We expect our preconceived expectations of a detective are that they have greater observation, more advanced brains, unique habits and a weaker minded foil and possibly deception to suspects of what really is going on. Holmes’ presentation compares to this because he has many unique habits and does deceit his suspects as well as allies, ‘Excellent Watson! And how did you localize me? You saw me perhaps on the night of the convict hunt, when I was so imprudent as to allow the moon to rise behind me?’
This shows that Holmes had been in hiding, deceiving everyone that he was in London. Also Holmes has a very brilliant mind and eagle-like eyes. But his foil (Watson) is weaker minded, however this is not a problem for him as he knows many of his partners methods, ‘our researches have evidently been running on parallel lines…’
The Holmes and Watson relationship reinforces Holmes’ characterisation because it shows an unusually strong bond between the two. ‘..For when I see the stub of a cigarette marked Bradley, Oxford Street, I know that my friend Watson is in the neighbourhood.’
Conan Doyle’s language usage creates, in some minds, a sense of a near heroic figure in Holmes this is shown in the line, ‘never have I seen a man run as Holmes that night.’ This line shows Holmes standing out, being the only one with ‘blink-of-an-eye’ reactions.
The concept of red herring’s is to create a lead or breakthrough in a case for the detective. These have been cleverly devised into the hound of the Baskervilles as there is one clearly visible in London at the beginning. This is the suspecting of Barrymore, Sir Charles butler. The true criminal poses as Barrymore while in London leading Holmes and company to believe that Barrymore is the criminal. Barrymore is later proved to be not guilty. The effects red herrings have on the audience are devastating because it leaves the reader thinking the criminal is going to be harder to catch than the detectives think.
We expect to read about a seemingly perfect crime in detective fiction because otherwise it wouldn’t be as tension-building or suspense-filling. The seemingly perfect crime in along came a spider is the kidnap of two celebrity kids and the robbery of a million dollar ransom. In hound of the Baskervilles it would be the murder of Sir Henry and Sir Charles Baskerville and announcement that the criminal is an heir to the family fortune his father never received by using an old family curse. The detective genre is being challenged in this book by the gothic genre as the incorporation of a hellhound is less reminiscent of the detective genre. The description of the hell hound backs up a point that it is a more gothic idea as it says, ’Big, black beast.’ This refers to the gothic genre as black is heavily associated with the gothic genre and beasts are more reminiscent of darker genres such as the gothic genre.
A mysterious atmosphere is essential in a detective novel because it adds tension and suspense. This is through the way it is portrayed as mysterious, very little known and secretive. Conan Doyle uses layer upon layer of description on the moor when Watson first sees it. ‘A tinge of melancholy lay upon the countryside.’ This quotation evidences his use of description for the moor. He also uses powerful adjectives to describe certain features of the moor such as,’ Jagged and sinister hills.’ This quotation conjures a sense of coldness and makes the reader feel unwelcome to the sudden change of scenery.
The seemingly perfect crime sees Stapleton as the villain through out the story. However no one suspects him but Holmes and this is revealed when Holmes is found by Watson. Conan Doyle presents Stapleton as a poor yet clever man in the hound of the Baskervilles. The usage of certain words provokes this idea: ‘dressed in a grey suit and a straw hat.’ He compares, to other villains of the detective genre, very secretive and as unsusceptible as can be. This is shown by the way he hides his past life to everyone, but he only tells them he lost money with the school he had. Other villains would either make themselves known but be hard to catch, or secret but leading the detective towards them and finally slipping up somewhere along the line. It links to the implication of justice always prevailing because in the end the criminal is nearly always caught. The role of miss. Stapleton as an accomplice would have been quite normal to a Victorian audience. This is because women were considered the weaker gender and men bossed around women. Conan Doyle is linking these ideas on the role of women through the use of miss. Stapleton in the book. Miss. Stapleton, when found at the end, is shown to have been beaten if not carrying out orders by Stapleton and left alone if obeying Stapleton. ’”Oh, this villain! See how he has treated me!” she shot her arms out from her sleeves, and we saw with horror that they were all mottled with bruises.’ This is evidence that Stapleton beat his wife.
Most detective fiction is expected to be formed around the idea of ‘who dunnit?’ This is true in along came a spider as Alex Cross tries to find a villain after another villain. However in hound of the Baskervilles it isn’t the case as Holmes and Watson are also saving Sir Henry from an untimely death. You would expect the idea of ‘who dunnit?’ to be the centre theme around the story, creating tension and suspense fitting for it. This makes Holmes seem heroic, ‘…Holmes had emptied five barrels of his revolver into the creature’s flank.’
I think the hound of the Baskervilles is very sensational novels within the detective genre because it is where Holmes and Watson meet a foe worthy of there steel. I think the mysterious atmosphere is particularly effective because it creates the tension and suspense it needs to create and it holds secrets, leaving the question in your mind,’ What’s it hiding?’ also I think the mysterious atmosphere is effective because of its unique base for the whole of the story. ‘No literary figure has a stronger hold on the public imagination than Sherlock Holmes.’ This is shown in the essay.
