"Lamb to the Slaughter" and "The Speckled Band" are two very different types of murder mystery. Describe some of the ways in which they are different and some of the ways in which they are the same.

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“Lamb to the Slaughter” and “The Speckled Band” are two very different types of murder mystery. Describe some of the ways in which they are different and some of the ways in which they are the same.

        “Lamb to the Slaughter” is a short murder mystery story written by Roald Dahl a Norwegian author, in 19 54.  It is a Black comedy and was very macabre and startling for its time, and still is now, but it isn’t seen as quite so shocking and politically incorrect “Did they kill them both- mother and child?”  Roald Dahl is more famous for his children’s stories such as “James and the Giant Peach” and “The Twits”, than his stories for adults, these include “Kiss, Kiss” and “Tales of the Unexpected”, which was also televised as a series of short stories.  

“The Speckled Band” is also a relatively short murder mystery story.  It was written in 1892 by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.  It features Sherlock Holmes, who is the detective that Conan Doyle writes his murder mysteries about, he is the stereotype of a Victorian detective.  He is what Victorian people would want all detectives to be like, he always solves his cases, he respects others and is strong, in body and in mind. “He unravelled problems which were submitted to him.”  He makes "rapid deductions…founded on a logical basis." and is admired by many for this, "I have no keener pleasure than in following Holmes."

The stories written about him are stereotypical of Victorian Detective stories, this also means that the victims, and murderer will be stereotypical of the time.  The murderer is a man of immense strength, "seized the poker and bent it into a curve." he has control over Helen and Julia, the two victims. "Five little livid spots, the marks of four fingers and a thumb printed upon the white wrist."  This shows that Dr Roylott is strong and doesn't give any regards for his use of strength upon women.  He is thoughtless and self-centred, like you would expect a murderer to be like.

The two stories were written at different periods of time, “The Speckled Band” in the Victorian era, and “Lamb to the Slaughter” was written in the mid twentieth century.  This difference is very apparent in, primarily, the plot, also the writing styles and language of the stories.  

Conan Doyle uses such words as “defray” which means to repay and, “aperture” to mean opening, or doorway.  These were common words of Victorian times, but now, they are rarely used, as not many people understand the complexity and the formality of the language used in the 19th century.  This shows us as the audience how much vocabulary and grammar has changed in the short space of 60 years, nowadays a lot of slang words are used such as, ‘cool’. The style of “Lamb to the Slaughter” is more modern and so modern values and causes are more widely focused on.  The language is staccato and less detailed in its descriptions than that of  “The Speckled Band” is. “The Speckled Band” is set in England.  I know this because Sherlock Holmes’ home and office is in Baker street in London, also other places in England were mentioned, “Surrey”, “Berkshire”, “Hampshire” also “India” was mentioned, and at the time it was part of the Great British Empire.

The language in “Lamb to the Slaughter shows that the story is set in America, the choice of vocabulary points out this fact.  The use of the word “precinct” in replace of police station reflects a more informal and American tone, influencing the reader to understand the plot better.  Mary Maloney was in the “Grocery Store” an American word for green grocers or small supermarket shop.  The Grocer asks her, “you want these Idaho potatoes?”  Idaho is a state in America, this is an additional way that we can tell it is set in America.  The Language lends itself to the reader to help them understand the plot in depth as it reflects how little people of today actually understand.  

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We can also tell the different time eras from the structure of the stories.  Watson, Holmes’s accomplice and companion narrates “The Speckled Band” to the reader, this is third person.  From this point events unfold quite slowly, the actual solving of the mystery doesn't begin until Holmes and Watson visit Stoke Moran.  When they arrive at Stoke Moran, it is described in great detail, "grey…lichen blotched… windows were broken…a picture of ruin."  A simile is used, "Like the claws of a crab." to describe the shape of the building, this gives it an ominous air, and the reader would feel ...

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