The Landlady

Use these questions or activities to help gauge students’ familiarity with and spark their interest in the context of the work, giving them an entry point into the text itself.

Short Answer

1. Consider the differences between the terms “tradition” and “modernity.” What values are associated with each? How are the two ideas antithetical?

Teaching Suggestion: This question orients students with the thematic discussion of the story. As a part of his focus on The Anonymity of Modern Life, Dahl juxtaposes the harsh, cold, and “brisk” exterior of Billy’s modern world with the warm, inviting, safe-seeming interior of the landlady’s traditional home. However, this security is false, as Billy’s modern and detached outlook does not protect him from the landlady’s trap. In this sense, tradition and modernity are linked, and the anonymity that the modern world creates—note the two young men have already vanished and been almost forgotten—allows the landlady to prey on young men and avoid suspicion. Ultimately, the landlady remains anonymous—neither Billy nor the reader ever learns her name.

• This 2011 article from BBC explores darker elements represented in Dahl’s stories.
• This 2016 in-depth article from Smithsonian Magazine discusses Dahl’s background along with his motivations for writing.

Short Activity

Throughout his life, author Roald Dahl published numerous novels and short stories. Working in small groups, select one of Dahl’s works and share with the class the major story elements (i.e., characters, setting, plot, climax, historical context, audience, etc.). Be sure to include any pictures and/or videos, if relevant.

Teaching Suggestion: This Short Activity orients students to the author’s background in the context of group work and presentation. Using the links below as a starting point, each group should select a different work of Dahl’s to share with the class. This Short Activity is suitable for younger and/or beginning classes who are learning the basics of story writing and literature analysis; for more advanced classes and/or older age groups, please see the Differentiation Suggestion below.

• Roalddahl.com shares a variety of information, including teacher-facing resources, for his collection of works.
• History.com provides an overview of Dahl’s life, including the different audiences that Dahl had in mind for his different works.

Differentiation Suggestion: For more advanced classes, the Short Activity may be altered to include the following question: Although he is best known for his children’s stories, Dahl wrote a variety of texts for adults as well. How did Dahl differentiate his stories based on audience? Analyze the intended audience of your selected piece, sharing examples of who Dahl’s intended audience is and substantiating your argument with context clues.

Personal Connection Prompt

This prompt can be used for in-class discussion, exploratory free-writing, or reflection homework before reading the story.

What does “objectification” mean? How does objectifying someone transform how we see them? How does being objectified affect a person’s self-view and worldview?

Teaching Suggestion: This Personal Connection Prompt orients students with the theme of The Fetishizing of Youth. Billy, the protagonist, is described as a 17-year-old, “brisk,” young worker in the modern world. The reader comes to realize that the landlady prizes him due to his age and would like to use taxidermy to stop him from growing older. In this sense, the landlady fetishizes Billy’s youth, likening him to the other young men who stayed at her residence, without any real interest in his name or who he is. This Personal Connection Prompt directly connects with the Discussion/Analysis Prompt.

• Merriam-Webster’s definition of “objectify”