Everyone in And Then There Were None may have been accused of serious crimes, but they’re not criminals technically—they’re more like moral criminals. And that weird space between “criminal” and “bad person” is what really gets Justice Wargrave’s blood hot. Even though he’s a representative of the law, he wants to punish everyone, even the ones the law can’t really touch. In this novel, you can escape the justice system—but you can’t escape your fate.
Questions About Criminality
- Why aren’t all the characters charged for their crimes? What kinds of crimes (or misdeeds) did they actually commit?
- Does Justice Wargrave take pleasure in sentencing criminals to their deaths?
- What is the difference between a criminal and a murderer? Why is there a difference?
- Do the characters regard themselves as criminals? Why or why not?
Chew on This
Try on an opinion or two, start a debate, or play the devil’s advocate.
Justice Wargrave goes after these characters precisely because they cannot be touched by the criminal system.
None of the characters regard themselves as criminals despite the fact that they accept what they have done. If anything, they see themselves as poor decision-makers.