Essay On Symbolism In Lamb To The Slaughter

Planning with Cowardice

In the book “Lamb To The Slaughter,” written by Roald Dahl, was a really cliffhanger story. During the story Mary’s husband decides he wants to leave Mary after she’s already six months pregnant with her husband. Something tweaks in her head and ends his life with a leg of lamb, that she was going to cook for dinner. Once she settled down she acts fast with faking a story by going to the store and coming home to the police. She ends up using the weapon as dinner for the police. The author showed how Mary used cowardice throughout the story through the literary devices of Symbolism, Foreshadowing, and Tone. Throughout the story, Dahl used the leg of the lamb as a symbol to show the cowardice in Mary. Also what occurred was “Don’t make supper for me i’m going out.” (Patrick 2) this is a perfect example of symbolism because Patrick used going out to supper instead of having Mary cook for him. Instead of owning up and being a man Patrick is trying to run away from his mistake. Later throughout the story, suspense is built up when the police are looking for the suspect and weapon. Mary snarkily says “Why don’t you eat up the

With her saying “Patrick, How are you doing?” (Mary 3) right as soon as she walked in from the store, even though she knows he is on the ground dead. If she was really upset, then in the first place she would have told someone. Instead she was scared and tried acting like she wasn’t a coward. How she uses her scarness later in the story, she says “Would you like a drink?” (Mary 4) which she said to the police when they were investigating the crime scene. If you weren't scared or being a coward, then you wouldn’t ask the police who are trying to help you if they want a drink. How Dahl inserted tone throughout the story is he show how her feelings and sense