In The Adventure of the Speckled Band, women are regarded as helpless and cannot make decisions. In contrast, Lamb to the Slaughter shows a woman who can make decisions for herself. This is shown when Mrs Maloney makes drinks. Mrs Maloney would appear to have a sort of strength of character, shown by the fact that seems to be stable and in control, even when Patrick is dead. In contrast, in The Adventure of the Speckled Band the women seem helpless and unable to choose.
The mansion in The Adventure of the Speckled Band is typical of a murder mystery story. This is shown by: “two curving wings, like the claws of a crab, thrown out on each side”. The Maloney household however is not typical at all. It is a warm 1950’s home. This is probably to lull you into a false sense of security, and believe that everything is calm before the shocking murder.
Both stories revolve around one character. In Lamb to the Slaughter, this is Mrs Maloney and in The Adventure of the Speckled Band it is Dr Roylott. The main focus in Lamb to the Slaughter is whether Mrs Maloney will get away with it. Lamb to the Slaughter is humorous, contrasting with the seriousness of The Adventure of the Speckled Band. The murder in The Adventure of the Speckled Band is more sinister and planed. The mystery needs to be solved, and the motive is personal gain.
However, Lamb to the Slaughter is written focusing on the murderer. This technique is most probably used because it helps to show the emotion and thoughts of Mrs Maloney. This contrasts with the fact that in The Adventure of the Speckled Band, the attention focuses on the detective, which is a preferred technique of murder mystery writers, probably because it leaves room for a sequel.
The Adventure of the Speckled Band is written in the first person. Lamb to the Slaughter, however, is in the third person. Usually writing in the first person would give a greater indication of the characters feelings and emotions. In this instance this is not the case as the Speckled Band, although written in first person, is set out as a very clinical, scrupulous report. The detailed description of Mrs Maloney’s emotion in Lamb to the Slaughter gives it a more personal feel. To add to this high level of description, Mrs Maloney is in every scene, allowing the reader to get even closer to her. As a result, Mrs Maloney receives more sympathy.
In Lamb to the Slaughter, suspense is created when routine is broken early on in the book:
“And as he spoke, he did an unusual thing. He lifted his glass and drained it in one swallow although there was still half of it, at least half of it left.”
To add to this, there is also suspense later on when she has killed Mr Maloney. The reader wonders if she will get caught. In contrast with this, suspense is created in The Adventure of the Speckled Band later on in the play when Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson are hiding in Helen Stoners bedroom.
Roald Dahl keeps the reader wondering about what Mr Maloney told his wife. The obvious assumption to make is that he has had some sort of affair, although we never know. It would definitely seem, though, that by her reaction we can presume it was a scandalous event of some sort.
Arthur Conan Doyle uses lots of similie to add to his description. Also, much of the language in The Adventure of the Speckled Band is old, and could even be misconstrued in today’s society. Lamb to the Slaughter is much more up to date and recent.
In Lamb to the Slaughter, the detectives led by Jack Noonan play a comparatively small role to that of Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson. It would also appear that the detectives in Lamb to the Slaughter are unreliable and unintelligent, contrasting with the intelligent and heroic Sherlock Holmes.
The ending in The Adventure of the Speckled Band is one that is quite “chilling”, yet it completes the whole story leaving nothing else to be worked out. This contrasts with the ironically humorous end of Lamb to the Slaughter, where the policemen eat the murder weapon. This is again not conforming to the norms of murder mystery stories. In Lamb to the Slaughter, you wonder if Mrs Maloney will get away with it.
In Lamb to the Slaughter the reader is constantly updated with the facts and information of the time. In The Adventure of the Speckled Band, the plot is only unravelled right at the last stage.
Another contrasting point is that Conan Doyle set out to make a “normal” detective story. Dahl set out to go against the principles of normal murder detective stories and has definitely succeeded.
I personally think that The Adventure of the Speckled Band, although good in many respects, is too long-winded and descriptive. It is also very predictable and serious. In contrast, Lamb to the Slaughter is humorous, too the point and interesting to read.
The Adventure of the Speckled Band is also more old-fashioned, making it even less appealing.
The development of character in Roald Dahl’s story seems much more interesting. The likely victim ends up murderer, the likely murderer ends up dead and the detectives just seem a bit slow to catch on from the moment they are introduced.
As such I favour Lamb to the Slaughter, and other works of Roald Dahl. Both books do entertain different audiences and both are recognised as great books.
