Insane In And Then There Were None

In the book, And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie, ten guests who all committed crimes that the law could not touch were invited to Soldier Island where they begin to be killed off by an unknown person known as U.N. Owens. Justice Lawrence Wargrave was a retired judge who was invited to the island on the charge of sentencing Edward Seton to death, despite the fact that Seton claimed to be innocent. His appearance to the guests was very different compared to what he actually was. He appeared to the other guests as an old honorable man who served the law, but he was actually a hanging judge that took great pleasure from causing other people to suffer and even face death. Justice Wargrave’s appearance to the guests was that of an old

The readers learn that Wargrave is insane in the Manuscript at the end of the book, where Wargrave writes “I have a definite sadistic delight in seeing or causing death”(A Manuscript - Chapter 18). This quote shows that Wargrave was definitely someone insane. From what is known about Wargrave, a good epitaph that would represent him is “A hanging judge who enjoyed sentencing people for crimes that could not be proven.” A hanging judge comes from Wargrave’s exceedingly harsh punishments. He also admits that he enjoyed seeing criminals suffer when he writes “To see a wretched criminal squirming in the dock, suffering the tortures of the damned, as his doom came slowly and slowly nearer, was to me an exquisite pleasure.” (A Manuscript - Chapter 18) Finally, when the epitaph says “sentencing people for crimes that could not be proven”, that comes from the Edward Seton case. Wargrave explains that “my own knowledge of criminals told me without any doubt that the man had actually committed the crime with which he was charged with.”(A Manuscript - Chapter 18). He admits that his verdict on the Edward Seton case was not firmly based on evidence, but based on Wargrave’s knowledge of criminals. A good symbol that represents Wargrave’s bad side is a hangman’s noose. It is based directly off of Wargrave’s reputation as a hanging judge. In chapter three, Dr. Armstrong recognized Wargrave and thought “A hanging judge, some people said.”(Chapter 3) This piece of evidence confirms Wargrave’s reputation as a hanging judge for a lot of