A Study in Scarlet
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Sherlock Holmes:
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, born on May
22, 1859, was a prolific writer and a physician who was from Edinburgh
Scotland. He started his studies in the Roman Catholic Jesuit and began writing
short stories while he was studying medicine in the University of Edinburgh. Conan
Doyle is responsible for having created one of the world’s most famous
characters, Sherlock Holmes. During his long writing career, Conan Doyle wrote
plenty of other stories and books that he thought were much better compared to
the Sherlock Holmes series. However it
was the world’s only ‘Consulting Detective’ that turned into a sensation on
both sides of the Atlantic. People wanted more and more stories of Sherlock Holmes
and his assistant Doctor Watson.
While growing up, his passion for
reading never decreased. He met Joseph Bell, a professor and surgeon, while
attending the medical school at Edinburgh University. He was amazed at the
ability of Dr. Bell to obtain numerous facts and information about patients by
simply asking random and simple questions. That is where the idea of Sherlock
Holmes first occurred to Conan Doyle. Although Sir Arthur Conan Doyle died in
1930, the character of Sherlock Holmes, that he created, still lives on even
after 120 years of its creation.
Sherlock Holmes was created in the
late 1880’s in the story ,”A Study in Scarlet,”
in the Beeton’s Christmas Annual magazine and later reprinted as a book.
It had been originally titled “A Tangled Skein” but then later changed to “A
Study in Scarlet”. The story is narrated by Sherlock Holmes’ assistant John H.
Watson as he remembers the events that happened after his meeting with Sherlock
and the adventures that they both find themselves into.
Lens
Psychoanalytical
Characters
Sherlock Holmes:
1.
A man who
other detectives and members of the public consult to solve mysteries
2.
A man who does
not seek the limelight, willing to let others take the credit, but rejoicing in
the knowledge that he was challenged yet he came out on top.
3.
A man who
knows the fantastic but ignores the mundane
4.
A man addicted
to drugs
Dr. John Watson:
1.
Dr John Watson, an army doctor invalided out of the army
2.
Watson is
quickly identified as being the voice of right and wrong
3.
Watson might
not be as smart as Holmes but offers energy instead.
Gregson and
Lestrade:
1.
Tobias Gregson
and G Lestrade are considered to be the best of the capital’s police force
2.
Gregson and
Lestrade happily take all of the credit for the solving of the murders
Jefferson Hope:
1.
He has spent
his life seeking revenge against Drebber and Stangerson.
2.
They were responsible
for the death of the woman he loved
Quotes
"On these occasions I have noticed such a dreamy, vacant
expression in his eyes, that I might have suspected him of being addicted to
the use of some narcotic, had not the temperance and cleanliness of his whole
life forbidden such a notion."
Watson, 11.
This part
according to me refers to the drug addiction of Sherlock Holmes as the evidence found within this book suggests that
Holmes was after all and drug user. When
Holmes and Watson talk about their flaws before moving in together, Holmes
explains to Watson that "I get in the dumps at times, and don't open my
mouth for days on end. You must not think I am sulky when I do that. Just let
me alone, and I'll soon be right" (9). This may be seen as a hint that
suggests bouts of depression or side effects of drug usage.
"There's the scarlet thread of mur der running through the colourless skein of life, and our duty is
to unravel it, and isolate it, and expose every inch of it."
Holmes, 38.
This quote has to be the most famous one from
this book. It infuses the scientific, rational method of solving a crime with
romance and allure. This quote unites sensibleness and pure reason, which is
the need to dig out results of a murder, and poetry, which is the vivid
invocation of blood and thread.
“It was easier to know it than to explain why I know it. If
you were asked to prove that two and two made four, you might find some
difficulty, and yet you are quite sure of the fact.”
Holmes,
20.
