The Speckled Band was written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in 1887. Lamb to the Slaughter was written by Roald Dahl in 1954. Detective stories mainly base themselves around solving murder cases; the reader is taken on a journey to find who is guilty and their motive which is normally along the lines of greed, loneliness and hatred.
‘The Speckled Band’ is written in 1st person and the story is narrated by Dr Watson, Sherlock Holmes’ partner. Helen Stoner’s sister passes away two weeks before her wedding and Helen is worried the same is going to happen to her, so she goes to Sherlock Holmes to ask for his help. He stays in her room and he finds out that her stepfather killed her with a snake bite.
In Lamb to the Slaughter, the wife Mrs Maloney hits her husband over the head with a leg of lamb because he’s leaving her for another woman. She then feeds the lamb to the police so there is no evidence left. In the end Mrs Maloney doesn’t get caught. Also Dahl gives us so many details because he is trying to throw us off the scent that Mary Maloney could be the murderer.
In Lamb to the Slaughter, the wife, Mary Maloney, is the typical perfect wife but in the Speckled Band, the stepdad, Dr Grimesby Roylott, is a typical villain and in the end we see that they are both actually psychopaths.
There are a few similarities between the Speckled Band and Lamb to the Slaughter like; they’re both inside jobs and they’re both psychopath killers. On the other hand there are a lot of differences between them; for example in the Speckled Band the detective solved the murder, the mood is dark and sinister and Helen is a victim, but in Lamb to the Slaughter the detective is murdered and the case is unsolved, the mood is calm and warm and Mary is controlling the situation.
You May Also Find These Documents Helpful
-
First, Mary Maloney had killed her husband because he wanted to divorce. In anger Mary got a leg of lamb from the freezer and after hearing the news of wanting a divorce, Mary acted fast with disapproval ,and so” she swung the leg of lamb high and brought it down as hard as she could on the back of his head”(Dahl 3).This proves that Mary defeated her demons and had not wanted a divorce so she took matters into her own hands.Second after killing her husband should found a successful and creative way to hide the crime. after killing her husband she decided to cook the leg of lamb so she “... placed it in a pan and turned on the oven on high and shoved it inside.”(Dahl 4) What's my reason because Mary killed her husband and couldn't deal with the fact that she was going to jail for those acts, so she covered up the crime and successfully defeated her demon. In conclusion, Mary had successfully defeated her demons and was able to progress in…
- 798 Words
- 4 Pages
Good Essays -
On the other hand, Lamb to the Slaughter is a murder case instinctively executed by Mary Maloney, who is the wife to the deceased Patrick Maloney. Although Mary commits the crime after her husband broke the news about the plan to divorce her, she immediately comes to her senses after hitting him “as hard as she could” with a frozen leg of a lamb. She successfully lays down a plan to deceive the police that she was…
- 585 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
Killing your husband is not a big deal, right? Not for Mary Maloney. A casual day is not typically when your house is turned into a murder scene. Sometimes you can’t blame people for their impulse actions; for example, Mary Maloney.…
- 324 Words
- 2 Pages
Good Essays -
Ronald Dahl’s “ Lamb to the Slaughter “ is a story about the murder of Patrick Maloney by his wife Mary , that murdered her husband after Patrick exclaims he’s leaving Mary & her unborn child . This story captures the change on how Mary turns from a loving , nurturing wife to a fiendish murderer.…
- 519 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
Not only did Mr. Maloney say he wanted to leave, but the reason must have been extrememly disturbing to Mary. Although the book did not state why he wanted to leave, a movie made from the book of Lamb to the Slaughter says that he was in love with someone else. Mary was going to cook a hole leg of lamb for dinner that night. When she went to retrieve the lamb leg from the freezer she just realized the reality of what was going on. She was furious. The lamb was frozen solid, like a rock. Mr. Maloney was in the living room facing the opposite way towards the window so he coldn't see Mary. Mrs. Maloney came up with an idea. With no hesitation, she walked up behind her husband and hit him over the head as hard as she could with the frozen solid leg of lamb. Mr. Maloney is…
- 381 Words
- 2 Pages
Good Essays -
Two of the major powers in Europe quickly took the lead in settling the New World. The first, Spain, was very interested in acquiring huge amounts of gold, silver, and other rare valuables. In fact, the only reason they stumbled upon America is because they were en route to the Far East in search of the "fabled wealth of the Indies." What they found turned out to be much more valuable than a shipload of gold. A new continent was discovered-- one with unbelievable potential. Spain was able to take great advantage of its new found wealth, but made some bad decisions that in the long run did not help to solidify their existence in America. The pursuit of riches was not the only motivation for the Spaniards to come to America, though. Some men wanted to create a "profitable agricultural economy" as well as spread the Christian religion.…
- 1146 Words
- 5 Pages
Good Essays -
"Lamb to the Slaughter" is told from the point of view of Mary Maloney. This choice to tell the story from the point of view of the murderer is an interesting choice and one that largely defines this story. The reader knows only what she knows. At times, such as the end of the story, this means that the reader knows more than the other characters, especially in relation to the leg of lamb. On the other hand, the reader is not given access to the reasoning behind Patrick’s decision to leave. This makes it far easier for the reader to be on Mary’s side when she makes questionable decisions.…
- 2564 Words
- 7 Pages
Powerful Essays -
Mary Maloney is very devious. In the stories, “The Landlady” and “Lamb to the Slaughter”, the antagonists are both devious, but one is more devious than the other. Mary Maloney is more devious because she made the police eat the lamb and she pretended to not know that Patrick was dead.…
- 376 Words
- 2 Pages
Satisfactory Essays -
It remains a mystery why terrible events happen so often. People always try to find answers to make sense of this problem. A perfect example of this phenomenon is Granovetter’s theory of human thresholds. This theory accurately proves that riots and school shootings occur because of influence and the tendency we have as humans to follow the crowd. Malcolm Gladwell successfully persuades his readers to believe Granovetter’s theory with facts and examples. Granovetter states that riots are an example of thresholds and why school shootings are occurring so often. They have turned into a nation wide act of assault which he accurately portrays in his article “Thresholds of Violence.” In this article, Gladwell successfully persuades his readers that…
- 574 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
Mr. Maloney had asked Mrs. Maloney to sit so he could discuss his wishes to get a divorce. She never expected this night to take a turn like this, so when he told her this she was in disbelief. She did not want to face reality so she got up out of her chair and grabbed the lamb leg from the freezer to make dinner. Mr. Maloney said he was leaving and to not make dinner. Then, she picked up the lamb from the table and bashed it into his skull. The back of Mr. Maloney’s head was completely shattered. She realized what she had done, but showed not even a glimpse of remorse across her face. She murdered him in cold…
- 601 Words
- 3 Pages
Satisfactory Essays -
Pathetically innocent, brutally ironic, and terribly funny Lamb to the slaughter is a story which reveals the savagery that lurks inside of all civilized people and the suddenness with which it can emerge.…
- 1186 Words
- 5 Pages
Better Essays -
The short stories, “The Adventure of the Speckled Band” and “The Blanched Soldier,” by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle are filled with adventurous investigations featuring the genius detective Sherlock Holmes. Sherlock Holmes and is his trustworthy assistant, Dr. Watson, investigate the problems that are brought to them by clients, Helen Stoner and Mr. James M. Dodd, whom both seek their help in coming up with solutions to their cases. In “the Adventure of the Speckled Band,” Helen Stoner, a desperate young woman, is in need of Holmes assistance to solve her sister’s murder case, as she believes her life may be in great danger with her stepfather being around. While in “The Blanched Soldier,” Mr. Dodd brings a case in which his good friend, Godfrey…
- 1153 Words
- 5 Pages
Good Essays -
In “Lamb to the Slaughter,” the beginning of the short story expresses how Mary Maloney, the main character and wife to Patrick Maloney, is six months pregnant. The author of “Lamb to the Slaughter,” Roald Dahl, greatly expresses Mary’s deep love for her husband in the exposition of the short story, but despite Mary’s immense love for her husband, Patrick Maloney, he has the desire to leave her. Dahl never specifically states Patrick’s reasoning for wanting to leave Mary, so the readers try to use context clues within the story to figure out why Patrick wants to leave Mary. While reading the story, the reason why Patrick plans to leave Mary can vary. Although there the possibilities can vary, a good majority of the evidence in the text points…
- 1267 Words
- 6 Pages
Good Essays -
Lamb to the Slaughter is a very powerful short story in that it is only nine pages, yet it still has the ability to get my brain flowing and creep me out completely. This story shows how a dedicated housewife can change into a cold blooded murderer and a psychopath in a matter of seconds. The strain to hold together a relationship is shown from the wife, Mary Maloney, in the first few paragraphs, but it’s incredible how fast one sentence can change someone into a psycho manipulator. It’s mindboggling to watch how Mary Maloney pieces together her murder and immediately covers her tracks so she isn’t a suspect in the murder. This story grasped my attention in the first paragraph and continued to keep me intrigued throughout the whole story.…
- 442 Words
- 2 Pages
Satisfactory Essays -
In both "Lamb to the Slaughter" and "Tell Tale Heart" the author uses the technique of the reader knowing more than the character. While the reader may know that Mary Maloney murdered her husband with a lamb leg, the detectives suspect that she…
- 624 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays