Miss+Amy+Murgatroyd


 * Character Analysis **

Amy Murgatroyd is a simple, sweet old lady, "who was fat and amiable". She lives with her friend Miss Hinchliffe at Boulders, their combined cottages. She is a bit absent-minded, a little slow, and definately not the sharpest knife in the drawer. But Miss Murgatroyd was the only person present who was not blinded by the flashlight during the mystery murder, making her the most important witness.

She is so befuddled though, it takes many days for her to recognize that she saw the killer, and only because of the realization of Miss Hinchliffe. Without Miss Hinchliffe, Miss Murtragoyd would be a bit helpless. She looks to her friend for confirmation on everything, from the places she should go to the things she should say.

Miss Murgatroyd is very kind, when being interviewed she even said that the murderer said "Put them up, please", instead of "stick 'em up!" This also shows the way Miss Murgatroyd's mind works, why she is always needing the assistance of Hinch to make many of her decisions. This innocent character who was harmless to everyone except the murderer was then killed for the information she hardly knew. This was a horrifying scene in the book, especially because it was so violent against such a gentle person. It created a shock factor, that was meant to prove that the murderer had tipped over the edge into madness.