Roald Dahl’s "The Hitchhiker": A Masterclass in the Unexpected

Dahl masterfully builds tension through the hitchhiker’s ambiguous behavior. The man is cagey about his profession, squirreling away his hands and answering questions with evasion. The narrator, frustrated and suspicious, begins to interrogate the man, leading to a confrontation on the nature of identity and privacy. This dialogue-heavy structure is characteristic of Dahl’s adult work, where the horror lies not in monsters, but in the psychological interplay between people trapped in a confined space—in this case, a moving vehicle.

"The Hitchhiker" is a short story by Roald Dahl, first published in 1959. It's a humorous and thrilling tale about a man who picks up a hitchhiker on a deserted road, only to find himself in a series of unexpected and terrifying events.

The "Fingersmith":

Dahl uses this term to give a sense of pride to a criminal profession. The hitchhiker views himself as an artist rather than a common thief.