The story “Lamb to the slaughter” starts off with a very conventional starting creating the impression to the reader of a very normal family. The narrator of the story starts by describing the cosy environment of the house “The room was warm and clean” the narrator then continues to say that Mary Maloney is waiting for her husband anxiously to return from work. After a while Mr. Maloney (Mary Maloney’s husband) arrives and Mary Maloney makes a drink for Mr. Maloney and her self “A strongish one for him, a weak one for herself” The narrator goes on to explain Mary Maloney’s admiration for Mr. Maloney “She loved to luxuriate in the presence of this man”
As the story continues Mary Maloney keeps on asking Mr. Maloney if he wants any thing to eat “I’ll get you some cheese and crackers” but only to be rudely replied by “No!” at this point the readers start to beg the question if Mary Maloney is insanely obsessed with Mr. Maloney. Then later Mr. Maloney tells Mary Maloney to sit down and starts to talk to her for 5 minutes then finishes by saying “So there it is……”. At this point the reader is in suspense as to what Mr. Maloney said to Mary Maloney. After a pause Mary Maloney says “I’ll get supper” as she goes to the kitchen the narrator explains that Mary Maloney was a bit shocked and felt a slight nausea and that every thing that she did was automatic as if she wasn’t in control. At this point it seems that Mary Maloney is in a state of in denial. When she gets down into the freezer she pulls out the first thing that comes in to her hand which was a leg of lamb and with it she goes in to the living room where she sees her husband, who says “For god’s sake,….don’t make any supper for me”. And with that Mary Maloney hits the leg of lamb over Mr. Maloney’s head and he comes down to the ground. The narrator then continues on to say “The noise of the crash helped bring Mary Maloney out of her shock”. After a while the narrator explains that Mary Maloney tries to think very fast of a way out, also mentions that Mary Maloney’s husband is in fact a detective himself. Later she buts the leg of lamb in the hot oven and goes to her bedroom to practice her alibi in front of the mirror “Hullo Sam…..” Then she goes out to the local shop to buy some groceries and to put her alibi to action. When she gets home she pretends to find her husband dead and phones the police. After a the police arrive and Mary Maloney tells them what happened, then minutes later the police take Mr. Maloney’s body away for a post mortem whilst the other officers check the house for the murder weapon. As the search went on Mary Maloney convinces some of the officers and few of who she knew by name to have a drink, later one of the officers in the kitchen notices the Leg of lamb in the oven and tells Mary Maloney, who replies “Oh dear me, so it is I’d better turn it off for you hadn’t I, and with that she goes in to the kitchen and pulls out the lamb and offers it to the officers who hesitate to eat but Mary Maloney convinces the officers to eat and says that “ Patrick would never forgive me, god bless his soul, if I allowed you to remain in his house without offering you decent hospitality”. And as the officers ate Mary Maloney giggled in the other room.
Sherlock Holmes is the main detective in “The Speckled band” who Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Uses to create the formidable detective image of the storey which gets the reader exited about the suspense of a murder case. In the story of “The Speckled band” Sherlock Holmes is portrayed as a kind of detective who never leaves a stone unturned and is very observant and is why he upholds a reputation of being able to see “The manifold wickedness of the human heart”, but he is also reflected as a loner whom often has conflicts with the police down at Scotland Yard, which is un doubly unconventional for a detective story. Throughout the story however; Sherlock Holmes is revealed to the reader as being devoted to his work, this is reflected in the story when he says “My profession is its own reward”. He is also seen as being dedicated to his odd behaviour; as he likes to lock him self away in his study smoking his pipe and playing his violin. Towards the end of the story Sherlock Holmes is exposed as creating the suspense of the story by revealing the solution at the end. Sherlock Holmes techniques are part of what create this formidable detective type figure of Sherlock Holmes, like from the beginning of the story of the “The Speckled band” Sherlock Holmes talks to Mrs. Hudson and while they talk Holmes says “I observe the second half of a return ticket in the palm of your left glove.” This sentence is the first of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s attempts to create Holmes formidable detective image. Another great example of Holmes observational skills is when he visits the crime seen at the house where the murder of Mrs. Helen Stoner took place, here the narrator Watson describes in great detail Holmes detective work, “He threw himself down upon his face with his lens in his hand………examining minutely the cracks between the boards…….Running his eye up and down the wall” Watson’s use of great detail in his narration creates the clear idea of Holmes detective work which Sir Arthur Conan Doyle wants the readers the see. This illustration of Sherlock Holmes that Watson creates for us shows us that Holmes is a conventional type of detective.
In the story “Lamb to the slaughter” written by Roal Dahl there are two detectives; Sergeant Jack Noonan’s and O’Malley Just like in “The Speckled band”. However in “Lamb to the slaughter” Sergeant Jack Noonan’s and O’Malley are very unconventional detectives as they prove to be very incompetent and unprofessional. At the beginning of the story however the two detectives act conventional but further in to the story; Roal Dahl’s reveals his intentions to illustrate the two detectives as vain. Roal Dahl achieves this by revealing their idiocy when in the story the narrator explains that one of the detectives asks Mary Maloney “Do you know of anything in the house that could’ve been used as a weapon” this shows the detectives unprofessional behaviour to trust Mary Maloney in her position in a murder case, and for the detectives to trust someone instead of suspecting every one is idiocy in itself. Later in the story Mary Maloney convinces Sergeant Jack Noonan’s to have a drink and he replies “I might take a few drops to keep me going”, this shows the reader that Jack Noonan’s is very unprofessional and lacks in detective knowledge. Towards the end the story takes an ironical twist when Mary Maloney asks the detectives Sergeant Jack Noonan’s, O’Malley and their fellow police officers to eat the leg of lamb, which she had cooked in the oven to get rid of the evidence, the narrator explains that “There was a great deal of hesitating………..but in the end they were persuaded to go in to the kitchen to help themselves”. Here Roal Dahl clearly demonstrated the detective’s futility as a result of the detectives abandon a serious murder investigation to eat a leg of lamb. Roal Dahl again illustrates the ironical situation when the detectives and their fellow officers have a conversation about the murder weapon whilst they stuffed themselves with meat, “They’re not going to be carrying a thing like that around with them longer then they need it…..Personally, I think its right here on the premises….probably right under our very noses” here Roal Dahl has clearly exposed the ironical situation which the two detectives have caused due to their idiocy and lack of detective techniques. So the murder investigation in “Lamb to the slaughter” goes unsolved because the detectives prove to be very unconventional unlike in the story “The Speckled band” where Holmes unravels the mystery of the murder.
In the mystery fiction story “The Speckled band” DR Grimsby Roylott is a typical 20th century conventional villain who has a common motive for murdering Mrs. Helen Stoner. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle illustrates Roylott as a conventional villain in the use of Watson’s narration, which describes Roylott’s appearance on the train to Stoke Moran. “His costume was a peculiar mixture of the professional and of the agricultural………with a top-hat…..long frock-coat”
Roylott is also described as being “Tall” and a very “Wide”. Watson also portrays Roylott as having a “Thin fleshless nose” and his “Seared with a thousand wrinkles”, which suggests to the reader that Roylott’s is a conventional villain. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle also uses metaphors in Watson’s narration to describe Roylott’s resemblance as a “Fierce old bird of pray”. The conversation which follows between Sherlock Holmes and DR Grimsby Roylott suggests to the reader that Roylott is a very ruthless, antagonistic and paranoid man. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle also suggests to the reader that Roylott is a very demanding man this is portrayed when in the conversation Roylott shouts furiously at Holmes “What has she been saying to you?”. So with the use of Watson’s narration Sir Arthur Conan Doyle shows that
DR Grimsby Roylott Is a conventional pre 20th century villain.
In “Lamb to the slaughter” Mary Maloney is an unconventional villain. From the start the narrator explains that Mary Maloney is pregnant “Her skin-for this was her sixth month with child” This puts Mary Maloney in a venerable position and appears as though she isn’t the villain. The narrator continues to describe Mary Maloney of having a “Slow smiling air about her” and “placid eyes” and “Curiously tranquil” which is unconventional for a villain. Roal Dahl uses the narrator to explain to the readers that Mary Maloney isn’t a villain. Mary Maloney is also portrayed as being obsessed with her husband Mr. Maloney who is a detective which is very unconventional. The readers realise that Mary Maloney is obsessed; when the narrator explains that “She loved to luxuriate in the presence of this man” another clue that Mary Maloney is obsessed is when she asks him “I’ll get you supper” but only to be replied by “No!” all the time. Then she keeps insisting to cook for him but only to be replied by “No!” this all seems like Mary Maloney is obsessed because she loves him and seems unconventional if she killed him; which is what happens. But Roal Dahl makes Mary Maloney obsessed because she becomes an unconventional villain. Mary Maloney However gets away with murder at the end; and the narrator explains “She began to giggle”. So Roal Dahl uses the narrator to illustrate Mary Maloney’s soft nature who then turns out to be the villain which is unconventional.
The detective mystery fiction story “The Speckled band” is a very conventional story partly due to the settings of the crime scene at Stoke Moran manor house. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle uses Watson to narrate in great detail the appearance of the manor house. Watson’s use of metaphors grabs the reader’s attention while it demonstrates the gothic type house the manor is, which Sir Arthur Conan Doyle is portraying. “With a high central portion and two carving wings, like the claws of a crab”. Watson’s narration paints a clear picture in the minds of the readers of the gothic manor house which has the classic atmosphere of a murder scene. Watson continues to describe the setting of the manor houses corridor “A small side door led into the whitewashed corridor”. Watson’s use of the word ‘whitewashed’ gives the reader a perception of an old and battered house which is common for a murder to take place in, later Watson uses the some technique to show the readers that the manor house is old and falling apart “Panelling of the walls were brown, worm-eaten oak”. Watson’s use of words creates a perfect conventional atmosphere and setting for a murder. Watson also creates the atmosphere of a conventional murder house by describing the fireplace “With a low ceiling and gasping fireplace,” Sir Arthur Conan Doyle includes a fireplace as it’s relevant to creating the spooky atmosphere as old fireplaces are related to old gothic houses. Watson’s narration describes that the house is gothic and so is therefore a conventional setting for a murder.
In “Lamb to the slaughter” we find that the story has an unconventional setting and atmosphere, which Roal Dahl creates through the narrator who describes the setting at the start of the story. The narrator describes the atmosphere of the house as a nice lovely warm home where anyone could feel safe, “The room was warm and clean” this creates an environment which is a warm and welcoming place and unconventional for a murder to take place in. The narrator also says that Mary Maloney is six months pregnant. “Her skin- for this was her sixth month with child-had required a wonderful translucent quality” this makes the readers think that there is a sort of innocent atmosphere of the house. Roal Dahl tries to create an unconventional setting when the narrator says “Punctually as always, she heard the tyres on the gravel outside”. This shows how it is routine for Mary Maloney to wait silently for her husband and gives a perception to the reader that there is nothing unusual about what goes on everyday. However when the murder takes place the readers realise that the settings and atmosphere are unconventional.
In the “The Speckled band” Sir Arthur Conan Doyle uses Watson (the narrator) to reveal aspects of the story, like the characteristics of Sherlock Holmes. “Holmes was for the moment as startled as I. His hand closed like a vice upon my wrist in his agitation. Then he broke in to a low laugh and put his lips to my ear”
“It’s a nice household,’ he murmured. ‘That is the baboon,” This shows Watson’s narration describing Holmes actions which reveals to the reader that Holmes has a sarcastic and playfully personality. Again in the story Sir Arthur Conan Doyle uses Watson to expose Holmes characteristics. “My companion sat in the front of the trap, His arms folded, His hat pulled down over his eyes, and his chin sunk upon his breast, buried in the deepest thought”. This shows the reader that Holmes has a very thoughtful personality and is also a very serious man. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle also uses Watson to reveal aspects of other characters characteristics such as DR Grimsby Roylott. “So tall was he that his hat actually brushed the cross bar of the doorway” Sir Arthur Conan Doyle uses this portrayal, as being tall always seems like being a suspicious character; perfect for describing a potential suspect in a murder case. Watson describes Roylott further saying “A large face, seared with a thousand wrinkles, burned yellow with the sun, and marked with every evil passion” Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s use of long and complicated sentences allow Watson to describe Roylott in a lots of detail. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle also uses Watson’s narration to reveal details about the settings of the manor house where the murder took place. “Panelling of the walls were of brown, worm eaten-oak, so old and discoloured” Again you can still see Doyle’s use of long and complicated sentences through Watson’s narration to describe in detail the manor houses settings to create the right atmosphere of the house in the minds of the readers. Watson also describes the grounds of the manor house of Stoke Moran as having an “Ill – trimmed lawn” Doyle uses dialogue (speech) to reveal characteristics of Sherlock Holmes “No but I observe the second half of a return ticket in the palm of your left glove” This shows us how observant he is and notices small things. Doyle’s use in dialogue to reveal Holmes observational skills also reveals the plot when Holmes says “Ah! That is suggestive. Now, on the other side of this narrow wing runs the corridor from which these three rooms open. There are windows in it, of course” Sir Arthur Conan Doyle also uses dialogue as a structural device to unfold the mystery. “No she was in her night – dress, in her right hand was found the charred stump of the match, and in her left a match box…. And what conclusions did the corner come to?” As the reader reads this dialogue it becomes apparent in detail how Holmes mind works in an investigation deducing clues and moving the plot forward. This use of dialogue not only shows the reader how Holmes mind works but also motivates the readers to work out the mystery. Another example of this use of dialogue is when Holmes is in the manor house investigating the clues “Pending the alterations, as I understand. By the way, there does not seem to be any very pressing need for repairs at the end wall”. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle also uses Watson’s narration to portray characters vividly “We could see that she was indeed in a pitiable state of agitation, her face all drawn and grey”. Here Sir Arthur Conan Doyle uses sentences which are complex and packed with clauses to build up layers of description and detail. “With restless, frightened eyes, like those of a haunted animal”. Some of the language Doyle uses in Watson’s narration is often old and archaic. Here Watson is on the train with Holmes where they meet DR Grimsby Roylott, Watson describes in detail the appearance of Roylott, “A large face seared with a thousand wrinkles” Sir Arthur Conan Doyle use of the word seared is quite old fashioned but is a effective as it gives the reader a good description of Roylott’s face. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle also uses names as a very important part of creating an impression of someone characteristics, like the name s DR Grimsby Roylott who is the villain in “The speckled band”. The name DR Grimsby Roylott sounds evil as DR’s are often considered as the mad villains in stories such as Franklinstaine where the DR is insane and creates havoc by his invention of Franklinstaine. The name Grimsby is also an unusual name for a person so it sounds much more like the name of a villain. Doyle also uses names such as Mrs. Helen Stoner for the innocent characters which sound much more usual for a persons name and therefore make the person sound much nicer.
In the story “Lamb to the slaughter” Roal Dahl uses black comedy to expose the ironical situation, which is that the murder took place but the detectives eat the evidence and the crime doesn’t get solved which results in an unconventional villain getting away with murder. Roal Dahl also uses simple text and simple languages in the story which is easier to understand “The room was warm and clean, the curtains drawn,” this sentence shows Roal Dahl’s use of simple text and languages which are easier to understand unlike what Sir Arthur Conan Doyle uses in “The speckled band”. Roal Dahl uses a simple plot to go with the story as well which is basically an unconventional murder which an unconventional woman commits against a detective however during the story she turns the situation around by using her unconventional status and avoids being caught by the detectives so in this story evil triumphs over good, whilst in “The speckled band” it’s the other way round. Roal Dahl uses very little detail in the story “Their was a slow smiling air about her, and about everything she did”. You can clearly see Roal Dahl’s use of detail isn’t as much as in “The speckled band” where Sir Arthur Conan Doyle uses very long sentences to add layers of detail. The narrator in “Lamb to the slaughter” moves forward lots of pace which sees the murder taking place in the middle of the story and then investigation continues to the end, this is not like in the “The speckled band” in which the narrator moves pace slowly but in detail seeing the murder at the beginning and the investigation to the end of the story. These two authors make their stories different by each using different characteristics of their murders and detectives, however the structures of both stories are the same as both authors establish their mortality and they both want their characters to get away with it.
In “The speckled band” Sir Arthur Conan Doyle uses stereotyping to portray his characters; this is a technique which Roal Dahl doesn’t use. Doyle’s use of stereotyping proves to play be a very important role in Doyle’s portrayal of characteristics of the characters in “The speckled band” as it is a good tool to use when describing to the reader characteristics of a person. This use of stereotyping is clearly visible in Doyle’s story “The speckled band”. All of Doyle’s characters are stereotyped such as DR Grimsby Roylott, who is described by Watson as having “Bile-shot eyes” and “A large face. Seared with a thousand wrinkles” These descriptions are related to an average villain who has distinguishing looks and features, which people would consider are common for a villain, such as when Watson mentions when describing Rowlett’s appearance “And his high, Thin, fleshless nose.” This is an aspect of a character which people would automatically presume is a villain. Roal Dahl’s text lacks stereotyping of the characters which results in less descriptive text from which the reader can work out the characters characteristics which is something Sir Arthur Conan Doyle has achieved.
In conclusion both stories are unconventional as in the “The speckled band” the story seems conventional as the murderer, motive, settings and atmosphere are conventional but at the end Sherlock Holmes murders DR Grimsby Roylott accidentally which is unconventional for a mystery fiction story, especially because Sherlock Holmes doesn’t feel guilty after the incident. The story “Lamb to the slaughter” is also an unconventional story as the murderer Mary Maloney is unconventional and so is the victim who is a detective. The case goes unsolved as the senseless detectives eat the evidence which is ironical and unconventional.