Hitchhiker Roald Dahl Jun 2026

The officer aggressively takes down the driver’s details and the hitchhiker’s information (who claims to be a "hod-carrier"). After the officer leaves, the narrator is distraught over the impending heavy fine and potential prison time. However, the hitchhiker calmly reveals his true identity: he is a —a professional pickpocket of such extreme skill that he has already stolen the narrator’s watch, belt, and even his shoelaces without the driver noticing.

The story follows an unnamed narrator—a successful writer—who is driving his brand-new BMW toward London. Along the way, he picks up a "rat-faced" hitchhiker who claims to be heading to the horse races.

The story immediately establishes a contrast between two worlds: the respectable, rule-abiding middle class and the resourceful, anarchic lower class. The narrator is a professional writer, driving a new, powerful BMW—a symbol of comfort, status, and adherence to societal norms. He is careful, conscientious, and initially horrified at the thought of speeding. In stark contrast, the hitchhiker is a scruffy, Cockney-accented man with “small, sharp, dark eyes” and fingers covered in cheap rings. He is immediately identified as a member of the “carroty” working class, a world away from the narrator’s own. This initial tension sets up an expectation of conflict, but Dahl subtly inverts it. The narrator, despite his wealth and education, is passive and naive. The hitchhiker, despite his lowly appearance, is confident, experienced, and possesses a secret, extraordinary skill. Dahl uses class not as a hierarchy of worth, but as a misdirection. hitchhiker roald dahl

First published in the July 1977 issue of The Atlantic Monthly and later featured in the collection The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar and Six More , " The Hitch-Hiker " is one of Roald Dahl's most celebrated short stories for adults. It masterfully blends suspense, dark humor, and a sharp critique of authority. Plot Summary: A High-Speed Encounter

Most readers know Roald Dahl as the master of children's fantasy—the man who gave us chocolate factories, giant peaches, and telekinetic schoolgirls. However, adults (and older readers) know a different side of Dahl: a master of the macabre, the ironic, and the wickedly twisted. Among his many adult short stories, "The Hitchhiker" stands out as a superb example of his ability to turn a mundane situation into a lesson in moral ambiguity. The officer aggressively takes down the driver’s details

On the surface, "The Hitchhiker" is a simple tale. A writer (presumably Dahl himself) picks up a man on the side of the road. But beneath this simplicity lies a story about class, authority, and the quiet triumph of the "little man."

Roald Dahl’s originally published in 1977 as part of the collection The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar and Six More , is a masterclass in his signature style: a grounded, conversational narrative that builds toward a clever, darkly humorous twist. Plot Summary The narrator is a professional writer, driving a

The story begins with the narrator driving a new, powerful BMW from London to Oxford. He is a man who appreciates machinery, specifically the speed and capability of his car. He spots a hitchhiker—a man with "small ratty face" and "dark teeth"—and decides to pick him up.