This week we are discussing And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie, Ch. 6-11.
Trigger Warning!!! This book contains situations and subjects related to: racism, anti-Semitism, sexism, murder, death, and suicide.
Spoiler Warning!!! This post is full of spoilers for And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie.
Discussion:
Jacilyn: Hello friends and welcome to our second discussion of And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie. We wanted to start today’s discussion with some conversations about the racist background of this book. When we decided on this title, we were aware that it was written in a time much different from ours, where racist stereotypes and verbiage could be used without a second thought - that being said, we don’t typically research the background of books when we read them, so when I Googled this book to see the different cover art that’s been used throughout the years, I was surprised by a Wikipedia entry that popped up as one of the first results.
And Then There Were None was first published in the UK in 1939, and upon its publication, the title was originally Ten Little N******, named after the minstrel song/counting rhyme in the beginning of the book and posted in each character’s room on the island. According to Dictionary.com, the definition of minstrelsy in this context is “the form of entertainment associated with minstrel shows, featuring songs, dances, and formulaic comic routines based on stereotyped depictions of black Americans and typically performed by white actors with blackened faces.” Another title for this rhyme and book was Ten Little Indians, still within the context of minstrelsy, but switching the focus from Black folks to Native American folks instead. Eventually, the book title settled as And Then There Were None, quoting the last line of the rhyme.
In addition to the title and rhyme being examples of racism, there has also been some pretty clear anti-semitism in the writing but what is really interesting is that the use of the word “Jew” in some very unsavory sentences in my ebook edition, have been replaced with the term “little man” in Michaela’s physical edition. Obviously, the use of the word Jew in contexts of sentences like “....that was the damnable part about Jews, you couldn’t deceive them about money - they knew!” is very clearly anti-semitism. However, had I read Michaela’s version of the book without knowing the context, I wouldn’t have automatically pegged that sentence as anti-semitic, but knowing that they changed “Jew” to “little man” doesn’t really make me feel much better about the subject.
It’s really important to discuss and acknowledge this aspect of this book’s history. I know there’s been a lot of talk in the last few years about questionable and offensive contents in books, and whether those books should be taken off of shelves entirely in order to mitigate harm. As a librarian, I believe very firmly in the importance of folks having access to all kinds of books, including those that may perpetuate the various -isms. The reason why, is because taking those titles in context of the times they were created makes space for incredibly crucial conversations about the impact those -ism perpetuations have on society and folks on an individual level as well.
Michaela: Along with all this racism and anti-semitism, there is also a lot of sexism. All of this was unfortunately normal for the time period in which this story takes place and when it was written. It’s important that we acknowledge these things but that doesn’t mean we have to be comfortable with it.
One of the characters we see the most issues like this with is Lombard. It was his character who referred to another as a harmful Jewish stereotype. He also has had a lot to say on the subject of women that is incredibly sexist. Another character who has straightforwardly been racist was Vera Claythorne. While speaking with Miss Brent about Lombard’s accused murders, she refers to the victims by saying “they were only natives”. Meaning she believed their lives worth nothing simply because they were a native East African tribe. It’s honestly disgusting to read someone who thinks that way. However, Miss Brent then surprised the hell out of me by saying that God considered everyone brothers so everyone’s lives mattered no matter if they were “black or white”. I did not even kind of expect that of Miss Brent. But at the same time she thinks everyone in this house is sinners besides her even though she definitely aided in the death of that young woman. So basically, all of these characters are very unlikeable to me.
The only character I kind of liked was General Macarthur, and only because he accepted what was happening on this island, even though he was going just a little crazy. But then he went and admitted to killing that man. So again, everyone sucks. So far almost everyone has admitted to their accused murder listed on the gramophone recording. It’s interesting seeing how these people begin to confess after so staunchly denying it at the beginning. I’m assuming this is what this Owens person wanted. I wonder if everything is going to a plan or if the whole plan was only to follow the nursery rhyme and whoever fits the bill for that number just gets it? All of the characters have kind of accepted that “Owens” is indeed one of the members of this party, and they also all suspect someone different. Personally, I have literally no idea. Armstrong is my strongest candidate simply because of his knowledge of all the drugs used, he was the last one to give something to Mrs. Rogers that we know about, and he also was the one to find the General. But at the same time I think Miss Brent is insane, one of the characters suggested it could be her and she had religious insanity, “An act of God… You regard it as impossible that a sinner should be struck down by the wrath of God!”, ya that sounds totally sane. Honestly I’d believe it. She’s very weird and while she was writing that letter she was like possessed for a couple seconds there. Very strange event even for this story.
Jacilyn: I was also surprised that Emily Brent of all the characters was the one to denounce racism. Especially considering how religion has been used as a weapon in the racist colonization that has happened all across the world. Emily clearly believes that God is the ultimate arbiter of justice…. At least that’s what she wants us to believe. I agree with you Michaela that none of these characters are particularly likable, and a big part of that impression, for me personally, is the bigotry these people are lauding left and right.
A lot of the books we’ve read recently have been very character-driven, and this book is definitely flipping that streak on its head. I’ll admit that I had a rough time feeling captivated by this book in the first section, but the plot has thickened enough at this point that I’m desperate to figure out who the culprit is. I have three potential suspects in mind at this point….. Number one is Dr. Armstrong, for the same reasons you outlined above, and his general shifty behavior after Mrs. Rogers was found dead. He has had the best opportunity in all of these murders now, with perhaps the exception of Mr. Rogers…. But, he could have easily slipped out before everyone else awoke, and then come back to his rooms to appear freshly woken later on. My second suspect is Emily Brent also. She seems a little too put together and in control, but honestly the closest thing to concrete was her convenient disappearance around the time that Macarthur was found dead. My final suspicion, at this juncture anyways, is Justice Wargrave. He literally acts as judge and executioner by proxy in his career, and who’s to say he hasn’t gotten tired of sticking within the framework of the law when it comes to prosecuting those who have done wrong.
Michaela: It’s like everyone has a very valid reason for us to be suspicious of them but at the same time we might be expected to suspect them when the real murderer is someone else. It’s driving me crazy, I need to know!
Everyone is having weird dreams or even what seems like hallucinations from fear and/or guilt. Everyone is also conveniently missing at certain points. Everyone has had access to every murder. Everyone also has access to the figurines on the table to keep taking them after every murder. I was really confused by Mr. Rogers’ statement the night before his death saying, “I’ve seen to no more games tonight” with a grin on his face. What does that even mean? At first I thought maybe he just glued the figurines down or something, I have no idea. I feel like it could also be possible that this Owens is already one of the dead characters and they expected the fear, guilt, and suspicions to lead to everyone else killing each other in order to not be the victims themselves. We already kind of have these little teams that keep shifting. Lombard, Blore, and Armstrong teamed up. At one point Wargrave and Armstrong were buddies. Then Lombard and Vera were kind of flirty. Then Vera and Brent were buddies until Vera got creeped out. Everyone keeps bouncing back and forth.
This book has definitely hooked me with this mystery, I’m really anxious to get to the end. I’m also so curious to see how this nursery rhyme keeps coming into play. Will it actually follow the rhyme all the way to the end?
Jacilyn: What I took from Mr. Rogers saying “no more games tonight!” was that he locked up the room so no one could get in, but that was purely speculation on my part. I know he locked the cupboard during that part, so that’s what I took his statement to mean, but I could very well be wrong. I am also betting that the author is setting us up to suspect certain people when it’s not who you think it would be at all. It makes me wonder if someone lied about the murder they are accused of and didn’t actually do anything to someone, or if perhaps the perpetrator will kill themselves at the end of all of this because they believe they should be punished as well. I’m honestly uncertain, myself, but that’s what’s making this storyline so compelling! I am hoping that when it comes time for our final discussion, we’ll finally know the answer to the mystery. We’ll see you next time, folks!
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