Compare And Contrast Lamb To The Slaughter And The Landlady

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Roald Dahl’s two short stories, “Lamb to the Slaughter” and “The Landlady” were successful in being scary. One reason the stories are successful is that the author gives us small hints in the text that some characters weren’t exactly normal, even though they were presented as such. In “The Landlady” the woman is first described as gentle and pleasant. But as we move along through the story it is hinted that she is a little crazy. It is first shown when Mr. Weaver and her are walking up the stairs and she turns around to look at Mr. Weaver, “Her blue eyes travelled slowly all the way down the length of Billy’s body, to his feet, and then up again.” This sentence hints that she is interested in people with a certain body type. In “Lamb to the Slaughter” Mrs. Maloney is first portrayed as a caring and loving wife by saying “darling” and kissing her husband. Later in the story she stops calling her …show more content…
Towards the end of “The Landlady” the woman explains to Mr. Weaver that she “Stuffs all her little pets herself when they pass away.” She also states that the two previous guests never left and they are still on the third floor, even though they first arrived years ago. These areas hint that the lady had the other guests killed and stuffed, and then keeps them like “pets” but Mr. Weaver does not get the hint. In “Lamb to the Slaughter” Patrick Maloney comes home late after work like any other night. He is greeted by his wife and is offered a drink and something to eat. As he is getting ready to go out, he is suddenly attacked by his wife and he is killed, “At that point, Mary Maloney simply walked up behind him and without any pause, she swung the big frozen leg of lamb high in the air and brought it down as hard as she could on the back of his head.” This part of the story shows that Mrs. Maloney gave no hint that she was going to kill Mr.
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Compare And Contrast The Landlady And Lamb To The Slaughter

stories, “The Tell-Tale Heart”, “The Landlady”, and “Lamb to the Slaughter” all have one thing in common; the horror of murder. Each murderer kills their victim for a different reason. Some murders were out of surprise, while some were thoroughly planned out. Of all of these killers, the murderer in “The Landlady” is the most vicious; being how her murder tactics are more horrifying and the act she puts up is the most deceiving. The victim in “Lamb to the Slaughter” is the husband of Mary Maloney. She…

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