In the short story written by Roald Dahl called "Lamb to the Slaughter" describes the life of what seemed to be an innocent, pregnant housewife, but turned into a devious murder after her husband turned on their marriage. The story about denial, grief and battle for one’s innocence portrayed by Mary Maloney, tells a story of how women are capable of doing much more than what their abilities are seen as. From stereotypes, to appearances, to the assumptions made with betrayal, all influence’s the perspective of how the public view women.
People tend to underestimate the power of those who seem to be weak, specifically women. In Lamb to the Slaughter, Mary’s strength and capabilities were frowned upon due to the stereotype held upon women.…show more content… In the story it appears that Mary is the weaker character. The story indicates, “She waits patiently at home for her husband to return” (Dahl 1). Mary’s highlight of the day seems to be waiting for her husband to come home, gazing at the clock by the dinner table, awaiting him like a servant. Nonetheless, proving that she not capable of being happy herself, and relies on her husband to control her happiness. Not only is Mary described to be small, she is also pregnant, making her even more vulnerable too. When Patrick tells her that he is leaving her, the reader automatically assumes that Mary is the victim of the story, even more so when Patrick reveals that he doesn’t want their marriage to disrupt or tarnish his career. “Of course, I’ll give you money and see you’re looked after. But there needn’t really be any fuss’’ (Dahl 2). Patrick is selfish and inert to the maelstrom of emotions and does not think how his decisions impact his devoted, pregnant wife. In contrast to this behavior, when Mary had killed Patrick with the leg of lamb, we learn that Mary’s anger had took over her and she was no longer in control of her actions. Contrary to how most characters in the story assumed Mary to be a devoted, innocent wife. For instance, in the story, after the murder occurred, the grocer was happy to help her organise the missing ingredients of her husband's supper. In addition, the police from Patrick's station are sensitive to the emotions of the pregnant widow. The persona that Mary portrayed covered up the crime that she was responsible for and making her one less suspect of the murder scene. These are all real life examples in the story of how Mary’s appearance helped cover up the murder. All the characters judged Mary based on her appearance, without