Lamb To The Slaughter delves into dark humor with a captivating plot for readers. The setting of the story revolves around a couple who went through a sort of heated argument. This story fascinated me because of its twist that remains unveiled till the end.
In this article, I will provide information related to this literary masterpiece. The common terms going to be elucidated are:
- Author
- Characters
- Setting
- Summary
- Analysis
- Themes
- Irony
- Review
- Moral Findings
- Conclusion
Author
This short storybook was written back in 1953 by Roald Dahl. He was one of the prominent and top-rated British novelists. He also wrote amazing storybooks. In this writing, you will remain attached to his writing style until the end.
Characters
- This literary reading has the following characters.
Mary Maloney
She is the main character of the story. She is married to a police detective named Patrick Maloney. She seems like a housewife with many responsibilities. She offered great love for her husband.
Patrick Maloney
He is Mary’s husband. The author had portrayed him as a young man. He only visits the house during the night.
Detectives
These were the normal characters in the book. I will explain about them in the next paragraph.
Setting
The setting of the story is Mary’s house. It was the place of incident as well as the place of trial.
Lamb to the Slaughter Summary
Roald Dahl introduced readers to dark humor via this fictional book. The plot starts with a married couple. Mary was waiting at the dining table on Thursday for Patrick. The author portrayed Mary as a loyal, caring, and responsible wife. She was pregnant for the last six months in the story. Patrick came to the house and she greeted him warmly. She offered him a fresh drink. The couple had a ritual of going outside for dinner on Thursday.
Mary asked Patrick for food. He responded that he is not hungry. Patrick told Mary that he wanted to confess some secret to her. He has been thinking about it for a long time. He said that he wanted to leave her. He promised that it would be tough for her but he would care take of her. He will financially support her till the end. Mary went into shock after hearing this news.
She rushed to the kitchen and opened the refrigerator. She took the frozen lamb leg and started roasting it. Patrick was standing near the window. He informed her that he was not hungry. He will go out for dinner. This news angered Mary. She went into a rage. She threw the frozen leg to Patrick. The leg hit him on the back of his head and he fell. Soon, it was found, that he had expired.
Mary was anxious after killing her husband. She tried her best to save herself. She was feeling sad for her upcoming son. Soon. she made a plan. She normalized her expressions and visited a grocery store. She brought some items by saying she would cook lamb for her husband. She wanted to convey a message to the locals that Patrick was waiting behind her. Then, She would call the police and inform them that somebody killed him in her absence. This was Mary’s plan. She did the same.
Mary called the local police station. The two detectives came. They analyzed Patrick but didn’t find out any tool that was used. They were investigating with attention. After hours of work, the detectives were tired. Mary offered them frozen lamb leg as food. The men ate it as they were hungry.
The reading ends when Mary is laughing sarcastically at detectives who are eating the proof without realizing it. The ending occurs when Mary is successful in her plan.
Literary Analysis
This book has offered multiple points. Readers would be surprised after witnessing the transformation of Mary in the story. She changed from a loyal wife to a deceitful one. The author has also criticized the justice system a little. They lacked evidence. Such things are common in many aspects.
Further, the story was full of twists till the end. I believe that the detective would catch Mary but her plan saved her. This was the biggest twist of the story.
One more thing is focusing on the things that created tension between the couple. As a reader, we can analyze the things that made Mary take such a step. Although it’s a fictional setting but such things are common.
Themes Explored
The major themes are;
Betrayal
It is a common theme in reading. Mary transformed herself from a light character into a dark one.
Gender Roles
You can get an idea about the social expectations of women. What Mary did was not good but Patrick was also betraying her. She was hurt emotionally.
Suspense
The story is full of suspense till the execution of the plan.
Irony
The story is full of irony. Even the title seems amazing ‘The Lamb To The Slaughter”.No one believed how a dinner ingredient became a tool that ended Patrick’s life.
Further, the detectives had consumed the lamb that ended Patrick’s life. They didn’t even get a clue. While Mary was laughing at them, it added dark humor.
Review
I had noticed that Mary was isolated in Patrick’s absence. She was obsessed with him. The only thing that damaged their relationship was a lack of appreciation. It looks like Patrick had not acknowledged Mary. Further, she was in love with him. She demanded the same thing. She didn’t want him to go and seems that’s why she ended him.
- Overall, I recommend this storybook to readers. I loved it because of the twists that were present until the end.
Moral Lessons
I collected these moral lessons from it.
- There can be issues in love but they should be solved properly.
- Try to appreciate your partner.
- Never deceive the loyal people in your life.
- Love should be common in today’s world.
- We can promote peace by showing good gestures.
Conclusion: Roald Dahl Lamb to the Slaughter Summary
Lamb To The Slaughter By Roald Dahl involves the transformation of Mary from a loyal wife to a deceitful one. She was excessively obsessed with her husband Patrick. She went into shock after hearing his view. The storybook is full of suspense till the ending.
- You can check my website for more book summaries and reviews.