Automoderated users, Autopatrolled users, Bureaucrats, Comment administrators, Confirmed users, Moderators, Rollbackers, Administrators
213,536
edits
m (update links) |
No edit summary |
||
(17 intermediate revisions by 5 users not shown) | |||
Line 1:
{{work}}
{{Infobox book
The most recent [[Discworld]] novel, published after ''[[Discworld/I Shall Wear Midnight|I Shall Wear Midnight]]''. His Grace Commander Sir Samuel Vimes of the Ankh-Morpork City Watch [[Blatant Lies|cheerfully volunteers]] for a holiday along with his family in that most dreaded of locations: the countryside. There are always things rustling through the undergrowth, you can never be sure that someone isn't hiding behind that hedge, and [[Arc Words|there are no streets]]. Or are there?▼
| title = Snuff
| image =
| caption =
| author = Terry Pratchett
| central theme = [[What Measure Is a Non-Human?]]
| elevator pitch = Vimes, on holiday outside his jurisdiction, is recruited to solve arguably his biggest case yet: the shocking abuse of goblins throughout history.
| genre = Fantasy
| franchise = Discworld
| preceded by = I Shall Wear Midnight
| followed by = Raising Steam
| publication date = 2011
}}
▲The
His wife entertaining the local gentry and his son [[It Makes Sense in Context|becoming obsessed with poo]], Vimes [[Bread, Eggs, Milk, Squick|goes for a walk, visits the local pub, gets into a fight with a blacksmith, and discovers that a murder has been committed]]. No one cares - after all, the victim was [[Fantastic Racism|just a goblin]]. But to Vimes, a crime is a crime and there must be a punishment. However, he has [[Jurisdiction Friction|no jurisdiction]], no body, and no clues. His only allies are his wife and his [[Battle Butler]]. Then the local police, who ''have'' jurisdiction, turn up to arrest him. And his wife ''still'' [[What Do You Mean It's Not Heinous?|won't let him eat bacon sandwiches.]]
Continuing with themes introduced in ''[[
{{tropelist}}
* [[Actually, That's My Assistant]]:
* [[Arc Words]]: "Murder is murder." Also, "Murder. The capital crime," and "Not all sins are forgiven."
** And don't forget "Hang", the goblin word meaning survive. Hang tight, hang in there, hang together or hang separately, but most importantly, hang on.
** Also, "The Dreadful Algebra Of Necessity".
* [[Aristocrats Are Evil]]:
** Also defied by [[Try to Fit That on A Business Card|His Grace, His Excellence, His Blackboard-Monitorship, the Duke of Ankh, Commander Sir Samuel Vimes of the Ankh-Morpork City Watch, Lord of Ramkin Hall]], and {{spoiler|King of the River.}}
** Also by Lady Sybil and the Gordons.
* [[Ascended Extra]]: [[Ensemble Darkhorse]] Willikins becomes a full and developed main character in this novel, after largely remaining in the background in the past.
* [[Badass]]: Sam Vimes kicks ass and takes names even more than usual.
** [[Badass Abnormal]]: The Summoning Dark from ''[[
** [[Badass Bureaucrat]]: A.E. Pessimal, even though he's only mentioned briefly. He's now the Ankh-Morpork version of the IRS / SEC, keeping an eye on businesses and ''absolutely terrifying'' them just by showing up.
** [[Badass Normal]]: Vimes is still mostly a man. Also, [[Battle Butler|Willikins]]. Dear God, Willikins.
* [[Badass Creed]]: The Ramkin's Family motto is "What we have, we keep".
** [[Badass Crew]]: Basically Vimes's Watch, family (Sybil) and staff (Willikins). Taking Willikins and Detritus on a walk meant Vimes and his son were accompanied by "enough firepower to kill a platoon."
* [[Batman Gambit]]:
**
** Vimes' impromptu lecture/rant to the Gordon girls turns out to have been one by Sybil for the benefit of their mother, and the whole party was organized around causing it.
** Sybil gets a second one by
* [[Battle Butler]]: Willikins has finally all-but given up the 'Butler' aspect, in favour of the 'Battle' part.
** Let us not forget that he still finds the time to make a mean cocktail. Without alcohol, at that!
* [[Battle in the Rain]]: Taken [[Up to Eleven]] with a battle in
* [[Berserk Button]]: The devious puzzles of the Times's new crossword maker are the only thing that can drive the normally composed Lord Vetinari to what, from him, passes as a rant.
* [[Big Bad]]:
* [[Brick Joke]]: Jane Gordon's novel
** Also, early on Vimes isn't sure how you can own a mile of trout stream, because surely the bit of the stream that's yours is moving onto your neighbour's land? Much later, Colonel Makepeace reflects that he rents half a mile of stream, but can no longer run fast enough to keep up with it.
** Sybil's huge and exhaustively maintained list of friendships have been a running joke since ''The Fifth Elephant'', complete with Vimes thinking that she and the network of women like her wield tremendous behind-the-scenes power if they felt like it. We finally see that in action here.
* [[Busman's Holiday]]: As stated in the blurb.
* [[Call Back]]: It's mentioned that the grounds of Ramkin Hall have a hoho (like a haha, but deeper), as mentioned in [[
** Also, Zoons are mentioned for the first time since ''[[
** The line "Sybil will go librarian" is a callback to the phrase "going librarian-poo" from an earlier book, which of course is itself a version of "going apeshit".
** Merkle and Stingbat's Very Famous Brown Sauce was previously mentioned in ''[[
** The bridge with the sculptures of artistically naked ladies. [[
** Vimes's comment that he's never drunk starboard echoes a conversation from ''[[
* [[Cheerful Child]]: Young Sam, poo expert, {{spoiler|instant friend to goblins}}.
* [[Children Are Innocent]]: Young Sam is practically a saint.
Line 46 ⟶ 58:
* [[Combat Pragmatist]]: There are continual references to the [[Continuity Nod|Marquis of Fantailler Rules]] (the Disc's version of Queensbury Rules). Nobody in the book fights according to them.
* [[Continuity Nod]]: Plenty.
** The goblins, first mentioned waaaay back and slightly elaborated upon in ''[[
** Wee Mad Arthur has embraced his identity as a Nac Mac Feegle.
** An elderly Lord Rust puts in an appearance.
** The Low King apparently even gave him Blackboard Monitor as a real title since ''[[
**
** Events in ''[[
** Vimes' botched one
** Vimes's schoolroom had the same book of fairy tales as the Aching family, and he had the same reaction to the goblin on page seven as Tiffany.
* [[Contrived Coincidence]]: A very special [[Soul Jar|Unggue Pot]] manages to end up in a cigar which is sold to Sergeant Colon. It's said that this is why Fred and Nobby are still on the (now quite respectable)
* [[Cricket Rules]]: Parodied. It apparently takes so long to explain the rules of 'crockett' that [[Up to Eleven|the universe can end and be reborn in that time]].
* [[Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass]]: Feeney's badassery even takes Vimes by surprise.
** Meanwhile, Vetinari is beginning to notice just how much
* [[Crowning Music of Awesome]]:
** Even more awesome
**
***
* [[Darker and Edgier]]: ''Boy howdy''. Even more so than ''[[
* [[Disney Death]]:
**
* [[Does This Remind You of Anything?]]: The
** Not to mention
* [[Easy Evangelism]]: It takes about five minutes for any recurring Watch character to accept that goblins deserve the same rights as any other species, including [[Noble Bigot with a Badge|Sergeant Colon]]. Of course, given the make-up of the Watch (it's mentioned that goblins are pretty much the only sapient species not currently included), they're bound to be more understanding of the odder species on the Disc
** Although with Colon it takes
** Vetinari felt sympathy for the Goblins before the song was played, and in the opening pages, is discussing with Drumknot, his secretary, how terrible he finds their plight, that an entire race is regarded as vermin. And Vetinari is not a person typically known for having sympathy for anyone.
* [[Eats Babies]]: ''Everyone'' knows that goblins eat their own young.
* [[Fantastic Racism]]: In spades, directed towards the goblins. They're officially seen as vermin, and killing them
** Not surprisingly, the actions that the Goblins are forced to perform just to survive are used to "justify" the fact that they are treated the way they are. The thing is, the goblins are stuck having to perform these acts quite literally because they are hanging on the edge of survival. Let's put this in perspective: if a race is given no means of making an honest living, is hunted zealously where ever they are found, and is only, say, two feet to three feet tall and typically extremely malnourished due to poor diet and lack of a steady food supply, is it any surprise that they turn to thievery, will threaten uninvited strangers on sight, and are extremely "cowardly"?
* [[Fantasy Counterpart Culture]]: Quirm for France, as before.
Line 81 ⟶ 93:
** [[The Chick]]: Lady Sybil
* [[Foreign Queasine]]: Averted, the Morporkians all like Quirmian cooking, but they do use too much [[You Keep Using That Word|avec]].
* [[Foreshadowing]]: At the start, Vimes is given a bucket and spade as a joke by the Watch, even though he's not going to the seaside. He retorts that he wishes it ''was'' the seaside, there's smuggling and piracy at the seaside.
* [[Freudian Slip]]: Vetinari of all people has one when he refers to the good ship ''Wonderful Fanny'' as, well... the ''Enormous Fanny''.
* [[The Ghost]]: Gravid Rust, the man behind the entire evil plot, who is introduced, plans, is arrested, exiled and
* [[Going to See the Elephant]]: It certainly seems like Vimes is finally going to take a simple vacation... until the murder is committed. Then, at the end of the book, the Vimes family sees an actual elephant – remember that bit in the description about Vimes's son becoming obsessed with poo?
* [[Good People Have Good Sex]]: Implied between Vimes and Sybil.
* [[Happily Married]]: As usual, Sam and Sybil. If Sybil is ever annoyed at Sam, she's happy again by the end of their next conversation.
* [[Henpecked Husband]]: The Colonel.
* [[He Who Must Not Be Seen]]: Gravid Rust.
* [[Interspecies Romance]]: It's mentioned that a troll and a dwarf have struck up a relationship.
* [[The Jeeves]]: Averted spectacularly by Willikins. He is the old school brutal thug as a butler. But he can act like this when he wants to.
* [[Jerk with a Heart of Gold]]: Jethro. {{spoiler|He's one of the few residents of the Shires who considers goblins to be people.}}
* [[Jurisdiction Friction]]: Even though Vimes is technically the lord of his lands, he has no jurisdiction as a police officer - that belongs to the appointed magistrates.
* [[Knight Fever]]: Harry King, of ''[[
* [[Karma Houdini]]:
** Defied. Willikins serves the same role as Pepe in ''[[
** And then played frustratingly straight with
*** {{spoiler|Not played very straight at all. The "lady" responsible for watching him is an Assassin, and after making the decision to send him, Vetinari remarks that [[Arc Words|"not all sins are forgiven."]]
** {{spoiler|Played straight with most of the magistrates.}}
* [[Kidanova]]: Young Sam is (innocently) quite popular with ladies of every age. As well, Vimes notes he has a habit of taking the hand of any female he meets, one which will "serve him well in later years".
* [[Mama Bear]]: Sybil.
* [[Meaningful Name]]: Subverted with Captain Murderer, who is a smuggler. That being said, he's still a horrible person.
** Played straight with Arachne, one of Vetinari's clerks who is very fond of spiders.
Line 110 ⟶ 123:
* [[Noodle Incident]]: An account of how Fred and Nobby keep serendipitously stumbling onto major clues includes a case that was solved thanks to something that tried to lay its eggs in Nobby's nose.
* [[Not with the Safety On, You Won't]]: Invoked by Vimes, who {{spoiler|gives Stratford a sabotaged crossbow to let him think he has the upper hand.}}
* [[One-Man Army|One
* [[Orcus on His Throne]]: Gravid Rust never makes a single appearance. It's implied that he isn't really even in the area where most of the story takes place. He doesn't have to be. He's an aristocrat of a wealthy and prestigious family and the heir to the title and fortune of the family. He can afford to hire people [[Overly Long Gag|that hire the people that hire the people that hire the people that hire the people that hire the people to do the job for him.]]
* [[Our Goblins Are Wickeder]]: Continuing onward from [[
* [[Out-Gambitted]]: Stratford is surprisingly cunning for a [[Psycho for Hire]]. Fortunately, Vimes is even more cunning and manages to foil him at nearly every turn.
* [[Papa Wolf]]: Vimes, as usual. Willikins is his backup. Between them and Sybil, Young Sam is the safest boy in the world.
* [[Pint-Sized Powerhouse]]: Wee Mad Arthur is this even more than usual.
* [[Pre-Ass-Kicking One-Liner]]: When Wee Mad Arthur investigates a plantation using enslaved goblins, one of the burly human overseers tells him, "There ain't no law here." Arthur replies, "Guess again." Then the dozen or so overseers find out what being beaten up by a Nac Mac Feegle is like.
* [[Precision F-Strike]]: Sybil referring to someone as a bitch. It's actually quite jarring, given previous characterisation.
* [[Prison Rape]]: Alluded to by Vimes when explaining why the Watch House lockup is ''infinitely'' preferable to the 'Tanty'.
* [[Psycho for Hire]]: Stratford, to a tee. Definitely not the brains of operation, but doesn't flinch from killing to get a job done. When he marks Vimes as an enemy, he
** Also something of a deconstruction;
* [[Psycho Sidekick]]: Willikins fully qualifies in this one.
* [[Punch Clock Villain]]: Flutter and some of the hirelings count as this, as they're mostly smugglers who have been dragged into a murder and slavery plot, and for the most part give up as soon as Vimes has identified himself.
* [[Raised by Orcs|Raised By Goblins:]] Subverted.
* [[Riddle for the Ages]]: The exact nature of Stinky is never explained, but he's clearly no ordinary goblin.
* [[A Round of Drinks for the House]]: Vimes several times buys a round for all the patrons in the local pub, generally as a way to earn their gratitude, and once in an attempt to avert a [[Bar Brawl]].
* [[Running Gag]]: Vetinari vs the ''Times'' crossword compiler, carrying over from Moist's books. She seems to be getting to him.
** Also, Vimes' tendency to accumulate increasingly-impressive and unwanted titles culminates (sort of), with him being declared {{spoiler|King. But (to his immense relief) only of the River, for his role in bringing the ''Fanny'' in safely.}}
** Specific to this book, the fact that any small child will be instantly and enormously entertained by any mention of [[Toilet Humor|disgusting bodily functions]].
* [[Sexy Discretion Shot]]: When Vimes decides to take a relaxing bath, Sybil... joins him.
* [[Shout-Out]]: A rather blatant one; a young country noblewoman named [[Jane Austen|Jane, who wants to be a writer...]] The themes of ''[[Pride and Prejudice]]'' are
** Also a bit of a [[Stealth Pun]]; The [[Pride and Prejudice|Bennets]] become the Gordons who go on to design and wear Gordon's Bonnets. ('[[Stock British Phrases|Gordon Bennett]]' being a rather British exclamation of surprise or shock.)
** Other shout-outs to classic British fiction in a rural setting include, but are not limited to, Stella Gibbons' ''[[Cold Comfort Farm]]'', Thackeray's ''[[Vanity Fair]]'', Trollope's ''[[Barchester Chronicles]]'', Orwell's ''[[Animal Farm]]'' and the long-running BBC radio soap opera ''[[The Archers]]''.
** Adamantium is mentioned briefly.
** The real-life case of Lord Lucan, who mistakenly murdered his children's nanny thinking she was his wife, and who disappeared without trace, thought to have escaped to Australia or South Africa with the closed-rank collusion of the British aristocracy (who together confounded and snarled up a police investigation by refusing to co-operate), is used here to illustrate the Discworld nobility's refusal to accept they are subject to the same law as anyone else. Even Sam Vimes had to give up investigating the Marquis of Fantailer's murder and flight to Fourecks in remarkably similar circumstances to Lucan's. Lucan's disappearance, amidst the absurd privilege enjoyed by British nobility, happened in ''1974''...
** The smith's name: [[Jethro Tull|Jethro]] [[Jefferson Airplane|Jefferson]] - although "Jefferson" might, in context of slavery, also refer to [[Thomas Jefferson]].
** Entrepreneur and [[Self-Made Man]] Harry King has now been knighted, and he enters by throwing someone out of his office and telling them "You're fired!" It sounds a lot like a reference to Sir Alan Sugar, of the UK version of ''[[The Apprentice (TV series)|The Apprentice]]''.
Line 139 ⟶ 153:
** After being sworn in as a special constable, Stinky tells Vimes that anyone who gets in his way will find he's their worst nightmare. "[[48 Hrs.|A goblin with a badge?]]" (No, says Stinky: "Stinky worst nightmare ''all by himself''.")
** [[The Treasure of the Sierra Madre|Stinky don't need no badges]].
** Though previously mentioned in ''[[Thud!]]'', one of the Watch's more recent constables is named [[The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency|Precious]] Jolson.
* [[Sincerity Mode]]: Vimes is surprised to hear Nobby call a goblin girl a young lady without [[Leaning on the Fourth Wall|putting inverted commas around the word lady]].
* [[Single-Stroke Battle]]:
*
* [[Title Drop]]: Played with. Snuff is mentioned several times, but never in a context that is important to the plot.
* [[To Be Lawful or Good]]: Vimes chooses good right away, but he does get a bit angsty over it with hindsight.
* [[Toilet Humor]]: The subject of a [[Running Gag]].
* [[Took a Level
** Two of Carrot's first acts were to (misguidedly) arrest the head of the thieves guild and [[Moment of Awesome|knock out Detritus]]. Feeney outdoes him, achieving both at once by
* [[Unfortunate Name]]: ''Gravid'' Rust. The colonel [[Lampshade Hanging|considers]] that clearly no-one involved in choosing it knew animal husbandry. Also, Captain Murderer, and the riverboat
* [[Verbal Judo]]: Paradoxically, this time using this technique involves Vimes deliberately ''getting into'' a fight. It's just that he makes sure it doesn't have to really get real, and his opponent comes out subdued, if anything more so than if Vimes had just smashed his face in as he could have.
* [[Wham! Line]]: "Inside that pot is
* [[What Measure Is a Non-Human?]]: What sets off the entire plot. No one seems to care that a goblin has been killed. For Vimes, on the other hand, [[Averted Trope|murder is murder]].
* [[
** In [[Battle Butler|Willikins']] case, he applies this philosophy to every woman except [[Too Kinky to Torture|Kinky]] [[Brains and Bondage|Elsie]].
* [[You No Take Candle]]: Subverted. The goblins speak like this in their own language, at least as far as
{{reflist}}
{{Discworld novels}}
[[Category:Snuff]]▼
[[Category:{{PAGENAME}}]]
[[Category:Literature of the 2010s]]
[[Category:Discworld]]
|