The Sherlock Holmes stories are perhaps the most successful and enduring of all detective stories, why?
The Sherlock Holmes stories are perhaps the most successful and enduring of all detective stories, why? The Sherlock Holmes stories are the work of Arthur Conan Doyle. Holmes first appeared in the story 'The Study of Scarlet', which was published in the magazine 'Beetons Christmas Annual of 1887'. Over the 40 years that followed Holmes appeared in 5 collections of short stories, and 3 other novels. Holmes' popularity was partly due to the fact that his books were the detective fiction books ever to be published. These books are still read today all over the world, because of the brilliant way in which they are written. The Sherlock Holmes books are written from the point of view of his sidekick Watson. Many modern day detective fiction books and television programmes follow the pattern of a detective and sidekick. The stories of Sherlock Holmes caused him to become a national hero. In all the Sherlock Holmes stories we are given a detailed description of what he looks like, that is a tall gaunt person with long thin legs, a thin hawk like nose a square chin, and of course a pipe and deerstalker hat. The first story I read of Sherlock Holmes was 'The Red Headed League'. In this story the reader is immedietely introduced to problematic situation, where a pawnbroker has come for advice. The pawnbroker goes on to tell Holmes and Watson his situation. Whilst the man is in the
What featuresare disturbing or reassuring in your selection of 19th century texts?
What features are disturbing or reassuring in your selection of 19th century texts? The nineteenth century produced many of the very best authors of all time in all genres such as Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Charles Dickens and H.G. Wells. Although they made fame in their originality, many factors coincided in their writing and formed the base for characters and storylines. It was these influences which in a way made their stories and novels more interesting to delve into as they opposed disturbing and reassuring features to create points of discussion. During the 19th century, many controversial changes took place. In terms of science, there was a significant rise in interest and development especially after the outbreak of many diseases, none more so than the deadly bacteria of cholera. Cholera was an infectious epidemic and had many types though all of which were infectious and many of which were most disturbingly fatal. Cholera caused slowing of the blood circulation and was not caused by any form of consumption but was essentially spread from immigrants who had caught the disease in filthy, overcrowded ships. We see this particular aspect heavily dominant in 'The Stolen Bacillus' by H.G. Wells overlapping with other prevailing issues such as personality disorders and the inevitable destabilisation of society through anarchism and the will to oppose moral rights. Other
To what extent do the Sherlock Holmes stories you've studied typify the genre of Detective Fiction?
We have red and studied five of Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes and throughout the next few pages I will be discussing if his stories are typical or not in Detective Fiction. In Detective Fiction it doesn't matter how much difference the plots are, it is basically the same story, every story in Detective Fiction contains a wise and noble detective with a less intelligent sidekick or apprentice (amanuensis), who is after a villain or murderer who is out for revenge or greed, finding clues until finally leading up to the normally surprising Denouement, where the detective rounds up the clues they have found and explains who did it and how in the gripping story finale. Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes first appeared in a local newspaper in the late 1880s and was a series of short stories narrated by Holmes' friend and companion Dr John H. Watson (named just Watson in the stories) until becoming a series of novels in the early 1890s, and finishing with "The Final Problem" and Holmes' death in 1927. Since then the Sherlock Holmes novels have inspired and amazed readers from all across the world and created the newly formed fiction we all know today, But is Conan Doyle's fiction typical in what we class as Detective Fiction? In any story in Detective Fiction the setting is always important, if the setting wasn't in common with the villain or the crime it lowers the overall story, for
The similarities and differences of three detective fiction stories: The Speckled Band, A Scandal In Bohemia and The Dancing Men all written by the magnificent Arthur Conan Doyle.
Our task involves doing an essay on the similarities and differences of three detective fiction stories: The Speckled Band, A Scandal In Bohemia and The Dancing Men all written by the magnificent Arthur Conan Doyle. The genre of these particular stories is all based on Crime/detective. All three stories have the same type of structure although the contents are different. Even though the contents are different, the way they are organised is similar because they are detective stories we should expect similarities between them. Despite the different characters the crime and action in all three is similar. In all three stories there is the same central character Sherlock Holmes-the detective and his great friend Dr John Watson-the first narrator. Before studying these short stories we had expectations of detective fictions, for example we expected for there to be: * A Complication * A Exploration * A Climax * And finally a Resolution A brief summary of the three outstanding stories we studied. The Speckled Band Helen Stoner approaches Sherlock Holmes about the murder of her sister the night before she was duo to get married. Holmes investigates the cause of death. A Scandal In Bohemia The king of Bohemia comes to see Holmes about a valuable photo, which he needs to get hold of before it ruins his life. The Dancing Men Hilton Cubitt approaches Holmes with a
With reference to the two stories explain the popularity of the Sherlock Holmes stories.
With reference to the two stories explain the popularity of the Sherlock Holmes stories. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle was born 22 May 1859. His adult career started as a G.P through the influence of his university lecturer, Dr Joseph Bell who was also a great inspiration for Sherlock Holmes the character. Conan Doyle's medical career never took off professionally and he was unable to get established as a G.P which his mother had always wanted him to be. Besides his love for science Conan Doyle was fond of writing and started publishing short stories for popular magazines. The short stories Conan Doyle originally wrote were not Holmes related, the first of them being "J Habakkuk Jephsons Statement" which was a huge success. When Conan Doyle began to write the Holmes short stories, they were a huge success with magazines and popular newspapers even from abroad which were paying large amounts of money to print the Holmes series. Conan Doyle's original hobby to fill the spare time he had in between being a doctor had now turned into a suitable job for him to support his family. The idea for the detective stories originated from his Edinburough university lecture Dr Joseph Bell whose ability to deduct clues fascinated him and Conan Doyle was able to put this skill of Bell's into the final character of Sherlock Holmes. In the time that Conan Doyle was alive the police force was in a
In what ways is "The Speckled Band" a good example of a classic murder mystery story?
9th November 2003 In what ways is "The Speckled Band" a good example of a classic murder mystery story? A classic murder mystery is made up of a number of typical elements. Among these are the principal characters central to the story: an unscrupulous villain, a shrewd detective who often outwits the police, usually accompanied by his less proficient sidekick, and a hapless victim/s. Throughout the course of the story, which is dominated by a process of investigation, clues and sometimes red herrings are dropped as to who the suspects are. During the narrative there is heightened tension, usually followed by a dramatic climax and unexpected surprise when the mystery is solved and the truth - not always realistic - is revealed. Much of the mystery element of a murder story is derived from the physical setting, as in spooky houses or the desolate moors in Conan-Doyle's Hound of the Baskervilles. Unusually, though very successfully, The Speckled Band is narrated by Holmes's sidekick, Dr Watson, a trusted and amiable man. Throughout the story we are dependent on Dr Watson for information to bring us closer in; if he is in the dark, we have the reassurance that so are we, and if we are not, then we have the triumph of knowing the truth before Dr Watson. He admires and faithfully follows Holmes, even into dangerous situations such as the visit to Stoke Moran, despite a clear
Compare the techniques used to create mystery and suspense by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in "The Adventure of The Speckled Band" and Ray Douglas Bradbury in "The Whole Town's Sleeping".
English Coursework Compare the techniques used to create mystery and suspense by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in "The Adventure of The Speckled Band" and Ray Douglas Bradbury in "The Whole Town's Sleeping". In this essay I will be comparing the techniques used to create mystery and suspense by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in "The Adventure of The Speckled Band" and Ray Bradbury in "The Whole Town's Sleeping". I will be focusing on the differences and similarities in setting, structure, characters, language and narration and in endings. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle wrote "The Adventure of The Speckled Band" in 1897 during the Boer War. He wrote the mystery story whilst studying to be a doctor at the University of Edinburgh. He was most famous for his Sherlock Holmes mystery stories, which he introduced in 1891. He then moved to Southsea in Hampshire to set up a small practise during his 20's. In 1954 Ray Douglas Bradbury wrote a short American story, "The Whole Town's Sleeping" is just an example of many American short stories written by Ray Bradbury. Ray is known as a science fiction writer and due to this he won innumerable honours and awards. "The Adventure of The Speckled Band" was written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in 1897 and is similar in some ways to Ray Bradbury's "The Whole Town's Sleeping", which was written in 1954. Although they were set at different times and in different
Why are the Sherlock Holmes stories still popular today?
Why are the Sherlock Holmes stories still popular today? This piece of coursework will be answering the question and title above, this will include the examination of 'The Adventure of the Speckled Band' and also 'The Final Problem'. I have analysed these different types of the two stories - background, context of the stories, openings, settings, characters, including and investigation of the style, language and themes. One of the key parts to why the Sherlock Holmes stories are still popular is the author, Arthur Conan Doyle. He was born on the 22nd May 1859. Throughout his upbringing Conan Doyle and his family moved a lot, trying to break free of the dirty streets of Edinburgh. While their family were shifting about from house to house, his mum would read him stories about medieval honour, romance and knights in shining armour. His writing shows and displays that his imagination was fed by short stories and enthusiasm to write about crime, science fiction and fantasy. In his school days he was under strict rules in a Jesuit school with a hard and strict reputation. From school he studied medicine at Edinburgh University in 1877. At University he met a man who he based the stories of Sherlock homes on and used him as a model for his character. This man was called Joseph Bell, he always insisted on his students to observe the detail. He was a mastermind and authority of
Analysation of the detective genre, Sherlock Holmes
Examine the detective genre through your study of a range of Sherlock Holmes stories, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. You should pay particular attention to the ways in which tension and suspense are created, demonstrate your knowledge of literary tradition and examine the social, historical and cultural context against which the stories are written. You should have read at least five Sherlock Holmes stories, and should refer in detail to at least three in your answer. During the Nineteenth-Century, the 'Detective Genre' grew to be very popular. The public liked reading the series, as they felt physically involved in the mysteries. In every story, a crime would be committed, it would either be a 'Why Dunnit' (you see who did it and the rest of the story tells you why), or a 'who dunnit' (the criminal is concealed and the detective had to find them. A selection of clues would be shown to the readers, there could be red-herrings; this is a clue that is false as though to confuse you or surprise you. Often the detective will have a 'side-kick' who is less observant than the detective; they act as an audience for the detective. There are lots of twists and turns, often the ending is a shock. The detective is often not involved in the police force, and works outside the law in some way. Regularly the detective can get into danger, but narrowly escapes. The fact that Coran Doyle used
'The short stories involving Sherlock Holmes manage to successfully combine many of the classic ingredients of the detective genre.' With reference to the FIVE stories which you have studied, prove this to be the case.
'The short stories involving Sherlock Holmes manage to successfully combine many of the classic ingredients of the detective genre.' With reference to the FIVE stories which you have studied, prove this to be the case. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle was a man of great intelligence who was brought up to love books. Influenced by his father's criminal work, Doyle produced his first 'Holmes' story in 1887. Sherlock Holmes was created by the amazing imagination of Doyle, with his 'sidekick', Watson. The great detective stories were very intriguing. Doyle planned to end the series in 1893 but due to great public demand, resurrected his popular hero in 1903.The character of Sherlock brought hope to the Victorians as they disliked the police force. Crime rates were high and many of the police force were corrupt themselves. In 1892, at 221B Baker Street, Sherlock Holmes arrived and graced London with a hope of crime solving. Jack the Ripper was still walking the streets, killing women, leaving clues but yet the police were unable to catch him. The mysteries of Sherlock Holmes, written by Arthur Conan Doyle, provided the people of London with a hope that one day Jack the Ripper may be captured and brought to justice. The role of women in the Victorian Age was very simple and limited. We have an example of a stereotypical Victorian woman in 'The Speckled Band'. Helen Stoner had a "face drawn