The Three Versions of Lamb to the Slaughter

Original Version

Within the three adaptations of Lamb to the Slaughter, they all have small differences from each other that make each story interesting in its own way. In the text, Lamb to the Slaughter (the original) Mary is first portrayed as a sweet innocent lady who loves her husband. But she then is later seen as kind of sneaky and maybe even scary. Patrick is portrayed as a busy person and seems like he has lots of authority.

Hitchcock’s Version

Compared to the original, the Alfred Hitchcock version offers a Mary that is first seen as very caring and is more all over her husband. And in the end, she is more creepy. I think that the writer this so that the viewer understands why she might be so upset that he is leaving her. The Hitchcock version also shows Patrick as more a rude person and a bit more forward compared to the original. I think the writer did this so that the viewer could possibly sympathize Mary with the whole situation. In the Hitchcock version compared to the original, the writer decided to have Mary refuse to let her husband leave her. I think the writer did this to help viewers see how angry she was and to see what her motive for hitting him was.

Another difference was that the writer did was that he added the fact that Mary staged the murder scene to make it look like Patrick had gotten into a fight. I think they decided to do this because it let the viewer see the knowledge that Mary had about the situation and also show how smart she is. The last thing that was added was the fact that the detectives pointed out how surprising it was that the leg of lamb didn’t burn in the oven because of its size and how the looked at it and complimented it. I think the writer did this to add some humor and irony to the story to make it more enjoyable.

1979 Version

Also compared to the original the 1979 version also had some differences. In the 1979 version, Mary at first seemed a bit clueless and seems like she cares for her husband A LOT. The writer probably did this because they wanted to have a reason for Mary to be so angry about his decision to leave her. And in this version, Patrick is shown as more mean and masculine. The first difference I noticed is that they change the order of a story. I think the writer did this to make the viewer more engaged with the story and make sure they paid attention. Something the writer also added was the fact that her husband had been cheating on her. I think the writer did this to help the viewers create a motive for Mary. Last, something they also changed was how dramatic Mary was when Patrick said he was going out. I think the writer did the video to make it more enjoyable and eye-catching.