Analysis on Norman Whitney –

The Stanger
A. Summary

On Saturday, 31st October 1964, in late evening, a stranger named Dave Slatin comes to
Woodend. He seeks for somewhere to stay the night. He once knocks at a door and a woman
opens it. He asks whether there is a hotel to stay in or not but there is not. The woman then
takes Dave to Mrs. Harrison’s House and Mrs. Harrison gives him a room for the night.

The next day, Sunday, Dave looks round the village. He seems interested in the history of the
village. He meets some of the villagers going to the church and asks their names. However,
what is strange is he does not visit the church whereas it is the most beautiful building in
Woodend. He does not seem interested in it. Dave, indeed, remains a stranger in Woodend
but most of villagers likes him especially the ladies. They think that Dave is very good-
looking. They want to meet Dave again or talk to him but he has gone.

A few weeks later, Dave comes back to Woodend. He has decided to take a long stay or even
live in Woodend so that he seeks for a house. One of the villagers tells him about old Mr.
Smith’s house. The House is on the corner of Main Street and Church Lane. A few days later,
the house is sold and it is Dave who buys it. Then, in the middle of December, Dave surprises
the villagers by him opening a shop.

It is unbelievable that there is a shop in Woodend. It is about twenty years ago since the last
shop in Woodend is closed. Everybody talks about it. This new shop seems causing trouble.
Many pros and cons about the shop. Until one evening, every villager meets in the village
hall to discuss about this new shop. The result falls to an agreement to allow Dave opening a
shop but he has to promise to keep everything cheap and good.

Dave keeps his promise and his shop is soon very successful. He hires one assistant named
Anna. All of villagers shop in his shop and even people from Lindsey come too. He becomes
so popular but no one has come to visit him in his flat, above the shop. No one ever sees
inside it. There is one room also in his shop having a notice in it. It is written “SPECIAL
ORDERS ONLY : KEEP OUT”. That room is always locked and no one go into it. It remains
mysterious.

One day in April, a very beautiful woman, named Greta Gordon comes. She is an actress. She
says to Anna that she wants to meet Dave in person. Then, Dave comes down immediately
and they shake hands. Soon Anna’s attention is stolen by a diamond ring she uses. It is very
beautiful and sparkling. Dave and Greta actually do not know each other. Dave calls her Miss
Gordon and Greta calls him Mr. Slatin. It surprises Anna.

In a hurry, they soon go to the Special Orders room. It surprises Anna even more and is quite
strange. She never sees Dave bringing someone into that room. Ten minutes later, Greta
Gordon comes out of the Special Orders room with a pale and terrible face. She is crying.
Anna offers her a help but Greta refuses. She gives Anna a photograph of her instead and
signs it. She asks Anna to keep what she has watched as a secret. She kisses Anna and goes.
Then Anna notices something from her. The diamond ring is gone. The following day, Anna
asks Dave about Greta Gordon but he refuses to answer.

One day in May, Peter, Anna’s boyfriend, asks her to marry him. They plan to marry the
following year. They are becoming very hard in working in order to save a lot. One
afternoon, Anna sees a magazine about film stars and reads it. There is a picture of Greta
Gordon and a news about her. It says, in short, that Greta Gordon becomes the star of
‘Beautiful Woman’ because the previous cast Joanna Leigh breaks her arm in her bedroom.
She shows Dave the news in magazine but he says that he has no idea about film. He just
does hope that Greta will be happy with her big part of the film.

Then one Friday, Dave surprises Anna by asking her to spend a day with him. They can go
everywhere by Dave’s car. She really wants to go but she worries about Peter. Dave tells it
will be okay. They will not go far. Anna agrees. They spend a day in Lidney. After spending
a day together, they go back to the shop but it is too late to open the shop. Before going
home, in Dave’s car, Anna says thank to Dave and suddenly Dave kisses her. It is quick but is
wonderful to Anna.

Anna’s life is getting more difficult. She likes Dave and Peter. Her mind keeps comparing
those two boys. She doesn’t know how to rightly behave. It is already September. Peter
always plays football on Saturday. There will also a football match on television. Mr. Hart,
having the biggest television in the village, invites Anna and Peter to come to watch the
match together.

On Friday before the match, when Anna almost closes the shop, the bell rings and she goes to
the door. There is a young man outside carrying a case. He wants to see Dave but she says
that the shop is almost closed and he can come tomorrow. But the young man has actually
had an appointment with him. All of a sudden, Dave has spoken behind Anna and asks him to
go to the Special Order Rooms. He is the second special customer.

Anna leaves the shop and goes to the corner to hear what they are doing inside the Special
Orders Room. A few minutes later, the young man comes out of the shop without having his
case in his hand. Anna suddenly comes out of her hide and follows him quickly to his car.
Then, she asks that he seems leaving his case inside. The young man’s face turns white
instead, white with fears. He asks Anna to leave him alone. He suddenly gets into his car and
drives off. Anna falls silent. She is now thinking.

On the day of the match, in Mr. Hart’s House, instead of watching the match Anna helps Mrs.
Hart in the kitchen. Then, something strange happens. In the last seconds of the match, Mike
Bailey scores the winner. He has kicked the ball in the last goal very hard. It hits the
goalkeeper’s neck until it is broken. A moment later, there is a news about that accident on
television. The interviewer is asking direct questions to Mike Bailey but he looks terrible and
can say nothing. He looks frightened. No one notices that there is another person who is as
frightened as Mike Bailey. It is Anna. She still remembers that Mike Bailey is the young man
she has met yesterday.

One day, all in surprise, Dave asks Anna, again, to spend a weekend in London while Peter is
busy with his football. Anna is very excited but she is afraid of Peter. Finally, she wants to
come with him with one condition. She wants to ask about Special Orders Room. Dave wants
to answer but only one question. She asks him about why people come to see him in the
Special Orders Room. He says that they come for help and he sells help to them. His answer
remains unsatisfiable for her. She wants to ask more but she says no more.

Anna enjoys the weekend. They stay at a hotel in London. They go shopping, to the cinema,
and to a park. They come back to Woodend on Sunday evening, the last day of September.
On Monday evening, in Anna’s house, Peter comes and looks angry. He has known what she
is doing with Dave to spend the weekend. He asks her to choose between Dave and him.
Anna wants to explain everything to Peter but he refuses. He just then leaves her. She feels so
sad.

October has arrived. Most of the villagers have known about Anna having a quarrel with
Peter and also about her having been to London with Dave. She is different now. She often
looks ill. She is not a happy, smiling girl anymore. In the middle of the month, when she
works at the shop as usual, a middle-aged gentlemen comes in. He is a big man with very big
moustache. He carries a large briefcase which has the letters A.R.I.C.S printed on it. He asks
to see Dave. But Anna said that he is busy right away and offers him to tell Dave that he is
coming. She also asks for his name. He is Arthur Roberts. Then, Anna goes to the back of the
shop and tells Dave that he has a person who wants to meet. Dave comes down the stairs.

Surprisingly, Dave greets him by saying “Good morning, Mr. Riseman.” His true name is
Arthur Riseman. She is indeed being lied. Mr. Arthur Riseman then follows Dave to Special
Orders Room. Anna decides to stay and has lunch at the shop while waiting for Mr. Arthur
Riseman to come out. She writes down the letters A.R.I.C.S. She guesses that A.R stands for
Arthur Riseman but has no idea about I.C.S.

An hour later, Mr. Riseman comes out of that room without bringing his briefcase and is
surprised after knowing that Anna is still in the shop. Anna offers him to buy home-made
bread. She said that he can put it in his briefcase. Mr. Riseman denies that he has a briefcase.
But Anna keeps telling that he has it and he just forgets it. She then offers him to get his
briefcase. She moves towards the back of the shop.

All of a sudden, Mr. Riseman steps in front of her and hold her wrists tightly. He said that he
doesn’t want that briefcase. Anna is hurting and asks him to let go of her. Mr. Riseman
releases her and leaves her hurriedly. Anna has observed that there will be a news about the
special customers after their meeting with Dave in Special Order Room, so she waits for
some news about Mr. Riseman. Day by day, she looks for the news in the newspaper,
watches the television, and listens to the radio, but he gets nothing. Thus, she decides to go to
London to find Arthur Riseman.

After arriving in London, Anna looks for a telephone box. The telephone box is full. She
stands and waits. She then sees the letters I.C.S. It stands for International Computer
Services. Soon the telephone box is empty. She rings the number of I.C.S., 222 8959. She
wants to talk directly to Mr. Riseman but he is still in a meeting. She is rather disappointed
but is quite happy to know Mr. Riseman company. She is then back to Woodend by train and
buys a newspaper.

In the train, she looks at her newspaper. She finds a news about Mr Riseman in the front
page. It says that several people from International Computer Service are killed in plane crash
at Enfield. Among them is Mr. Alfred Gluck, the chairman of I.C.S. However, Mr. Riseman,
the vice chairman of I.C.S is luckily not killed because he is still in a meeting and does not
 catch the plane. Soon, after arriving back, she hears a news on a radio that the chairman of
I.C.S is replaced by Mr. Riseman.

One Saturday, at eleven o’clock, Dave leaves the shop and it is only Anna there. It is a
chance for Anna to observe into the Special Orders Room. The door is not locked. She goes
into the room. She finds out many things. She sees a case of Mike Bailey and a briefcase of
Mr. Riseman but none of the diamond ring. She then sees a doll, an aeroplane, and a car and
all of which are broken. She also finds many pictures of football players but the pictures are
all torn. Suddenly, Anna jumps. There is someone standing behind her.

It is Dave. He deliberately leaves the door open for Anna. Anna is frightened but she tries not
to show her fear. Dave knows that Anna is wondering about Greta’s diamond ring. He takes
the ring and shows it to Anna. David then picks the broken doll and tells her that it is Joanna
Leigh who breaks her arm several months ago. He points at a torn photograph of a football
player. He asks Anna who he is. Anna is now too afraid. She said that it is Brian Thomas
whose neck is broken also several months ago. She wonders about what kind of man Dave
Slatin is. He is an evil man. Dave takes and holds her arm tightly. He laughs and holds her
more tightly. She is afraid to death. He then proposes her. He wants to marry her to get
children. He wants children who will inherit his strange power. Anna is terrified. She kicks
him and runs all the way home.

The next day, Sunday, 31st October 1965, is a terrible day for Woodend. Anna is very ill since
yesterday. Suddenly, many people shout in the street. Peter, who is in Anna’s house,
immediately runs out into the street. There is a big fire on Dave’s shop. Villagers see Dave
standing at an upstairs window. Villagers start screaming and crying but Dave does not move
and even laughs until the fire completely hides him. Suddenly, there is also a scream in
Anna’s house. Anna is found dead in her room.

B. Characters

Dave Slatin             : A stranger from big city who later runs a shop in Woodend. He is good-
looking and very successful. He is dating with Anna, his assistant, who has actually had a
fiancé. He is actually a black magician. He does it in Special Orders Room. He has three
special customers named Greta Gordon, Mike Bailey, and Arthur Riseman. He is dead in fire
at the end of the story.

Anna                       : She works at Dave’s shop as his assistant. She has Peter as her fiancé
but she loves Dave as well. She twice goes in a date with Dave. She finally breaks up with
Peter after her secret date with Dave is revealed. She puts a big curiosity about Special
Orders Room and Dave’s special customers. She then knows the secret of that Special Orders
Room and gets sick. She is dead in the end.

Peter                        : Anna’s fiancé. He loves football very much. He doesn’t have a lot of
money and is not as handsome as Dave Slatin. He then breaks up with Anna after knowing
that Anna goes in a date with Dave.

Greta Gordon        : An actress who wears a diamond ring when she comes to Dave’s shop.
She is the first special customer of Dave.
 Mike Bailey            : A young football player who carries a case when he comes to Dave’s
shop. He is the second special customer of Dave.

Arthur Riseman     : He is middle-aged gentlemen. He is a vice president of I.C.S. who

C. Theme

Black magic                        : Dave Slatin has a strange power which can be considered as
black magic. He uses it for evil, selfish purposes or someone’s order. He uses mediators
which in the story are doll, aeroplane, and photograph to hurt his victims. To do a black
magic, someone should get a power which is usually from satan or evil.

D. Setting

Time: 31st October 1964, Spring, Summer and Winter 1965.

Place: Woodend Village, Lidney, and London.

Atmosphere: Rising to dark

E. Symbolism

31st October                   : The day when Christians celebrate Halloween or All Hallow’s Day.
In purpose to remember the dead.

         Church                           : A place for Christians which is known as a central of white