Characters

Question 1

How does Conan Doyle present Thaddeus Sholto as an easy target of mockery?

Answer 1

• His comically ostenatious house advocating ‘arts for arts sake’ is seen as out of place (“an oasis of art in the howling desert of South London”) and by living in his father’s colonial collection he is trying to be someone he is not.
• He is presented as a hypochondriac who - upon learning Watson is a doctor - expresses that he has “grave doubts as to my mitral valve” - instead of just saying “heart” he is presented a pretentious.