“Here I had heard what he had heard, I had seen what he had seen ,and yet from his words it was evidently that he saw clearly not only what had happened ,but what was about to happen, while to me the whole business was still confused and grotesque”. Even though both of them saw and heard the same thing, Watson still couldn’t understand anything which means that Holmes must know even more which makes him more superior than Watson .Doyle has Watson saying this because even though Holmes and Watson are equally educated ,Holmes is still cleverer. This has an effect on the reader because if an educated Dr Like Watson could not figure out what is happening then Holmes must be even much cleverer than he must, because he thinks outside the box.
Doyle suggests his stories are all different from each other and makes each case unique. For example in “The red-headed league” Doyle has Holmes says “You have heard me remark that the strangest and most unique things are very often connected, not with larger but smaller crimes”; also in another story he says “one of the most singular which I have listened to for some time” and last but not least “it is most refreshingly unusual, your case is an exceeding remarkable one”.
Doyle uses these words in his stories to suggest that not every story is the same as the other stories. The reason being for this is that he wrote a series Holmes stories and would therefore want the reader to think each story is different.
In some of Holmes cases people, doubt his ability on catching criminals and solving. For example in “The redheaded league Jones says “he has his own little methods which are if he wont mind me saying, so just little to theoretical and fantastic, but he has the makings of a detective in him”.
Jones is implying that Holmes methods of solving crimes are impractical but still extraordinarily great, which makes Holmes remarkably excellent as a detective. Doyle has Jones saying this because he wants to refresh the reader’s memory on how appalling the police are at their job and that is why Holmes has to do their job of solving crimes and catching criminals.
Another person who doubts Holmes is Mr Merryweather the owner of the bank. He says, “I hope that a wild goose chase may not prove to be the end of our chase”.
Mr Merryweather is implying that the chase that they have set out on may prove to be nothing at all because the security of their bank is extremely high and that he doubts it that someone would attempt to break in because it would be a complete waste of time, they would never be able to get in. Doyle has Mr Merryweather saying this because if clay and his accomplices are clever enough to get around the banks security system, Holmes must be even cleverer to prevent the robbery and catch them.
Moreover in “The man with the twisted lip” Doyle has the following interchanged between Inspector Bradsheet and Holmes. “I wish I knew how you reach your conclusions” “I reached this one by sitting upon five pillows and consuming and ounce of shag”. Doyle has Holmes saying this because, Holmes is much smarter than the police is and if they had been clever enough they would have solved the crime and caught the criminal all by themselves instead of depending on Holmes to do it for them. Furthermore, it is obvious that unlike the reader the inspector does not understand Holmes’ reply.
In the opening of “The redheaded league”, Doyle starts the story with Wilson’s appearance, which he described as a person with a little pride who thought of himself as a gentleman. “He wore rather baggy grey shepherds check trousers, a not clean-black frock coat, unbuttoned in the front, and a drab waistcoat with heavy brassy Albert chain, and a square pierced bit of metal dangling down as an ornament. A frayed top-hat and a faded brown overcoat with a wrinkled velvet collar lay upon a chair beside him.” Doyle uses Wilson’s appearance to create humour at the start of the story because even thou he thinks to be a gentleman his appearance does not match with how he is described. The Victorian audience would find this comical because a real gentleman would not dress like Wilson. In addition, Wilson is portrayed as a gullible character as no one in his right mind would sit their and copy out from an encyclopaedia. “Copy out the Encyclopaedia of Britannic. There is the first volume of it in that press. You must find your own ink, pens, and blotting paper, but we provide this table and chair.” Wilson is so gullible that he fell for such a pathetic agreement, thou if it was someone else they would at least be suspicious of why they are being asked to do a job like copying out from an encyclopaedia, whereas he has no problem with it.Futhermore Wilson reacts very angrily when he finds out that the redheaded league had been shut down because with such a build up to the scheme it ended very pathetically. “THE RED-HEADED LEAUGE IS DISSOLVED OCT.9, 1890”.
The idea of the redheaded league was ridiculous which the Victorian audience found hysterical, firstly because of the idea of forming a redheaded league and secondly because thousands of people queued outside the hall, with hair of different shades of red and only one was chosen. . If a modern day reader read the story, he would not probably realise that the idea of the redheaded was amusing and would not be aware of this until he read the reactions of Wilson and Holmes. “Sherlock Holmes and I surveyed this curt announcement and rueful face behind it, until the comical side of the affair so completely over topped every other consideration that we both burst out into a roar of laughter”. Doyle starts the story of with humour because with an immense and comical opening it makes the reader suspect that there is something dramatic yet to happen later on in the story and makes him determined to discover out what it possibly could be.
However “The man with the twisted lip” is set in an opium den, which is a very sinister place because in the Victorian times opium was used a lot by many people, the reason being for this is because it was a very addictive drug and wasn’t illegal at that time. All though it was considered a disgusting habit and a gentleman would never be caught smoking/inhaling opium or being in an opium den.
The story is started with Wilson entering the opium den. “Approached by a steep flight of steps leading down to a black gap like the mouth of the cave”.
The entrance to the den is described as an underground building that was concealed so deep in the ground that in a way, it was hidden away from the world and the only way to get in to it was through a steep flight of stairs.
“Worn hollow in the centre by the ceaseless trend of drunken feet, and by the light of flickering oil lamps above the door”.
This shows that the opium den was always so full that the floor had nearly worn out from the number of people coming in and from the flame of the lamps that they had been lit for so long that it was about to go out. The word “drunken” and “flickering” make the opium den sinister drunken means when someone is unaware of their actions and is capable of doing anything without actually realising. In addition, “Flickering” means when something goes on and off which in this case is a lamp. Moreover, drunken and flickering suggests inability to distinguish things clearly and this story is all about disguise.
Watson nearly suffocates from the smell of opium, “The vile stupefying fumes” as it was incredibly strong which could render from unconscious. “Glimpses of bodies lying in strange fantastic poses, bowed heads, bent knees and chins pointing upwards”. The positions of the bodies are in such an awkward angle and shape they almost look like sculptures and statues, which is fantastic for bodies that are scattered around or that have fallen in to that place without knowing what they look like. Doyle has Holmes in disguise by having Holmes change his facial expressions and make him look extremely old “very wrinkled and bent with age”. This shows that like Neville St Clair Holmes is also a master of disguise but much better. Because when Watson walks pass him three times, he himself for a minute does not doubt that it could be Holmes. Doyle shows Holmes as a tough person who is ready to face everything and anything but in the opium den even he himself is in disguise. “Had I been recognised in the den my life would have not been worth an hours purchase”. This suggests that even Holmes fears for his life and which further on makes the reader think that Neville St Clair is dead.
Doyle starts the story in an opium den because with such a dramatic opening the readers would expect a major crime, like murders that have happened or that are about to happen in the opium den. The Victorian readers would be very shocked and would wonder why a gentleman like Neville St Clair would have any business in an opium den “It is the vilest murder trap on the whole river side”. The whole story then depends on the reader believing whether Neville St Clair has been murdered.
Contrasting with the previous two stories, Doyle uses Gothic melodrama in the opening of “The speckled band”; gothic melodrama was extremely popular in the late 19th Century in England, which sometimes was over exaggerated and was meant to horrify and shock the audience. The gothic melodrama used in the opening is there to make the reader believe that something horrific will happen and wonder if Holmes can prevent it.
However, gothic melodramas always have the conventions which Doyle makes use of such of having a last male member alive of a once aristocratic family, which has been, carried out through in “The speckled band” Miss Stoner’s stepfather is the last squire in his family. Also a appropriate name is needed fro a villain in a melodrama ,like Doyle has used the name Dr Grimsby Roylott which contains the words grim and grime which mean something ugly and horrible. Melodrama is often set in a decaying building, which also has been described in “The Speckled band” “the two hundred year old building which is itself crushed under a heavy mortage”. The description of the building creates an atmosphere and mood; which builds high suspense and makes the reader think whatever inside this building must be bloodcurdling. In “the speckled band”, the villan who is Dr Grimsby Roylott has an exotic interest having spent time in India “A passion of Indian animals” in other gothic melodramas the villan always has an interest in something that might be related with the story. In addition, either the man in the story who may be the villan or the hero inherits hereditary traits like Dr Grimsby Roylott who has “violence of temper approaching to mania has been hereditary in the men”.
Weather also plays a major part in a gothic melodrama: as it is always terrible, it would be raining, windy, lightening striking, and being gloomy. It always helps create an atmosphere, “the wind was howling outside, and the rain was beating and splashing against the window”.
The wind howling and the rain beating against the window indicates to the reader that something dramatic is about to happen, which may be someone’s horrific death or murder. “She writhed as one in terrible pain, and her limbs were dreadfully convulsed”. Which in this story is death of Helen Stoners sister, her death is completely mysterious
Nevertheless, later revealed in the story. Moreover, like any story the victim needs help from a warrior, who in this case is a detective, Sherlock Holmes, deduces Helen Stoner is a woman in distress, “You have been cruelly used”. This shows that an even more dramatic act has already taken and before something dramatic happens again, the only person who can stop it is Holmes.
In his stories Doyle uses a number of clues which he gives to the reader, for example in “the redheaded league Wilson’s assistant who is on half pay and always does photography in the cellar also that he has a splash of white acid on his face. These clues that are given, tells the reader that the reason for him being on half pay is to make sure that he gets the job and that he might be digging a tunnel in the cellar that’s why he spends all his time in there, and the reason of white acid being on his face is that Holmes knows his true identity. Holmes also strikes the pavement three times to check if it was hollow and passes all the building in Saxe-Coburg to see if there was a bank there which also makes the reader think even more that it might involve a bank robbery.
Doyle has Holmes facing a variety of opponents in each story who all are superb at their job, but Holmes can always defeat them. In “The redheaded league Holmes faces John Clay who is a well educated man “he himself has been to Exton and Oxford University”. Doyle shows that even a master criminal can be well educated. “He is head of his profession” Holmes thought Clay’s plan of the red headed league was astonishing. “Your redheaded League idea was very new and effective”. Doyle Homes a competitive criminal to show that although Clay is extremely clever, Holmes can still outsmart him. Moreover, unlike the police Holmes was able to catch Clay.
Furthermore, Neville St Clair was also one of Holmes opponents in “The man with the twisted lip” who was also a master of disguise: he was an actor and a make up artist and was excellent at repartee because his father was a schoolteacher, and because St Clair went to the best school around. Doyle has Holmes facing Neville St Clair who is a master of disguise because Holmes is also a master of disguise but he is much better at disguise and outsmarts Neville St Clair. Doyle has shown Holmes to be a master of disguise because when n Watson passes him in the opium den twice he does not realise that it is Holmes who was sat there not some wrinkly old man.
The last opponent who faces Holmes from the three stories I have read is Dr Grimsby Roylott, the name Grimsby contains the word grim and grime which mean something ugly and horrible. “A huge man framed himself in the aperture”, his appearance portrays that he his very big man who would easily scare anyone. “Seized the poker, and bent it into a curve with his huge brown hand” This man is very strong to be able to do this because no average person would have the strength to do something like this. “A large face….marked with every evil passion”, all this adds up to a typical Gothic melodrama villain’s description. Doyle has Holmes Facing a gothic villain like Roylott because even though Roylott may be dangerous and a threat to others, Doyle has Holmes being even more of a threat to a man like Roylott by having him bring about Roylott’s death.
In these stories the climax is an interesting part with full of suspense and action .In “The Red Headed League” the climax is more like a thriller which includes Holmes and Scotland Yard Officers surrounding the cellar and arresting the criminals . In “The Speckled Band”, the climax is set more like a horror sequence, which includes action with a mysterious creature (which later turns out to be a snake) and the death of Dr.Roylott. Even though they might not be much thrilling to us, as we have seen many thriller and horror movies, it would have been interesting for the Victorian and Edwardian readers. The climax is always kept full of suspense either if it is about whether the criminal might escape from justice (John Clay in “The Red Headed league” for example) or about whether the innocent will be hurt (Helen Stoner in “The Speckled Band” for example) . In the end we can notice that in both cases what we wanted happened (which is the criminal being punished and the innocent being protected), which restores morality.
However, the Climax to “The Man with the twisted lip” is different compared to the other two stories, because in this story there is no villain, from which the innocent needs to be saved. Nevertheless, the audience does not know this neither does Holmes, so he sets off to investigate the whole matter.
Conan Doyle is very descriptive when exploring the atmosphere the characters find themselves in. Such as when Holmes and Watson are on their way to Mr St Claire’s house in the horse and cart, as they did not have cars, and Watson describes their surroundings by using phrases like, “golden tunnels of yellow light” and “the murky river flowing sluggishly beneath us.” He also explains the speed of their journey, “as a tall dog-cart dashed up through the gloom.” This gives the reader a chance to reflect on the setting they are in and maybe gives them a break from all the mystery and anxiousness of solving the crime.
It is on this journey that Holmes gives Watson an insight into what the case is about. At first, Holmes is “lost in thought” while keeping Watson in suspense once again, “whilst I sat beside him, curious to learn what this new quest might be.” He then finally explains that the case is about Neville St Clair, a wealthy man who is a “good husband” and “affectionate father,” whose wife, while on her way to collect a parcel, has witnessed him being forced back from a window. His wife tried to get to him and encountered a man who “thrust” her back to stop her from getting through and as there were two police officers on the way to their beat, they assisted her. They then went into the building to see if they could recover Mr St Clair, but all that was there were an empty room and a “hideous” looking man, named Hugh Boone.
Holmes and Watson were journeying to Mr St Clair’s home to see his wife. When they arrived, she seemed anxious to know their news, as you may see when she says “No good news?” Holmes shows guilt and sympathy for Mrs St Clair, as they have no news for her, as this statement shows: “I hate to meet her, Watson, when I have no news of her husband”
When they go to their room Holmes stays awake “silent” and “motionless,” “rearranging his thoughts” about the case, hoping he can spot any clues that he has not already come across. Watson seems to be more relaxed and goes to sleep. The next morning Holmes wakes Watson with a question, “Game for a morning drive?” This made me feel very excited because he gave me a sense of adventure as he may have come up with a hunch that might be the solution of the case. Holmes and Watson set off, on another journey that Watson seems to know nothing about, and they end up at the prison where Hugh Boone was being kept. As they were entering the cell Holmes humorously states, “He’s a beauty, isn’t he?” Holmes then peels back the hideous face off this man and then he awoke to find Holmes stood over him with a mask in his hand and says, “Let me introduce you to Mr Neville St Clair, of Lee in the county of Kent”. Doyle makes Holmes shout dramatically which makes it obvious that it is an n important statement. It also builds up a moment for Holmes to show off, and make himself seem like a conjuror. Also by doing this, he is suggesting that the police are pathetic and appalling at their job, they do not think scientifically like Holmes, and when introduced to Neville St Clair they take it as complete magic. Holmes formal introduction reminds the reader that St Clair is a gentleman.
Doyle uses very effective ways to describe the image of this man without his mask, which in my opinion gives a very vivid view of how this man really looks. He uses words like, “refined,” and “smooth-skinned,” which I think are good words to use because the other face had a nasty scar, so it probably gives the reader a reminder of that.
In the three short stories by Arthur Conan Doyle, “The Speckled Band” and “The Red Headed League”, Sherlock Holmes, as usual, demonstrates his remarkable ability to solve mind-bending mysteries. In “The Speckled Band” Holmes solves a two-year-old murder and prevents another from taking place. In “The Red Headed League”, he manages to untangle a complicated web of events, eventually stopping a robbery from happening and captures a criminal mastermind. In addition, in “The man with the twisted lip” he takes all the clues and looks at them carefully to find Neville St Clair.
At the end of each story, Holmes fills in any gaps the reader might have as to how Holmes pieced together the crime. In “The Speckled Band”, Holmes explains to Helen Stoner the gruesome events of the night of her sisters’ death and how he came to his conclusions from the evidence provided. In addition, likewise, in “The Red Headed League” he tells Watson how, from all the clues he picked up during investigation, he managed to piece them together to eventually interpret what John Clays’ plans were. “In the Man with the twisted lip” he reveals the identity of Hugh Boone and tells the place how he reached his conclusion.
There is a great deal of similarity in these stories, as indeed, is apparent in much on Conan Doyle’s dealings with his famous characters, Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson. It is these regular and expected episodes that endear the readers to his work. Nevertheless it is the variations that provide the excitement and keep the reader coming back for more.
The Victorians had definitions of what constituted a gentleman. There are also modern and classical authors who, through their research have created their own definitions of the gentleman. The classic Victorian gentleman was “a man of high social station, a member of the gentry or the minor aristocracy, also in literature reflected the values and social assumptions of society itself and that gentlemen were just creations to live up to the ideal.
In these three short stories, all the villains are well educated: John Clay was a very well educated man who had graduated at Oxford University, he should be considered as a gentleman because of his high level of education and qualifications, and also because he had royal blood running in his veins. However, he forfeited his right because he became a master criminal and criminals cannot be gentlemen.
Neville St Clair should also be considered as a gentleman because he comes from a very good family, and is well educated and rich, but he to is a master criminal of disguise, who tricked everyone into thinking he was Hugh Boone, he therefore also forfeited his right to be a gentlemen.
Dr Grimsby Roylott who is a part of a very well known family: Stokesmoran, he should be considered a gentlemen but he killed a number of people and he to has forfeited his right to be a gentlemen.
Doyle has these three gentlemen facing Holmes as his opponents because Doyle wants Holmes to prove to the audience that even though these three are well educated and smart, Holmes can always outsmart them.
In every story, Conan Doyle provides a small insight into Holmes’s life and personality, gradually making up a whole figure and mind set of the ingenious detective. “With thin knees drawn up to his hawk-like nose’ this is taken from the ‘Red Headed League’ and tells us about his build. He is obviously slim, but also very supple, and his hawk-like nose tells us that he is of noble disposition. F
This small line from the ‘Speckled Band’:’ he picked up the steel poker, and with a sudden effort straightened it out again’ Shows that even though Sherlock Holmes is not of a stocky build, he still possesses immense strength to be summoned at will.
‘His tall spare figure’ indicates that his regal features do not stop with his nose. His tall slender stature, ‘kindly eye’ not a harsh man and with ‘long nervous hands’ his wiry figure are unmistakable. In ‘A Scandal In Bohemia’ it makes it very clear that Holmes is so absorbed in his work, he has no time in his busy schedule for the love of the woman, ‘all emotions… abhorrent to his cold, precise, but admirably balanced mind.’ Shows that although he is a fair and kind man, there is a thin line that Holmes will not cross, as it is evident that his work is of the utmost importance and comes first; He never spoke of the softer passions, save with a jibe and a sneer’ re-enforces his lack of romance and women in his life.
the author’s common usage of French sentences such as “ ‘L´homme c´est rien-l´oeuvre c´est tout” also serves to show the readers that Holmes is intellectual .Sherlock Holmes humours his acquaintances with his dry wit, on numerous occasions: ‘my life is spent in one long effort to escape from the commonplaces of existence. These little problems help me to do so.’ Suggesting that without his little adventures, he would be bored, solving these crimes show him some interest, and keep his brain ticking over. Doyle also implies that Holmes does his work, not for want of money, but for pleasure; a small hobby. ‘As to reward, my profession is its reward, but you are at liberty to defray whatever expenses I may be put to, at the time which suits you best.’ Although, Holmes says ‘donations are welcome’ it is clear that they are not urgent.
Holmes treats his clients and associates kindly and fairly. Within reason, he is a gentleman, sophisticated and meticulous and a rational crime solver. His determined and tenacious methods often prove to be obsessive and methodical, His understanding and gracious, although keeping his quirky habits, remains relaxed and calm. He is a detective, and perhaps, still one of the best well known today.
I personally think that “The Speckled Band” is the best story. I think the ending was very good; it was very powerful and dramatic. It kept me interested and made me read it right to the end because Doyle creates a sense of drama and danger by creating a mood of atmosphere by creating a scene when they walked to the big house instead of talking normally they whisper and then suddenly a baboon runs across in front of them leaving them in terror and feeling very frightened and when Holmes and Watson are in Helen’s room and are waiting in the dark and they hear all the different sounds, for example, when the cheetah is scratching and the snake is hissing and they are sitting there in complete silence but they are both terrified.
Assignment Sherlock Holmes Mr Buckle
