John Gordon Macarthur
General John Gordon Macarthur is a retired British Army officer and one of the ten guests invited to Indian Island under false pretenses. A tall, soldierly man with clipped grey hair and a neatly trimmed white moustache, he arrives by train from Exeter, expecting to meet old cronies and reminisce about the past. Instead, he finds himself trapped on a remote island with strangers, accused of a wartime murder that has haunted him for nearly thirty years. His quiet, almost welcoming acceptance of death sets him apart from the other victims, and his murder—a blow to the back of the head—follows the pattern of the nursery rhyme that governs the killings.
Identity and Background
Macarthur is a decorated soldier, a General with a C.M.G. and D.S.O., who served in France during the First World War. He lives in East Devon, near the border of Dorset, in a small house he always wanted, with shooting and fishing nearby. He is a widower; his wife Leslie died of double pneumonia three or four years after the war. He has a reputation as a law-abiding man, but he carries a secret: he deliberately sent his wife's lover, Arthur Richmond, to his death during the war. Richmond was one of his officers, a young man of twenty-eight, and Macarthur discovered the affair through a letter Leslie accidentally placed in the wrong envelope. The discovery filled him with a cold, murderous rage, and he used the chaos of war to send Richmond on a reconnaissance mission from which only a miracle could have brought him back. No miracle occurred. Macarthur never told Leslie what he knew, and she died without learning the truth. After the war, he withdrew from his old Army friends, fearing that a young officer named Armitage, who had looked at him oddly, might have talked.
Life and Plot Trajectory
Macarthur arrives at Indian Island on August 8th, traveling from Exeter by train. He is met at Oakbridge station by Vera Claythorne and Philip Lombard, and the three share a taxi to Sticklehaven. On the boat crossing, he feels uneasy, thinking the whole business is "deuced odd." He is not at all what he had been led to expect. He considers throwing up the whole thing and leaving, but the motor boat has already gone back to the mainland. He is trapped. During dinner, he chats with Emily Brent, discovering mutual friends, and his spirits rise after a good meal. Then, the gramophone record plays, accusing him of murdering Arthur Richmond on January 4th, 1917. He protests, calling it a slur on his wife, but his denial is weak. After the accusation, he becomes increasingly withdrawn. The next morning, he tells Blore and Lombard that the motor boat will not come, that none of them will ever leave the island, and that it is "the end of everything." He speaks of peace, real peace, and walks unsteadily down to the sea, where he sits staring at the horizon. Vera Claythorne finds him there and he tells her he is waiting for the end, that he loved Leslie, and that is why he did it. He admits to sending Richmond to his death, calling it murder, but says he had no regrets at the time. He is killed shortly before lunch, struck on the back of the head with a life preserver or similar object. Dr. Armstrong finds his body and confirms the murder.
Key Actions and Objectives
Macarthur's central action is the murder of Arthur Richmond, which he commits out of jealousy and rage. He sends Richmond on a deadly reconnaissance mission, knowing it will likely kill him. After the war, he lives in seclusion, avoiding his old Army friends and fearing exposure. On the island, his primary objective is to come to terms with his past. He accepts his fate with a strange peace, telling Vera that he is waiting for the end and that it is a relief. He does not try to escape or fight back, unlike the other guests. His final act is to sit by the sea, staring at the horizon, and confess his crime to Vera before he is killed.
Relationships and Conflict
Macarthur's central relationship is with his wife, Leslie, whom he loved deeply and was proud of. He believed in her absolutely until he discovered her affair with Arthur Richmond. The betrayal destroyed his trust and led him to murder. He also had a close friendship with Richmond, whom he liked and was fond of, before the affair. After the war, he becomes isolated, shunning his old Army friends because he fears they know what he did. On the island, he is polite but distant. He is kind to Vera, patting her shoulder when she breaks down, but he also frightens her with his talk of death. He is suspicious of Lombard, thinking he is not straight. His main conflict is internal: the struggle between his love for Leslie and his guilt over killing Richmond.
Change and Ending
Macarthur undergoes a profound change on the island. He arrives as a conventional, law-abiding retired officer, but the accusation forces him to confront his past. He moves from denial to acceptance, and finally to a strange peace. He tells Vera that he is waiting for the end and that it is a relief. He no longer wants to leave the island; he sees it as the end of everything, a place where he can finally stop carrying the burden. His death is a release. He is killed by a blow to the back of the head, a murder that follows the nursery rhyme: "Seven little Indian boys chopping up sticks; One chopped himself in halves and then there were six." His body is carried into the house as the storm breaks.
Narrative Role and Evaluation
Macarthur serves as a key figure in the novel's exploration of guilt and justice. He is one of the first victims to understand the island's true purpose, and his acceptance of death contrasts sharply with the frantic efforts of the other guests to survive. His confession to Vera reveals the depth of his guilt and the psychological toll of his crime. He is a tragic figure, a man destroyed by jealousy and a single act of murder that he can never undo. His death is a pivotal moment in the story, marking the point where the survivors realize they are trapped and that the killer is among them. His character also illustrates the novel's theme that the law cannot always reach those who are guilty, and that some crimes are beyond its grasp.
