Where Does '10 Little Indians' Take Place?

Question

Spoiler-free answers, please! The island setting in Christie’s novel feels so isolating—is it based on a real location or purely fictional?

Brenda Liz Ramirez · Answer

This murder mystery is set entirely on a remote and isolated island off the coast of Devon, England, and therefore has a locked-room atmosphere. It is also a very intricate whodunit, and if you enjoy these sort of stories then ‘Nine Ungrateful Sisters’ is another great story with a tense family reunited for a special occasion in a remote manor house, during a storm. Eventually all the characters and their secrets are revealed.

Jade · Answer

To me the greatest virtue of '10 Little Indians' is that a perfectly pleasant holiday spot can be turned to Hell by a master author. Soldier Island is an exclusive playground of the very rich, a big, modern house in the most beautiful circumstances of a sea surrounded by cliffs. And, above all, isolated from the world. As the characters arrive by boat, you feel immediately that they are not quite comfortable. They are in a spot where there is no law, where there are no rules, and this is left completely to the mercy of a deadly, malevolent killer with his own purposes to fulfill.

The beautiful elegant dining room with the tastefully laid table serves up a very poisonous cup of coffee. Cozy fireplaces with brutal nursery rhymes adorn the rooms. The beauty of the outdoors is in stark contrast to the prisoners as they are told to go and entertain themselves while the killer is off playing his own little game. The beautiful outside with its crashing waves and crying seagulls is another prison for the cast of characters. I mention all of these details because each one is so carefully created by the Great Author to add to the atmosphere of this locked room mystery. If you are someone who enjoys these types of stories then this will be one that lingers long after the end. It has created a multitude of other stories of this same type and for good reason because few have captured the atmosphere so perfectly.

Mia · Answer

Agatha Christie’s ‘10 Little Indians’ (also known as ‘And Then There Were None’) is set on the fictional Soldier Island, found off the English coast. In typical detective fashion, the characters are stuck on an isolated island with no boats or phones and a killer in their midst. The island itself is tiny with only a large mansion to contain the action, rocky shores and a vast expanse of sea. The weather is also important with frequent storms to stop any hope of rescue and to create an added sense of claustrophobia in the isolated mansion.

This is not merely a setting for a plot to unfold – the real genius of Christie’s is that the island is also a disabiler of social convention. On the mainland, each of the characters would have their own defence, their own domain of power and influence. However, brought to this isolated island, they are primally reduced to basic human fear. The unknown history of the island – rumored to be the property of a reclusive and sinister tycoon – seems to back up this view. And in such a setting, with no distractions to take them away from the time at hand, each moment is imbued with fear and apprehension. A brilliant study of how isolation can be used in the utmost way to drive a story relentlessly forward.

Fiona · Answer

First published as ‘10 Little Indians’ in 1948, Agatha Christie’s classic mystery is set on a remote island off the Devon coast in England. Cut off from the mainland when the ferry ceases to run because of a storm, the characters realize that they are trapped with their killer. The isolated setting, rugged cliffs and violent sea of the island creates an eerie atmosphere which reflects the growing paranoia of the characters. The setting of the story, a large, luxurious mansion, is also full of shadows and secrets, and with every creak of a floorboard or change in the stormy weather outside, the characters feel increasing fear. The island becomes a perfect trap for the characters and Christie’s use of setting brings their pasts back to haunt them in the worst possible way.

Alexandra Yukeiri Alberto Campusano · Answer

Economically this is a really good example of setting from a writer’s point of view. You don’t read pages and pages of description of trees, birds etc. But you do get enough of an impression of where you are to know where you are. The island is shaped like a giant’s head. There’s a modern house. Steep cliffs. A single pier. From that you immediately get that this is a prison. Then the writer uses weather and days passing to create mood. The setting is not static. The setting is alive and gets stormier and darker etc. So analyzing where also means analyzing when. The timeline of the storm is important as is the tides etc and the change from day to night. The setting is evolving to tighten the noose on the writer. It’s very powerful and that’s why it’s so good.

Kim Schlee · Answer

But then again, I am really interested in how he picked this place. The setting is not random to the murder. It is part of it. The killer would have chosen this place because it is the ultimate guarantee of no outside interference, no way for the victim to escape, and no distraction from the game that he has set up for himself. An isolated private island is the ultimate surgical theater. So, that is how the setting can give us insight into the mind of the killer. It shows us that he is meticulous, theatrical and very, very ruthless. He wanted an audience without any exits. So talking about the setting is also talking about the antagonist’s methodology. The island is the biggest and first clue to the murderer’s character. It’s a statement of intent. The setting is not just where the murder takes place, it’s also a weapon.

Bella Anthony · Answer

The novel isn’t just a story about a group of people who are isolated on an island. First of all, the people on this island are strangers who are from very different backgrounds. And it’s not a two-dimensional isolation: they are mostly unaware of each other’s presence on the mainland, but stranded on a remote island with no possibility of escaping, they are forced to confront each other in all their complexity. As a result of the setting, characters who would never normally meet are thrown together in the most challenging of circumstances. It becomes a pressure cooker where class tensions, guilt and even paranoia are stretched to the limit. So the ‘where’ creates the ‘who’ and the plots and suspense develop from there. In contrast to the grand luxury of the house where the novel begins, the situation on the island is stark and primitive. The setting of the novel provides perfect proof of Christie’s outstanding powers as a social commentator and to show man at his worst when social conventions are stripped away and he is reduced to his basic, instinctive self. The island becomes a bizarre, stripped-down laboratory in which he is tested to the limit.

Intan Maharani · Answer

I just watched the 2015 BBC adaptation of ‘The Island’ and was confused about the authors use of location in the book. The setting for ‘The Island’ is a solitary island mansion, a property which is surrounded by water on all sides of the island, thus creating a ‘prison-like’ environment. While the 2015 adaptation created an extremely atmospheric setting and portrayed the island in a stark and brutal light, the bulk of locations used were not accurate to the authors use in the book. In fact, the majority of locations were used in reverse, so that locations which were described as having palm trees were transformed into settings with snowdrifts, and locations that had snow were transformed into tropical island settings with palm trees by the adpatators. However, one constant throughout all of the authors use of location was the modern, almost jarringly new mansion and the English channel. However, it is the English channel that is the non-negotiable element of the location, without the geographical trap of the surrounding water of the island then the story falls apart. Therefore, the first thing to look for in any adaptation is whether the chosen location(s) have provided a sense of inescapable, closed-circle claustrophobia, even if the setting has been transported to a totally different location than the English channel in the book.

Ricardo Araujo · Answer

The original UK publication of this novel was called Indian Island, before being re-titled Soldier Island for later editions. Located near the fictional town of Sticklehaven on the Devon coast, Christie provides enough geographical description to transport the reader to the place but it remains indistinct enough to prevent precise location. The setting is a nightmare created in a crime fiction laboratory and functions magnificently as a ‘settings as characters’ location. A sumptuous and lonely place, it is both modern and ancient, rated by Christie’s clever reworking of the old, children’s game nursery rhyme. The setting does much to develop the novel’s exploration of the crude, basic human beings hiding behind the façade of the very smart characters, in a cleverly constructed prison of guilt and retribution. So, an island off Devon might sum up this novel but, for those with sufficient knowledge, there is so much more to it than that.

Darwin · Answer

I have always found the isolation to be far more frightening than the murders. The book is of a kind that releases deep seated primal fear. Above all, it is the setting which does all this work. The story is not about ghosts or monsters, but a completely practical, human set-up: a small number of people marooned on a rock, one of them a killer whom they cannot inform of their suspicion. The Devon coast is the perfect background for such a scenario: there are many rocky islands off the coast, and most of them are tiny. Christie chose a completely real geography and worked within it. The island on which most of the story takes place is not a real one, but it is set in the sort of landscape that exists on the Devon coast. The authenticity of the setting is a big part of the book’s power to frighten. The same is true of the weather, which Christie uses to seal the fate of her characters. The changeable, often rough weather of the Devon coast is completely real, and it is used by Christie to add to the sense of unease and fear that pervades the book.

Paul John · Answer

Yes. The title of this 1939 novel by Agatha Christie has always suggested to me some remote and claggy island, shrouded in mist and rain. (In fact, the story is set on a single, remote island – Soldier Island, to be precise – which is situated off the coast of Devon.) The sense of total isolation which Christie conveys to her readers is of course the reason for the tension in the plot as the numbers of the remaining guests are dwindled, chapter by chapter. The setting is so effectively used to increase the psychological tension in this novel. I know of no other instance in which the setting has played such a massive part in the development of the story. It is the ultimate ‘locked room’ mystery – with the one difference that the ‘room’ in question is not a physical one but an entire area of land surrounded by treacherous sea. The house, where the guests spend their time, is a modern one, furnished with every luxurious comfort. But outside is a totally and utterly desolate world. The contrast is wonderful. Indeed, it is one of the main reasons that the book has such enduring power. It is a veritable master-class in creating atmosphere.

C-ta Vui · Answer

An often-overlooked detail in Agatha Christie’s short stories about settings is the background of the chosen place. In And Then There Were None, the island where the story takes place was recently bought by a mysterious man called Mr. Owen. The characters discussed in the story whether he was a Hollywood star or a very rich eccentric. The pre-existing reputation of the island as a location of interesting stories is another part of the trap. The guests went to the island expecting an exciting story. They didn’t know that the most deadly story of all time was waiting for them there. Christie thought of everything.

Where Does '10 Little Indians' Take Place?

12 Answers

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