Key Quotes - Analysis

'I hate interfering in other people's affairs'

Dr Sheppard, creates irony as he involves himself with blackmailing Mrs Ferrars to her death.

' ''No," I cried impulsively, '"read it now." '

Sheppard is clearly letting himself lose control here, he lets the calm and collected role slip in his desperation to know if he is going to be caught or not.

'I played Watson to his Sherlock'

This quote shows how Dr Sheppard is quite enjoying the investigation and back and forth, also trying to show himself as more innocent to the reader as Watson is a trusted, morally good character.

''I meant it to be published some day as the history of one of Poirot's failures''

Sheppard was adamant that he would not be found out by Poirot which shows an arrogancy of sorts. he believed that he could beat the best detective.

'looking back and wondering if there was anything I had left undone. I could think of nothing.'

Dr Sheppard is clearly referencing the murder here, at first read it seems completely normal and relatable, but after a second read it is clearly incriminating.

'It was just on ten minutes to nine when I left him, the letter still unread'

Another case where Dr Sheppard does not lie, he just omits valuable information. It is true that the letter is still unread but he does not clarify that that's because Ackroyd is dead.

'Had his big reputation been built up on a series of lucky chances?'

Sheppard is showing intense arrogance again, we see that he believes that Poirot is not clever enough to catch him and that he believes that he was lucky the other times.

'Ackroyd was sitting as I had left him'

Again Sheppard does not lie, he is telling the truth about Ackroyd and leaving out the information about how he had left him.

'But the blue envelope containing Mrs Ferrars's letter had disappeared.'

Sheppard is the one who took the envelope, he is shocked that it is disappeared but on a second read we can tell that he is the only one who notices as he is the only one who knew about it.

'A tall girl, with a lot of brown hair rolled tightly away at the back of her neck'

Shows a sense of organisation and professionalism

'A wave of colour swept over her face.'

Bourne seems flustered and almost guilty

'The girl looked at him coldly.'

Ursula stands her ground, she is strong

'She seemed a nice girl'

Ursula makes a good impression on people, she is kind and proper

'With the utterance of the name the smile vanished from her face, and all the cordiality froze out of her manner. She looked uncomfortable and ill at ease.'

We may infer that Ursula has a rough past and that she caused more trouble than assumed

'She would want to make all the trouble she could. Spiteful, that's what they are. They're all alike.'

Mrs Ackroyd makes a sweeping generalisation about servant girls. Ursula is innocent

'I didn't like the way she looked - quite respectful in manner, but a very nasty light in her eyes.'

Ursula is made out to seem quite unlikable by Mrs Ackroyd

'I never have liked that girl very much.'

Maybe there's a hidden unease around Bourne

'She's in a terrible way, poor thing.'

Ursula here seems upset about Ralph Paton which would've taken the reader for a surprise.

'Ursula was equally determined to have done with concealments.'

Ursula is not the type of person to keep secrets and prefers to be open.

'The door was opened with admirable promptitude by Parker'

Efficient and hard-working

'seeing the figure of Parker close at hand.'

Parker was caught spying by Sheppard, the reader is then prompted to wonder why he was so close to the door.

'I only said that for Parker.'

Ackroyd is aware of how nosy Parker is

'Parker stared at me as though I were a ghost.'

This shows a sort of shock, the reader is now confused as to what is going on

' 'Orrible!'

Parker broke his middle class character here, he is reverted back to the lower class speech as he is shocked.

'Parker began to stammer. His hands shook.'

This seems suspicious of Parker

'Parker was most suspiciously flustered. The man was shaking and twitching all over.'

Parker seems guilty and anxious

'If Parker heard anything about blackmail,' I said slowly, 'he must have been listening outside this door with his ear glued against the keyhole.'

Shows Parker's snooping habits

'the butler rose respectfully.'

Seemingly respecting authority

'How much did Major Ellerby pay you to keep your mouth shut?' Parker was staring at him open-mouthed.'

Parker's blackmailing past has come out

'I never dreamed that Parker would have noticed that chair.'

Parker is very observant and notices the small things'

'If Caroline ever adopts a crest, I should certainly suggest a mongoose rampant.'

Represents curiousity

'Caroline can do any amount of finding out by sitting placidly at home.'

Caroline has an incredible ability to find out things from servants who like to gossip.

'Sarcasm is wasted on Caroline. She takes it seriously and answers accordingly.'

This shows Caroline as a focused and serious person

'I could see her nose twitching as she worked on this.'

Described as a rabbit or rodent, sniffing out the scene

'Anyone would have thought it was Caroline's uncle who had been murdered.'

Shows Caroline's curiosity

'Caroline does the home prescribing both for herself and me.'

Also shows her intelligence to be able to handle sensible prescriptions

'Caroline was exactly like a cat'

Shows curiosity and a feminine side to her

'The eyes of the two ladies met, and seemed to exchange information'

A woman's intuition

'shook her head with an air of knowing all about it.'

Caroline is presented as a know-it-all

'Really, Caroline is amazing. She never rests until she knows the last details of everybody's family secrets.'

She is thorough and efficient

'Of course I didn't mean to listen ' 'Of course not,' '

Sheppard points Caroline out on her nosiness

'A lot of people know Hector Blunt - at least by repute.'

Blunt is a known man by his reputation and not who he actually is \= misunderstood

'He has shot more wild animals in unlikely places than any man living'

Blunt would be desensitised to death

'His face is almost mahogany coloured, and is peculiarly

expressionless.'

Shows a lack of care, living up to his name

'He has grey eyes that give the impression of always watching something that is happening very far away'

He is an observer, probably valuing what happens over what he does

'I have heard Hector Blunt described as a woman hater ... he joined Flora at the silver table with what might be described as alacrity'

At first Blunt is represented as someone with a cold and rough heart but somehow manages to act completely different.

'a respectful tone creeping into his voice'

Blunt is widely respected

'I detected signs of emotion beneath the stolid mask'

Blunt's facade dropping

'sounded different - it had a curious sort of humility in it.'

When talking to Flora, Blunt is delicate and genuine

'If so, I could get 'em for you.'

Blunt seems very generous, he offers to bring home gifts for Flora

'She half stretched out her hand, and he took it in both of his, patting it as

though she were a very small child,'

Blunt is gentle with Flora, he treats her with respect and care

'a pleasant young fellow by the name of Raymond'

Shows Raymond as likable and a good characterisation at the start.

'I heard young Raymond's voice, horrorstricken and incredulous'

This shows that Raymond is just as shocked as everyone else, he is undoubtedly disturbed from the murder.

'then stopped dead, his face very white'

Again showing his disgust

'I observed that his hand was shaking.'

Could be guilt or shock

''Nice young fellow that,' said the inspector. 'Something honest and ingenuous about him.''

this shows other's opinions on Raymond, they believe he is trustworthy and genuine.

'I have never seen him ruffled or out of temper. And he has been, I know, a most efficient secretary.'

Representing Raymond as respectful and efficient.

''No idea you'd been living among us incognito, M. Poirot,''

Raymond had previous knowledge of Poirot.

'asked Raymond good-humouredly'

Raymond is presented as a light spirit.

'his irresponsible laugh ringing out.'

Shows an inability to read the room

'who remained goodhumoured and imperturbable as usual.'

He is an uplifting character

'Five hundred pounds puts me on my feet again with a little to spare.'

Could be seen as a motive

'The secretary was debonair as ever.'

Showing a sense of arrogance

'Quite a lot of people do not like Flora Ackroyd, but nobody can help admiring her.'

Flora, like Ralph, is seen for only aesthetic purposes. everyone admires her beauty.

'her extraordinary fairness'

Often associated with innocence and naivety

'A simple straightforward English girl'

She is described as the pinnacle of an English Rose, who is often again only there to be looked at and seen as not intelligent.

'You haven't congratulated me yet, Dr Sheppard,'

This description almost shows Flora as being self centred, she is clearly focused on herself.

'I was shocked by the sight of her face. All the colour had faded away from it.'

This shows Flora as shell shocked and undoubtedly proving how sheltered she was before.

'She had fainted'

Showing Flora's delicacy

'I am a thief-yes, a common, vulgar little thief.'\`

Flora admits her mistakes ad owns up to them, she is obviously choked up about them.

'The last of them, a redoubtable lady called Miss Russell, has reigned undisputed for five years'

This shows Miss Russell as loyal and trustworthy

''Suppose you are really a slave of the drug habit, is there any cure?''

This puts suspicion on Miss Russell, why is she asking about a drug addiction?

'I wondered whether she had been out, for she was breathing hard, as though she had been running.'

This causes the reader to wonder why she is breathing hard? Where was she going?

'Miss Russell must have entered the drawing-room by the window'

Again arouses suspicion, what was she doing to have to enter through a window?

'I saw the colour drain from the housekeeper's face, leaving it dead white.'

This is when it is confirmed that Miss Russell is the mother of Kent, she cannot hide her reaction to her son being in the question for murder.

'Mrs Ackroyd - dependent on the charity of her husband's brother.'

This contrasts who Mrs Ackroyd tries to present herself as, also a motive.

'I detest Mrs Ackroyd. She is all chains and teeth and bones.'

This represents Mrs Ackroyd as a hardened character, one who is disliked by many.

'whilst her eyes remained shrewdly observant of me.'

Mrs Ackroyd is shown to be very watchful and observant in this quotation, we can also relate this to Poirot's idea of women always picking little clues up.

'So difficult for me - in my position as poor Cecil's widow.'

Mrs Ackroyd tries to beg for mercy here, she believes that she can gain sympathy.

'she is the kind of woman who likes to appear well-informed about the topics of the day'

Mrs Ackroyd could arguable be represented here as a know-it-all

'That twenty thousand pounds ought to have been left to me'

Motive for murder

'As poor Cecil's widow'

Repeated term used to gain sympathy

'I don't think Mrs Ackroyd would enjoy being referred to as the old lady. She must spend a considerable amount on cosmetics.'

Shows her as obsessive about her appearance and how other's view her.

'Why should this little upstart of a foreigner make a fuss? A most ridiculous-looking creature he is too'

Mrs Ackroyd seems seemingly distasteful towards Poirot, a very guilty mindset to have.

'Nevertheless we are all very fond of Ralph Paton in King's Abbot.'

This shows Ralph as an immediate likable character, he is liked by all and that shows a good judge of character.

'that it had so often been Ralph.'

Sheppard references the strained relationship of Ralph and Ackroyd which also gives him a motive.

'Ralph, I should say, is out with a girl most nights of his life.'

This description shows Ralph as more of a womanizer, we understand him as a young man who maybe is bored or just wanting to live life whilst he can.

' "Who is the young man with the very dark hair and eyes, and the

handsome face." ... "That must be Captain Ralph Paton," '

This physical characteristic essentially almost boils down Paton's character. He is often seen in an aesthetic purpose instead of who he is.

'No, there was something about that young man that I did not understand.'

Poirot cannot understand Ralph Paton, this may send alarm bells to the reader as they may see Paton as unusual and sticking out too much for Poirot

'I shall be a very rich man when the old fellow pops off.'

Ralph addressing Ackroyd in such a way is obviously disrespectful and also gives him a clear motive: money.

'Ralph Paton was of those born to charm easily and without effort.'

This could be an advantage for him and something that he could use to get away with murder.

'I've got to play a lone hand.'

This is Ralph alienating himself, we see that he is adament on doing this alone. 'this' is unknown.

'Ralph had persuaded her into that, somewhat against her will.'

This almost presents Ralph as manipulative, someone who could escape the consequences for murder.

'he is just a leetle peculiar about money.'

Mrs Ackroyd explains how Roger's dislikeable trait is his protectiveness over money and wealth.

'It struck me that he was anxious to convey the impression that our conference was a medical one. I played up accordingly.'

Sheppard shows the audience how Ackroyd is on edge and nervous, this is almost foreshadowing for what is about to happen.

'I saw the repulsion, the horror, in Ackroyd's face.'

Said by Dr Sheppard, this demonstrates Ackroyd as a law-abiding honest citizen who strives to be always legally right.

'He is fundamentally a good citizen.'

Again, Sheppard shows how good-hearted Ackroyd is.