By what means does Conan Doyle create and maintain an Atmosphere of Suspense and Mystery in ¡®The Adventure of the Speckled Band¡¯
By what means does Conan Doyle create and maintain an Atmosphere of Suspense and Mystery in 'The Adventure of the Speckled Band' This short tale shows all the formulae that Conan Doyle uses to create suspense. It adheres to Conan Doyle's previous successes by using his familiar way of building and prolonging suspense. The ways in which he achieves this are numerous. In this account he uses the description of buildings and objects to create suspense. For example, there is a description of the Roylott Mansion, Stoke Moran. Both Miss Stoner and Watson tell us of a large house, grey, two curved wings 'like a crab', in disrepair, blue smoke curling out of the chimney, and boarded over windows (to promote a sense of secrecy maybe). This description of the house forms suspense solely by creating an image of an eerie house, one that epitomises the stereotypical haunted house. Therefore one is thinking that something thrilling and exciting, but also sinister, is going to happen in this house. More suspense is built after Watson and Holmes enter the house, when they look at a few of the objects in the murdered woman's bedroom, more specifically; the bell-pull, the ventilation and the bed. The bell-pull is odd because it is not attached to a bell, but is attached to a hook instead, by the ventilation - therefore doing nothing, as voiced here; "No, its not even attached to a wire.
Short Story Essay
Short Story Essay Introduction I am going to be going through two short stories and then writing a short conclusion at the end comparing the two stories showing the differences. The two stories are the "landlady" and "the speckled band" they are both murder stories, murder stories are so popular these days because I think that people get gripped and addicted to the stories as they read on. My favourite murder story is probably Jonathan Creek because the story lines are so good. The features of a traditional murder story are the characters in it like the pretty woman (next on the murder list), the detective and the murderer. Someone reading a murder story tends to expect that the murder is a mystery and a detective has to try and find the murderer. This part of the essay I'm going to be writing about the short story the landlady so all my answers refer to the landlady in less it is stated. The landlady is about a landlady who kills her visitors you have to work out if he dies or not but we assume he does, we are given hits and clues not explanations telling us Billy weaver has died. The story is written in 1959 and it affects the style because of the amount of technology. But you can tell that the story is a twentieth century short story as the language used is so modern for example "dame" this is a American influence on the story. The transport and items in the story are
Explain what you learn about the roles of women and the differences in lifestyles from the stories 'A Scandal in Bohemia' and 'The Speckled Band'
Wednesday, 13th July, 2005 Explain what you learn about the roles of women and the differences in lifestyles from the stories 'A Scandal in Bohemia' and 'The Speckled Band' 'A Scandal in Bohemia' and 'The Speckled Band' are two short detective stories written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. They are set in England in the mid 19th century. Both of the stories are narrated by Dr Watson, who is one of the main characters. The other main character is Sherlock Holmes and he is an amateur detective. Both stories have a main female character and I am going to compare these female characters by looking at their personalities and the circumstances in which they live in. In 'A Scandal in Bohemia', Irene Alder is the female character and she is a retired Opera singer. Helen Stoner, a landowner's daughter, is the female character in 'The Speckled Band'. 'A Scandal in Bohemia' is a story about the King of Bohemia. He asks Sherlock Holmes to help him to get a photograph back from the clever Irene Adler who is threatening to blackmail him with it. 'The Speckled Band' is a short story in which Helen Stoner, who lives with her cruel stepfather, comes to Sherlock Holmes to ask him to help her to solve a mystery regarding a 'speckled band'. We do not meet Irene Adler until quite far into the story. However, we find out a lot about her before this. Firstly, the King of Bohemia tells Sherlock
Compare Doyle's presentation of the crime and the way it is solved in The Speckled Band / The Red Headed League
Compare Doyle's presentation of the crime and the way it is solved in The Speckled Band / The Red Headed League All of Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes stories follow the same basic lines. There is always the discovery of a crime accompanied by baffling circumstances, which attract the interest of the great detective. His less astute assistant, Dr. Watson, always accompanies him. Much time is spent examining clues and discarding red herrings, working out motive and opportunity, finding the solution and announcing the conclusion often to the surprise of everyone else. Holmes takes specific notice of minute details putting together the method and motive to the enormous admiration of Watson who is totally baffled by the crime. He always visits the scene of the crime and puts himself in personal danger. In the two 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 also 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. The ways in which the two stories begin are very similar. Both mysteries start in Holmes' office where Holmes is questioning
How does Sir Arthur Conan-Doyle create interest and suspense in the opening three chapters of The Hound of the Baskervilles
How does Sir Arthur Conan-Doyle create interest and suspense in the opening three chapters of The Hound of the Baskervilles? When Sir Arthur Conan-Doyle was writing The Hound of the Baskervilles it was the era of Queen Victoria. He used Victorian England for the setting because it increased tension. The Victorian times were a frightening and eerie time. There were flickering gas lamps, which lit the streets casting scary shadows, and also there was a weak police force and crime, prostitution, drug abuse and murders were common. Factories made the streets dark, smoky and dreary and there was often fog that was caused by the smoky factories. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's style of writing in Hound of the Baskervilles is the typical classic English mystery style because it has several predictable elements such as an isolated house, a corpse, a small group of people who are all suspects and a detective. It also tells the reader clues so they can make their own mind up from a narrator in this case Watson- who is a loyal companion to Sherlock Holmes: "Well, Watson what do you make of it?" This shows that Watson and Sherlock Holmes are a team. However Holmes is the brain of the team Watson is more of the associate of Holmes. The fact that Watson isn't as clever as Holmes means that Watson can't work things out so the reader has to wait for things to be explained by Holmes. Holmes is
For this piece of coursework, in school I have been looking at tow of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's most famous and well-known pieces of writing. Sherlock Holmes stories: The Speckled Band and The Man with the Twisted Lip.
ENGLISH COURSEWORK Conan Doyle For this piece of coursework, in school I have been looking at tow of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's most famous and well-known pieces of writing. Sherlock Holmes stories: The Speckled Band and The Man with the Twisted Lip. I will explore how tension and suspense is created and maintained throughout these two wonderful short stories. Both The Speckled Band and The Man with the Twisted Lip are detective fiction novels that include all of the conventions for their genre, which are primarily red herrings evil villains, series of clues, and frequent build-ups of tension, which is the main key to the success of these two novels. Both of the stories structures are similar, Dr. Watson introduces the case to Sherlock Holmes and a distressed woman arrives and tells the story, Holmes and Watson visit the scene and then the peak tension arrives in the story just before Holmes wraps it up. The Speckled Band has an obvious villain right from the very start Dr. Grimesby Roylott. The Man with the Twisted Lip does not have such a clear villain but a mere suspect the beggar, Hugh Boone, he at the moment is the only suspect due to the fact he was the only person at the scene where Mrs. St. Clair saw Neville St. Clair disappeared trough the window. Without such a distinct culprit it leaves the reader with little to judge on and makes them want to continue reading
A detailed analysis of The Red-Headed League and The Final Problem, making it clear why Conan Doyle is established as a master the detective story genre
A detailed analysis of "The Red-Headed League" and "The Final Problem", making it clear why Conan Doyle is established as a master the detective story genre In 1888, "A Study in Scarlet" was published, bringing together the infamous duo of Holmes and Watson - and in the creation of Holmes, earned Conan Doyle his fortune. "Scandal in Bohemia" and the following stories of his characters journey into the world of crime solving appeared in "The Strand" magazine. The 1880s saw a growing market for popular fiction and at a mere sixpence a week, it had anxious people rushing to the stands for literary entertainment, amusement and escapism. The double act of Holmes and Watson is very effective in the short stories by Conan Doyle. Holmes is often described in the short stories with extended imagery, often like creatures and monsters. "His head was sunk upon his breast, and he looked from my point of view like a strange, lank bird, with dull grey plumage and a black top-knot." This imagery helps to reinforce the idea that his "sharp and piercing" eyes give the impression that he is very alert. Holmes is also described as having a "tall, gaunt figure" with "slick black hair" and "hawk-like" yet "austere" facial features. He is portrayed as being a blunt and impatient man. At the beginning of "The Red-Headed League" after Watson's initial "intrusion", he pulls Watson "abruptly" into
Was Sherlock Holmes an Archetypal Victorian Gentleman?
Jesse McDonald 18th November 2008 Was Sherlock Holmes an Archetypal Victorian Gentleman? The famous fictional detective by the name of Sherlock Holmes was first introduced to the public domain in eighteen eighty seven. In the years that followed Sherlock Holmes became a household name, much loved by the public. Holmes was the creation of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, who at one point in time announced he would not be writing any further cases for the detective. However, due to continued pressure by the media and the British public he continued to write mysteries for the detective, right up until his death in nineteen thirty. Something about the Sherlock Holmes series struck a chord in the hearts of so many readers. In the following essay I will review the key characteristics of Sherlock Holmes. I will then, with the use of evidence from a variety of the stories, analyse whether Sherlock Holmes was an archetypal Victorian gentleman. Before we can begin to analyse the characteristics of Sherlock Holmes it is important that we understand the environment he lived and worked in. Victorian London was a place of disturbing contrasts and divides where the middle-class folk drank tea in comfortable drawing rooms, whilst those less fortunate lived in cramped conditions plagued by epidemics of typhoid and cholera. Crime was far more prevalent in Victorian London and was considered a way
Sir arthur conan doyle atmosphere in hound of the baskervilles
How Does Sir Arthur Conan Doyle create atmosphere in chapter 6? In "the Hound of the Baskervilles", Sir Arthur Conan Doyle describes the atmosphere in depth frequently; usually the atmosphere reflects the mood of the chapter. Also he cleverly uses the atmosphere to show a comparison between good and evil, for example in chapter 6, between the Devonshire Moors and Baskerville Hall. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle introduces atmosphere in key events throughout the book, this is used to provide suspense and set the tone. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle uses comparisons such as the lush countryside as opposed the gloomy moor to create an atmosphere and set the scene. As Sherlock Holmes, Dr Mortimer and Dr Watson travel through the county on the train the author describes the immediate changes. "Brown earth had become ruddy", this is used to show how the earth had become fresher and red. This also shows that the Devonshire countryside is a good/safe place. "Lush grasses...luxuriant vegetation" is used to describe the richness and the quality of the Devonshire land. It also creates an image that Devonshire is safe as shows no evil, unlike Baskerville Hall. "Lush" and "luxuriant" are very descriptive words, and show the reader that everything is all right and creates a good, calm atmosphere. As the reader can compare "lush grasses" to summer green fields, this sets a homely atmosphere. Young
"Examine Conan Doyle's presentation of Dr Watson and his function in the Sherlock Holmes stories".
"Examine Conan Doyle's presentation of Dr Watson and his function in the Sherlock Holmes stories" Abbreviation Key RHL = The Red Headed League MWTL = The Man With The Twisted Lip SB = Speckled Band TFP = The Final Problem In the Sherlock Holmes, Conan Doyle creates a character called Dr Watson whom we learn about as we read through the stories. Dr Watson is in the Sherlock Holmes's stories as Holmes's companion. He is always there with Holmes and helps him when he is in trouble. He sometimes helps Holmes solve cases and is good at working things out. He is always there for Holmes and he makes the stories more interesting. Watson is a person who has a romantic, less practical imagination than Holmes. Watson has a poetic imagination and is good at describing things as Watson describes Holmes as "very thin, very wrinkled, bent with age, an opium pipe dangling down between his knees, as though it had dropped in sheer lassitude from his fingers..."(Pg 28 MWTL). The description is made before Watson realizes that it is Holmes and not a stranger. The description shows how Watson goes into great detail to describe something and how far his imagination takes him. He is in many stories a soldier of the old school and has deep and genuine feelings for Holmes as quotes "your cases have indeed been of the greatest interest to me"(pg1 RHL) . This shows that Watson cares for