Literary Elements in the Landlady by Roald Dahl Essay Example

Roald Dahl uses many literary elements to help keep the reader engaged in the text and to reveal what will eventually happen in the story. Dahl uses things such as foreshadowing, imagery, similes, metaphors, and symbolism. When Dahl uses these elements, he creates tension, and makes you think about what is happening now, and in the future of the book. Dahl also uses his own experience, such as going to a quite strict school in his younger days. The schools he went to practically abused the students, which he is surprised was allowed. With the events that happened in his life, he uses his experiences to give his text a chilling theme, and a real spark to the story.

In the beginning of the story, Billy had just gotten off the train, and Dahl used descriptive language to say how the air was “deadly cold”, which makes the reader have an image in their head of how Billy was feeling. He had walked off the train and immediately got smacked in the face by a gust of cold air, and Dahl described it perfectly, using words like “A flat blade of ice on his cheeks.” Dahl uses a lot of imagery in his text, so you can picture what is going on in the text. He includes the colors of things, which also links to symbolism. He talks about how Billy walks, and the colors of the clothes he is wearing, such as the colors brown and dark blue. He talks about the way all of the houses are the same, and how they used to be nice, but have begun to crack and peel. He uses symbolism to make you think about how things can connect.

As Billy is walking, he sees a bed and breakfast. A nice old lady opened the door almost immediately, and Billy had felt compelled to go inside. Dahl's use of words in the start of the text could have helped the reader come to a conclusion that Billy wasn’t thinking properly, which is another use of foreshadowing in his text. It leads the reader to think since he was so cold he could have missed the red flags of the old lady's house. Billy notes that there have only been two other guests in the last three years, and the lady was adamant on him signing the book almost immediately after he walked in. Another red flag was the lady's statement that she chooses her guests, which was another red flag Billy had missed. With Dahl's writing, the reader knows that something bad will happen, which is another element of suspense that Dahl adds. When the reader knows that something will happen, it lets the reader's imagination think of a possible ending. With Dahl’s ways of speech, and use of foreshadowing you can almost guide yourself to think about what might happen, but without spoiling the book.

Dahl’s use of literary elements helps the reader connect themselves with the story. With his usage of foreshadowing and suspense, you can directly know what happens. Dahl limits his use of foreshadowing at the same time, so you know what is going on but only to a certain point. He used language that let the reader form their own interpretations of what is happening in the story, as well as endings that allow the reader to understand what occurred. Dahl's use of foreshadowing is beneficial since it provides you a clearer sense of what is happening and what will happen. Dahl's own experiences add interest to the narrative, which benefits the reader by making it more enjoyable to read.