The Black Mamba

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The black mamba By Roald Dahl • The narrator convinces the audience that the snake ‘black mamba’ is a deadly snake by saying how it is the only snake that doesn’t fear man and that one bite and your dead. • The narrator starts the story of by saying he was in the bathroom gazing out of the window, he says that he was gazing out the window when he saw the snake heading towards the boy and this is how he became aware of the snakes presents. • The narrator suggests that the snake is dangerous by describing the length, colour and width “…it was six feet long and thick as my arm and quite black”. • The narrator showed evidence that the snake was very fast because he compares it to the speed of a galloping horse “…at full speed the mamba could travel as fast as a galloping horse”. • I think Salimu went into the position he went into so he could get to the same height of the snake and not threaten it so much, so he could get more leverage in that position, also it would have been quicker to jump out of the way if the snake was to attack first. • In the story the narrator explains that Salimu was raking the gravel onto the road with a rake, he then uses this rake to paralyse the snake by breaking its back and then kills it with a quick and strong blow to the head using the back of the rake. • The suspense is built up by the narrator as he describes what is happening, how Salimu reacts and by there being an almost standoff or showdown between a boy and a snake. You can tell that it is quite for a bit and then ‘wham’ its all action again. • The narrator describes that Salimu is relieved after the snake was killed by saying “Salimu let out a great sign and passed a hand over his head” • The narrator firsts introduced the character Salimu while he is in the bathroom shaving his face and Salimu is outside raking the gravel onto the front drive. The

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