seen it again, "it" being
Gray an old acquaintance of Fettes & the Dr but you don't find out
what "it" is until the end of the story. After this Dr Macfarline
rushes off into his fly and then to the station. This sets up three
mysteries or questions the reader wants answered and is the way
Stevenson hooks you into the story. You want to know what conflict
there had been between them in the past, why one became famous &
successful where the other became an old drunk, unsuccessful & poor.
And finally what does 'it' refer to?
The Body Snatchers then uses a flashback technique to take us back to
when Dr Macfarlane and Fettes were studying at medical school, which
is where the murder, deceit and treachery takes place. The medical
schools in this time bought bodies, which were often exhumed and
stolen from graves or murdered for use as medical research or
training, Fettes is in charge of the payment and management of these
bodies yet turns a blind eye either due to fear or to further his
career.
In The Landlady one of the main characters is Billy Weaver. In the
text it says, " He had never been to Bath before…Billy was only
seventeen". This positions the audience as it tells us he is
1884 and The Landlady written by Roald Dahl in 1960
In this assignment I am going to compare and contrast the way that
Stevenson and Dahl create and maintain dramatic tension.
Both of these texts contain many similarities as they both involve
death and deceit, which is conveyed in the characters. In The Body
Snatchers there are several people involved in the deceit, which
encapsulates the relationship between the characters. The landlady is
the only person involved in the murders, deceit and stuffing of the
victims in The Landlady. This conveys loneliness and she seems to be
withdrawn from society. Both of these stories have a 'back-story', as
they both seem to be an extract or joining the story after the first
few pages.
In The Body Snatchers we meet the main characters in The George, a
public house in Debenham, Scotland. It is quite an ordinary night in
The George but then an extraordinary thing happens, suddenly out of
the blue a "Great Neighbouring Proprietor" was struck down with
'apoplexy', which required the aid of a doctor from London "Dr
Macfarlane". A gentleman by the name of Fettes knew the doctor as they
had somewhat of a past together. They conversed briefly and abruptly
then Fettes asked Dr Macfarlane if he had seen it again, "it" being
Gray an old acquaintance of Fettes & the Dr but you don't find out
what "it" is until the end of the story. After this Dr Macfarline
rushes off into his fly and then to the station. This sets up three
mysteries or questions the reader wants answered and is the way
Stevenson hooks you into the story. You want to know what conflict
there had been between them in the past, why one became famous &
successful where the other became an old drunk, unsuccessful & poor.
And finally what does 'it' refer to?
The Body Snatchers then uses a flashback technique to take us back to
when Dr Macfarlane and Fettes were studying at medical school, which
is where the murder, deceit and treachery takes place. The medical
schools in this time bought bodies, which were often exhumed and
stolen from graves or murdered for use as medical research or
training, Fettes is in charge of the payment and management of these
bodies yet turns a blind eye either due to fear or to further his
career.
In The Landlady one of the main characters is Billy Weaver. In the
text it says, " He had never been to Bath before…Billy was only
seventeen". This positions the audience as it tells us he is