the veiled lodger
Apr. 8th, 2018 11:02 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
sarahthecoatI finally found an audiobook version! And it’s read by Christopher Lee! what a treat.
This story has always seemed a bit odd to me, since it’s nearly all told in retrospect. The landlady, Mrs Merrilow, comes and tells about how Mrs Ronder came to lodge with her years ago, then Holmes consults his scrapbooks about the death of Mr Ronder some years past, and then Mrs Ronder herself fills in the story. Really the only present excitement, is Holmes’ twigging on her having become suicidal, and speaking up to urge her not to kill herself.
This story does ring changes on many recurring themes though. Mrs Ronder was an abused wife, but in this case, it all happened in the past, Holmes was not able to help her during that time. There are other stories in which someone is mauled by a beast (dogs, off the top of my head, in COPP and HOUN), and again, too far in the past for Watson to come to the rescue with his good aim.
It also in a way echoes the events of FINA, in that Mrs Ronder and Leonardo had a plan for how to deal with Mr Ronder, and Leonardo did part of it, he did kill Mr Ronder, but then he left Mrs Ronder to her fate, when he should have stayed by her side and protected her. I wonder how Watson and Holmes see themselves reflected, whether each one sees himself as the one who left when he should have stayed. At least it wasn’t cowardice as it was with Leonardo.
acd veil veil acd astudyincanon
23 notes
Apr 8th, 2018
This story has always seemed a bit odd to me, since it’s nearly all told in retrospect. The landlady, Mrs Merrilow, comes and tells about how Mrs Ronder came to lodge with her years ago, then Holmes consults his scrapbooks about the death of Mr Ronder some years past, and then Mrs Ronder herself fills in the story. Really the only present excitement, is Holmes’ twigging on her having become suicidal, and speaking up to urge her not to kill herself.
This story does ring changes on many recurring themes though. Mrs Ronder was an abused wife, but in this case, it all happened in the past, Holmes was not able to help her during that time. There are other stories in which someone is mauled by a beast (dogs, off the top of my head, in COPP and HOUN), and again, too far in the past for Watson to come to the rescue with his good aim.
It also in a way echoes the events of FINA, in that Mrs Ronder and Leonardo had a plan for how to deal with Mr Ronder, and Leonardo did part of it, he did kill Mr Ronder, but then he left Mrs Ronder to her fate, when he should have stayed by her side and protected her. I wonder how Watson and Holmes see themselves reflected, whether each one sees himself as the one who left when he should have stayed. At least it wasn’t cowardice as it was with Leonardo.
acd veil veil acd astudyincanon
23 notes
Apr 8th, 2018
