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A C a s e o f M u r d e r b y V e r n o n S c a n n e l l. They should not have left him alone, Alone that is except for the cat. He was only nine, not old enough To be left alone in a basement flat. 5 Alone, that is, except for the cat.
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A C a s e o f M u r d e r b y V e r n o n S c a n n e l l
They should not have left him alone, Alone that is except for the cat. He was only nine, not old enough To be left alone in a basement flat. 5 Alone, that is, except for the cat. A dog would have been a different thing, A big gruff dog with slashing jaws, But a cat with round eyes mad as gold, Plump as a cushion with tucked-in paws – 10 Better have left him with a fair-sized rat!
But what they did was leave him with a cat. He hated that cat; he watched it sit, A buzzing machine of soft black stuff, He sat and watched and he hated it, 15 Snug in its fur, hot blood in a muff, And its mad gold stare and the way it sat Crooning dark warmth: he loathed all that. So he took Daddy's stick and he hit the cat.
Then quick as a sudden crack in glass 20 It hissed, black flash, to a hiding place In the dust and dark beneath the couch, And he followed the grin on his new-made face, A wide-eyed, frightened snarl of a grin, And he took the stick and he thrust it in, 25 Hard and quick in the furry dark, The black fur squealed and he felt his skin Prickle with sparks of dry delight.
Then the cat again came into sight, Shot for the door that wasn't quite shut, 30 But the boy, quick too, slammed fast the door: The cat, half-through, was cracked like a nut And the soft black thud was dumped on the floor. Then the boy was suddenly terrified And he bit his knuckles and cried and cried; 35 But he had to do something with the dead thing there. His eyes squeezed beads of salty prayer But the wound of fear gaped wide and raw;
He dared not touch the thing with his hands So he fetched a spade and shovelled it 40 And dumped the load of heavy fur In the spidery cupboard under the stair Where it's been for years, and though it died It's grown in that cupboard and its hot purr Grows slowly louder year by year: 45 There’ll not be a corner for the boy to hide When the cupboard swells and all sides split And the huge black cat pads out of it.
The Title A Case of Murder Look at the opening lines:- “They should not have left him alone, Alone that is except for the cat. He was only nine, not old enough To be left alone in a basement flat.” • What would you have predicted from reading the title and these lines? What effect does this create when you realise who or what has been murdered?
Central Themes • neglect - boy left ‘home alone’ “They should not have left him alone…” • crueltyto animals – specifically the pet cat “… he took Daddy's stick and he hit the cat” • fear – the boy is terrified by what he has done “…he had to do something with the dead thing there” • guilt – the boy ends feeling guilty about murdering his cat “There’ll not be a corner for the boy to hide …”
First Impressions • We firstly feel sorry for the boy. “He was only nine, not old enough To be left alone in a basement flat.” • This turns to shock when we realise his attitude to his pet. “He sat and watched and he hated it …” • This turns to horror when the ‘murder’ is committed! “the soft black thud was dumped on the floor …”
The boy and his ‘relationship’with the Cat! • dislike “round eyes mad as gold …” “Plump as a cushion …” “A buzzing machine …” “hot blood in a muff …” “And its mad gold stare …” • uncaring attitude “the soft black thud was dumped on the floor …” “And dumped the load of heavy fur …”
Creation of Boy’s Character • Left alone in a basement flat – sounds quite miserable “They should not have left him alone …” • Jealousy? Note how the cat is described: “snug”; “crooning “; “soft”; “tucked-in” • Is the boy feeling so neglected that he needs to hit out • and hurt something? • Boy looking for something to bully. Look at the lines: “A dog would have been a different thing, A big gruff dog with slashing jaws”
Creation of Boy’s Character Enjoyment of power. “the grin on his new-made face” Use of boy’s language. “Daddy's stick “ “buzzing machine of soft black stuff”
Effectiveness of Language 1 • Similes “round eyes mad as gold” “quick as a sudden crack in glass” “Plump as a cushion” “cracked like a nut” • Metaphors “A buzzing machine” “hot blood in a muff” “black flash” “soft black thud”
Effectiveness of Language 2 • Onomatopoeia “slashing jaws” “buzzing machine“ “Crooning dark warmth” “snarl of a grin” “soft black thud” • Personification “the furry dark”
Effectiveness of Language 3 • Alliteration “In the dust and dark” “soft black stuff” “dry delight” • Assonance “dark warmth” “black flash” “thud was dumped” “snug in its fur”
Effectiveness of Language 4 Rhythm This speeds up as the cat rushes for the door. This is achieved by a placing a rhyme in the middle of the line. “But the boy, quick too, slammed fast the door: The cat, half-through, was cracked like a nut”
Effectiveness of Language 5 Rhythm This is then contrasted with one of the longest lines in the poem; “But the boy, quick too, slammed fast the door: The cat, half-through, was cracked like a nut And the soft black thud was dumped on the floor.”
Grammar 1 • Verbs – look at the dramatic action words “hit”; “flash”; “thrust”; “shot”; “slammed” • Adjectives “gruff”; “slashing”; “soft”; black”; “buzzing”; “hot”; “dark”; “mad”; “gold”; “frightened”; “dry”; “salty”
Grammar 2 • Nouns and Pronouns He hated that cat; he watched it sit, A buzzing machine of soft black stuff, He sat and watched and he hated it, Snug in its fur, hot blood in a muff, And its mad gold stare and the way it sat Crooning dark warmth: he loathed all that. So he took Daddy's stick and he hit the cat.
Structure • Look at the structure of certain lines “And he took the stick and he thrust it in …” “Better have left him with a fair-sized rat! “ “Alone that is except for the cat.” Repeated twice at lines 2 and 5
