How Is Mr Maloney Different From Lamb To The Slaughter

When comparing Roald Dahl's short story "Lamb to the Slaughter" to Alfred Hitchcock's movie adaptation, Lamb to the Slaughter, audiences find it easier to sympathize with Hitchcock's live portrayal of Mrs. Mary Maloney; this is because in the film, the reason for divorce is clearly stated, Mrs. Maloney vocalizes her feelings more often and is met with harsher opposition from Mr. Patrick Maloney, and her emotions are clearly shown. In Dahl's original short story, the idea of divorce is danced around. What Mr. Maloney talked to his wife about is never explicitly stated, so it is left to be inferred by the audiences. On the contrary, Hitchcock's Mr. Maloney is shown explicitly stating what is making him upset: "Patrick: The truth is, Mary, I want to leave you. You understand me, don't you?

Now that Mr. Maloney has clearly stated why he is upset, audiences truly know what is going on and why it is upsetting Mrs. Maloney. Since audiences have a better understanding of what is upsetting her, they have an easier time sympathizing with her as they know for certain what she is going through. When everything is clearly laid out, it is easier for audiences to get a sense of what is going on and to emotionally respond accordingly. In addition to this, after Mrs. Maloney gets dinner from the freezer, she tries to stop Mr. Maloney's actions. In the short story, Mr. Maloney makes a smart comment before getting hit in the head by Mrs. Maloney. In the movie adaptation, she begs him not to leave multiple times, but he only meets her with even more resentment and a harsh attitude, resulting in his death: "Mrs Maloney: Patrick, I won't let you [go]! I won’t, I won’t, I won’t!... Patrick: Try and stop me" (Hitchcock, 6:08-6:20). In the movie adaptation, Mrs. Maloney has much more passion when begging Mr. Maloney not to leave, whining and begging for him to stay; in the short story version, Mrs. Maloney does not ask him once to not