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Situational Irony
Style
Explanation and Analysis:
Dahl’s writing style in “The Landlady” features several elements found in horror stories, such as dialogue with unsettling subtext, a fair amount of foreshadowing, and the inclusion of specific haunting details. Dialogue makes up much of the story, with Billy posing direct questions to the landlady and the landlady giving evasive and unnerving answers. For example, Billy asks about the two young men who last stayed at the bed and breakfast years ago (since he recognizes their names from the newspaper) and the landlady responds that they “never left.” Billy concludes that the landlady is “off her rocker” and fails to follow up on what she means.
This is one of the many moments of foreshadowing that Dahl includes in the story. Almost everything the landlady says foreshadows the big reveal—that she killed and stuffed the two young men who previously stayed there and that she is in the middle of killing Billy (via poisoned tea) and stuffing him as well.
Dahl also highlights particular details meant to unnerve readers throughout the story, as seen in the following passage:
[Billy] stood by the piano, watching [the landlady] as she fussed about with the cups and saucers. He noticed that she had small, white, quickly moving hands and red fingernails.
In a non-horror-story version of “The Landlady,” Billy might notice the pastel colors on the teacups or the landlady’s gentle demeanor as she prepares the tea, but here he notices her “small, white, quickly moving hands” and her “red fingernails.” The quickly moving nature of her hands suggests that she is anxious or on edge (adding a nervous energy to the story) and the red color of her nails communicates a sinister undertone (as red is often associated with blood). Her painted nails also suggest that, despite her seemingly feeble nature, she is quite dexterous. Dahl includes many small details like this to hint at the landlady’s deceptive appearance as well as the horrifying reveal to come.
Related Themes:
