Holmes Character analysis Flashcards
“He gave a most dismal groan. “I feared as much,” said he.”(ch.12)
love and friendship, rationality
the adjective ‘dismal’ has connotes to Holmes’s depressed, bleak, moody expressions when there are any references to emotion. the depiction of Holmes’s response accentuates his belief in how love evokes ineptness and does not allow people to be methodical.
the aphorism ‘i feared as much’ undermines the conventions of romance which insinuates that he is a huge contrast to Watson. alternatively, we see Holmes as aloof and arrogant in the sense that he is not happy for Watson for finding someone who brings him purposefulness, whereas, Watson is intrigued when Holmes is ‘bright’ during cases.
the novella attracts many different readers of the time due to Watson’s narrative: there are readers who are intrigued by romance and readers who are intrigued by Holmes’s extravagant skill. so, Doyle uses the character of Sherlock and Watson to balance the novella allowing all readers to equally enjoy.
you really are an automaton- a calculating machine
duality, rationality, justice, science
the metaphor “ calculating machine” implies that Holmes is considered to be something of a genius in his field and thrives on having difficult cases to solve. Reflecting how ‘idleness exhausts’ him.
the indefinite article of ‘an’ indicates that Watson is so astonished by Holmes’ immense levels of skill that he seems to be unaware of what Holmes
‘automaton’= adjective
metaphorically this presents Holmes as a machine that solves problems in an extremely methodical and fast way.
alternatively, this suggests that Holmes’ mechanical actions cause him to be aloof as he acts in a way that is programmed : his character flaw.
as the protagonist of the novella possibly doyle does this to indicate that in order for stability each person has a morally good and bad side to them relating to the theme fo duality
“My mind”, he said, “rebels at stagnation”(chapter 1)
“I abhor the dull routine of existence.” (chapter 1)
rationality, duality
Here Doyle introduces holmes’ complexity as he implies that he always needs to be active. Making us view his detective work as a desideratum further accentuates his love for ‘brain work’. this is emphasized as ‘my mind’ is separated from ‘rebels at stagnation’ divulging that holmes’ mind is of a superiority level and his body is unable to keep up with it. alternatively, Holmes’ use of dialogue creates an authorial and didactic approach which adds to the tone of grandeur as the readers are left to envisage a teacher. this also conveys his astonishment as the parenthesis ‘he said is used as a dramatic pause to make Holmes’ speech seem special and intriguing.
this relates to the beginning of the novella where Watson asks Holmes “which one is it today… morphine or cocaine” which suggests that Holmes uses drugs to “rebel” against “routine”. By turning to such a dangerous substance -which Watson is disgusted by emphasizes his extreme levels of boredom as his speech is even lengthy and unsatisfactory creating a somber mood in chapter one. but as soon as he hears of a knock on the door from miss morstan his sentences become short and exciting evoking an atmosphere of anticipation.
perhaps Doyle does this to indicate that Holmes is a character who is in need of attention as Doyle used to work with people with ADHD and this can reflect on holmes’ behavior as he is always in need of work and requires drugs to distract him. however, these strange perks that holmes have intrigued the reader and add humor.
“The pleasure of finding a field for my peculiar powers is my highest reward”(ch.1)
rationality, duality, justice, science
the alliteration “peculiar powers” focuses our attention on holmes’ amazing ability- his abilities are so extravagant that they are ‘peculiar’. this focuses the reader’s attention on how Holmes’ methods of deduction and observation will be so unusual that it evokes a sense of astonishment as the police force of the victorian era was inept and unable to get on holmes’ level. Forbye, this creates a satisfactory rhythm as it foreshadows that holmes will smoothly get through cases insinuating he is a master of detection.
the noun ‘pleasure’ insinuates that solving cases brings stimulation to Holmes’s mind just like drugs do which implies that detection is a desideratum for Holmes
implying that he lives for detective work and sees it as his “highest reward” as he has found a “field” that showcases his talents. Alternatively, Doyle is conveying that Holmes’s love for detection enables him to do a better job. this would strike the victorian readers of the time as the police did not seem to care about their jobs and were inept.
this Keeps the reader engaged in the novella as they are intrigued by holmes’ skill and are excited to see the wonders that holmes are yet to perform. this boosts the detective genre as we see him as a hero who has done what the police could not. by doing this Doyle is showcasing holmes’ amazing skill which evokes a sense of admiration.
he whipped out his lens and a tape measure, and hurried about the room on his knees, measuring, comparing, examining.( chapter 6)
duality, justice
the adjective “ whipped” implies that Holmes is excited and ready to exam the crime scene and find clues.
this is further emphasized when the writer uses the asyndetic list “ measuring, comparing, examining” to show holmes’ quick, effective ways which highlight his amazing detective skills. describe how methodical holmes is in surveying the scene makes him appear interesting and unusual as an investigator. he is so keen not to miss anything that he gets “on his knees” which shows us that he is extremely scientific and he ensures that he does not miss small, vital pieces of evidence in his investigation- hence showing us just how gifted holmes is as a detective.
this conveys a huge contrast to Holmes and Athenly jones as Author Conan Doyle uses more exciting engaging language to emphasize how much better holmes is. in addition, Doyle uses words like “ fat”, which have connotations of lazy and sluggish behavior, to describe Athenly. this again shows the reader of the Victorian era how much better Holmes is to the police force as a representative from Scotland yard as failed to show his skills. which boosts the detective genre as the juxtaposition between holmes and then attracts the reader’s attention towards holmes’ incredible abilities.
Doyle does this to contextually contrast holmes’ scientific approach to investigation with the ineptness of the London metropolitan police. although the police had government resources to help their investigation, their ineffectiveness was shown when they proved unable to catch jack the ripper, who was a serial killer that terrorized many Londoners. Doyle uses holmes’ character to criticize what many victorian people felt was a very unscientific approach that many police officers took during the victorian era which made criminals elude and escape them. a primary tool that police officers relied on as the notion of physiognomy this made officers biased when arresting lower class people,e whose facial features were asymmetrical, meaning they would elude upper-class criminals. holmes’ scientific method thus is used as a contrast, as it illustrates the power of scientific deduction rather than the reliable methods of physiognomy
“the science of deduction” (chapter 1)
science
Conan Doyle calls chapter 1 ‘the science of deduction’: although science is an abstract noun, the use of the definite article ‘the’ gives the phrase a sense of particularity and seriousness. the formal register ‘deduction’ adds to the tone of grandeur, indicating that the writer intends to seriously examine this particular branch of scientific enquiry: detective work. these language choices suggests that the chapter will have the flavour of academic treatise, intended to educate as well as being a story to entertain
“But love is an emotional thing, and whatever is emotional is opposed to that true cold reason which I place above all things.”(ch.12)
love and friendship, rationality, duality
preposition ‘above’ indicates that Holmes’ aloof nature seems to take presedence over his life. alternaitvely, he approaches life in such an alloof manner because he feels that is the most methodical way as a detective.
describing love using the noun ‘things’ accentuates his aloofness all the more as he downgrads the feeling of love to a thing making it sound invaluable.
by using the adjective “cold”, which is repeated a lot by Holmes to describe his emotions, has connotations of unemotional unfriendliness which relates to his absurd behavior. whereas Watson uses words like “love” which evokes his sensitive emotional nature
Conan Doyle does this to make Watson a foil to holmes which brings out holmes’ strange quirks. in addition, Watson’s emotion has an impact on holmes as Watson is the social conscience of the rambling thoughtless holmes, and as a pair, they work well together and without Watson’s romanticism and emotion, it would be hard for the author to keep the reader engaged as he has such a cold approach to everything.
So swift, silent, and furtive were his movements, like those of a trained bloodhound(ch.6)
duality
The alliteration “so swift, silent” shows how Sherlock is moving around the room quietly so he can take every single factor in. this Keeps the reader engaged and interested in holmes’ “peculiar” ways of figuring things out. the sibilance used here makes the reader envisage a detective with an impetuous style and impregnable flow as he is able to spot the clues that the naked eye could not reveal
the adjective ‘trained’ indicates that Doyle is accentuating Holmes skill as not only is he a natural animalistic detective but he is a professional who is capable of sustaining justice
described as almost having a built animalistic sense for detection. indeed his animalistic instincts appear to give him an unusually high awareness of how to detect criminals as Watson notes his eyes scan the crime scene “like those of a bird” and move “like a trained bloodhound” these similies are powerful in portraying holmes as an interesting and unusual investigator. he appears to have a very visceral, vivid connection to his work as a detective, and his power to correctly follow clues seems to be inbuilt at a more animalistic primal level. this makes him appear unusual but also intriguing for us as readers as we realize that although he uses highly scientific methods to deduce the probable criminals, he also relies on his base animal instincts to guide his movements
this relates to when the sign of the four was published everybody wanted to believe that holmes were real due to his preference for him over the police force. they wrote to baker street so that he would solve their problems.
you really are an automaton- a calculating machine… there is something positively inhuman in you at times#
duality, rationality, science
we could argue that watson is exasperated at holmes’ lack of humanity because he barely views mary as female, and dosent really seem to care about personal relationships with people watson could also be pointing out that holmes’ brain works on another level- if we consider the time the novella was written, during the rise of the industrial revolution, calculators were huge, complex machines which performed techinical
in this sene, holmes us seen as ahead of his time, as he is able to perform complex tasks within his brain and produce accurate results watson could be commenting on how holmes seems to have one purpose in life: to solve problems in this sense, watson is noting how holmes is completely focused on his purpose and does not let anyhting else distract him from achieving that purpose machines of that era were generally created to complete one task, and to do it well- holmes embodies an intelligent scientific machine
“State your case”
duality
even though mary is becoming upset, holmes do not allow emotions of any sort to distract him. as the title of the chapter suggests, holmes is there to take a factual statement, not engage in emotional acts or reassure mary his use of imperative “state” shows that he is in control- mary has given him the control, as she trusts in him to do what is necessary to solve the case
the short sentences suggest that he is thinking rapidly implying that he is excited by her arrival. his commands, reflect his newfound purposefulness divulging that the mood is now one of anticipation now that holmes is in his ‘field’
Detection is, or ought to be an exact science, and should be treated in the same cold and unemotional manner (Ch.1)
science, rationality and emotion contrast
the auxiliary model verb ‘ought’ adds to the tone of grandeur to imply that this is a teachable moment in which Doyle uses Holmes to teach the victorian readers and the police about the behaviors that we ‘ought’ to have during an investigation
by using the abstract noun ‘science’ Holmes indicates that ‘detection’ is meant to oppose any sort of emotion in order to sustain equality and peace. this is further accentuated by the adjective ‘cold’ coupled with ‘unemotional’ implying that being aloof is the most methodical way of investigating.
however, this portrays Holmes as an arrogant character as he feels his perceptions of detection are ‘exact’ and therefore the only way for a real detective to operate. the victorian readers of the time would listen to Holmes as Doyle’s authorial approach is didactic.
this conveys Watson’s emotions and feelings as a counterpoint to holmes which balances the story as holmes is this “cold” inhumane character whose unique “mind” does not connect with anyone else including the reader. this implies that without Watsons’ romanticism it would be hard for Doyle to keep the reader engaged.
“i never guess. its a shocking habit”
science
the shand powerful ‘i never gues’ insinuates that this is an important rule of deduction and observations and accuracy are a reward for not guessing. this is emphasized further when holmes follow this with another short and powerful phrase ‘it’s a shocking habit’ as the harsh ‘CK’ sound divulges that Holmes knows this is a dangerous and evil act that moves people away from a methodical approach.
this is perhaps a direct reference to the incompetency of the victorian police holmes seems disgusted by the idea of just making guesses to solve problems- instead, throughout the story, he highlights the importance of basing inferences and ideas on solid facts and evidence by referring to guessing as a bad “habit”. putting the phrase “I never guess” as a short and powerful sentence conveys his scientific accuracy and rationality. and he suggests that those who begin to use guesswork are doomed to failure forever, as their incompetence, like their guessing, also becomes a routine By doing this Doyle is showing the victorian reader how holmes is capable of sustaining justice unlike the police force as he is portrayed as a “connoisseur of crime” conveying his logical scientific methods
‘ i picked up my hat and my heaviest stick’ ‘holmes took his revolver and slipped it into his pocket’
watson wants to look fashionable to impress mary. Holmes wants to look prepared so he can work out the mystery and prepare for danger
contrast in interests
‘methodically examined it all over with his double lens’
Holmes does this for just paper which seems excessive to us but he is being extremely methodical here in order to work out every possible clue
i think sherlock is being excessive here and as an addict towards detection as he tries everything possible to stimulate his mind
the adverb ‘methodically’ indicates that Homes takes everything step by stepin order for accuracy making sure that his results are almost never incorrect
verb ‘examined’ conveys the level of expertise Holmes has within detection as he citircally asses each crime scene
the adjective ‘double’ firther accentuates Holmes’ methodical approach and how he is not lazy during detection. the noun ‘lens’ conveys his scientific approach to many problems
‘Holmes advanced along it in the same slow and methodical way, while we kept close at his heels, with our long black shadows streaming backward’
the verb ‘advanced’ portrays Holmes as superior here as he leads the scarred people up the stairs showing that Holmes is not affected by his environment and remains focused at all times.
the adjectives ‘slow and methodical’ relates to Holmes’ scientific methods making him a better detective. the fact that he is ‘slow’ suggests that as he is walking up the stairs he wants to absorb all the clues around him before he reaches Bartholomew’s room.
the prepositional phrase ‘at his heels’ evokes visual imagery of the in superior characters almost worshipping Holmes because he is a hero: an antidote to Victorian fear
the metaphor ‘long black shadows streaming backwords’ is emblematic of the true fear felt by the characters at this moment and ‘streaming backwards’ indicates that if they could they would run away from the scene of fear. Doyle doe this to greatly contributre to the tension of the rising action
readers might find the image of Holmes progressing up the mysterious and caliginous staris visually compelling and captivating, which presents Holmes as a Hero. Doyle possible does this to put shame to the police force and teach them how fearless they really have to be.
