6. The Landlady, Roald Dahl

• Engels
• Middelbare school
• vwo
• Leerjaar 4

The Landlady 

by Roald Dahl

Have you read Th Landlady?

1. Yes
2. No
3. Most of it

How did you like The Landlady?

😒🙁😐🙂😃

Describe Billy

handsome, young, 17 years old, tall, going to work at an office

Describe The Landlady

old, polite

seems forgetful

seems ladylike

red nail polish

seems generous and kind

'slightly off her rocker' as Billy says

Why does Billy decide to
stay at the landlady's?

The price for the room (including breakfast) is 'fantasically cheap; at 5 and sixpence per night. The landlady seems very generous and kind (halfway p32) and the place looks 'warm and cosy.'

He seems to be drawn to the sign in the window. > 4th paragraph p30

How does Billy see the landlady?

What hints do we get that something strange is going on?

first hint is how Billy seems to be almost drawn to the sign in the window

see all hints marked in yellow and orange

What do you think will happen to Billy at the end of the story?

He will be stuffed by the landlady.

When you hear a sibling talk about an event that you experienced together, do they say what you expect?

1. Yes, it is the same story I would tell.
2. No, it is quite different from my version.
3. Mostly the same.
4. Sometimes the same, sometimes different.

Point of view

The story belongs to the person who tells it

Choosing a narrator

What choices are available to an author when choosing a narrator? The author has two basic alternatives:

 • 1st person

• 3rd person



What point of view is used in The Landlady?

1. 1st person
2. 3rd person

Omniscient

Limited omniscient

Objective

we are privy to inner thoughts of all characters and identify with no one in particular

we are privy to inner thoughts of primary characters, following them more closely and thus identifying with them over others

we have no access to inner thoughts of any characters, identifying only with those whose behaviour reflects our own values

reasons why a 1st person narrator
may not tell the truth

Point of view—experiment 1

"The Story of an Hour"—as told in the 1st person by Josephine:

 "I lingered outside the bedroom door but heard no weeping. After nearly an hour, the door opened, and Louise stepped out. It was most strange, for about her face was a hard, flinty, almost triumphant look. Could my dear sister-in-law be so cold-hearted as to find joy in her husband's death?"

Point of view—experiment 1

Result:

Without a limited omniscient narrator, who takes us inside Mrs. Mallard, we would condemn her as cold and uncaring. And we would miss the irony of her death.

Point of view—experiment 2

“The Test” told by a first-person narrator from the inspector’s perspective

“The Test” told from the first-person
perspective of the inspector:

Marian would appear to us as a stupid, arrogant black woman and we would not be able to sympathise with her.

Point of view—experiment 3

“The Sniper” told by an omniscient author.

“The Sniper” told by an omniscient author.

We, as readers, would identify with both young men equally, without taking sides, taking away most of the tension. There would be no shock in the discovery at the end that these men are in fact brothers.

Point of view—experiment 4

Try to imagine what would change in the story “The Last Rung on the Ladder” if it had been told from Kitty’s point of view.

The Last Rung on the Ladder from Kitty’s point of view

It would become a far more depressing story, describing how her life went from bad to worse and she became lonelier, ending in her death. Larry would only function in the memories of her childhood, maybe as her hero.

If you like reading such creepy stories, you might want to read these:

• short story collections by Roald Dahl, such as  Kiss Kiss
• A Kiss before Dying, novel by Ira Levin
• The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins