Vera Claythorne Essay

Vera Claythorne is a physical education teacher, looking after a little boy named Cyril. Cyril's uncle's name is Hugo. Vera Claythorne and Hugo fell in love. However, there was one thing that got in the way of their marriage, money. Hugo didn't have enough money to get married and support a family. Vera thought she had a plan to solve the problem. For the past couple of days Cyril would say to her "Can I swim out to the island, Mrs. Claythorne? Why can't I swim out to the island?" Vera thought that she could tell Cyril he could swim out to the island, and then she would act as though she never knew that he had left her sight. Just when Cyril is about to drown she would act like she was swimming to save him. Once Cyril died, Hugo would inherit Cyril's money, and he would have enough money to marry and support a family. Vera's plan worked just as she had hoped it would. However, Hugo knew all along that she intentionally allowed Cyril to drown. Hugo was mad at her from that point on and discontinued his relationship with her. As one can see from this awful crime, Vera
At the beginning of the novel when she receives the letter asking her to come to the island she remembers Hugo. Then she becomes scared and doesn't want to go because the sea reminds her of Cyril. When she gets to the house on the island and there is a storm, she smells the scent of the ocean. She then becomes haunted and afraid as the scene of Cyril's drowning comes to her mind. Also when Wargrave places seaweed in her room, Vera smells the scent of the ocean from the seaweed and as the novel says she remembers "the smell of St. Tredennick" where Cyril died. As she smells the scent of the sea, she hears Cyril's voice in her head, which scares her so much that she screams and passes out. As one can tell Vera is very fearful and often haunted by the terrible day at St. Trednnick. She becomes more and more