Liceul Teoretic „Al. I.

Cuza”

LUCRARE DE ATESTAT

SHERLOCK HOLMES – THE MASTER OF

INVESTIGATION

Candidat Profesori coordonatori

Petrescu Anca Georgiana Pavaloiu Simona
Clasa a XII-a D Marian Daniela

2013
 Contents
1. Argument..................................................................................page 3
2. The father of Sherlock Holmes................................................page 4
3. The character of Sherlock Holmes.......................................... page 6
4. Holmesian deduction............................................................... page 10
5. Influence.................................................................................. page 11
6. Legacy..................................................................................... page 12
7. Bibliography.............................................................................page 16

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1.Argument

The ultimate in fame reaches an author and his creation when a character in his fiction is seen by
readers as a real person. More than that – when this assumption is made without thought or
reasoning but taken for granted. The creation is so convincing, his or her character so thoroughly
and deeply drawn, their ways and habits, propensities and virtues so established, their appearance so
confidently described, that the reader has little doubt that this is a living human being.
The first time I ever made contact with this extraordinarily character, was, and I am ashamed to
confess, too late. While my parents met him in their childhood, I only let Sherlock in during my
teenage years. Thinking twice, I believe that it was better this way, thus I managed to have a more
profound perspective over Mr. Holmes’ personality and motives, despite the fact that he remains a
bigger mystery than the ones he gracefully solves.
Falling in love with a character strongly suggests a passionate piece of literature alongside countless
thrilling stories and life lessons that one may or may not learn from. Despite our late encounter,
Sherlock and me became very good friends. I was drawn by the unmistakable British sarcasm and
way of perceiving life. As it has come down to the verb “to see”... Holmes’ ability of deduction and
cunning skills of observation, nonetheless trained my mind to such an extent that I found myself
observing objects and people that I was not aware of, until then. Disregarding the fact that I did not
open a private eye office, the incursion in Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s world can be rightfully
compared with taking an ice-cold shower, revealing many secrets that were, until then, hidden in
plain view.
Even when he is utterly wrong, Holmes is right. This compensation generates from his
complementary relationship with Dr. John Watson. For every flaw Holmes has, Watson is there to
level the balance, proving once more that in some cases, one searches in a friend what he/she cannot
find in oneself, and when that search comes to an end, the resulting bond is astonishing and
undoubtedly ,unbreakable, creating the prototype of a perfect and admirable friendship.

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2. The father of Sherlock Holmes

Sir Arthur Ignatius Conan Doyle (22 May 1859 – 7 July 1930)
was a Scottish physician and writer who is most noted for his
fictional stories about the detective Sherlock Holmes, which
are generally considered milestones in the field of crime
fiction. He is also known for writing the fictional adventures of
a second character he invented, Professor Challenger. He was a
prolific writer whose other works include fantasy and science
fiction stories, plays, romances, poetry, non-fiction, and
historical novels.

Arthur Conan Doyle was born on 22 May 1859 in Edinburgh,

Scotland. His father, Charles Altamont Doyle, was born in
England but of Irish descent, and his mother, born Mary Foley, was Irish.

Supported by wealthy uncles, Conan Doyle was sent to the Roman Catholic Jesuit preparatory
school Hodder Place, Stonyhurst, at the age of nine (1868-1870). He then went on to Stonyhurst
College until 1875. From 1875 to 1876, he was educated at the Jesuit school Stella
Matutina in Feldkirch, Austria. Despite attending a Jesuit school, he would later reject the Catholic
religion and become an agnostic. From 1876 to 1881 he studied medicine at the University of
Edinburgh. While studying, Conan Doyle began writing short stories. His first published piece,
"The Mystery of Sasassa Valley", a story set in South Africa, was printed in Chambers's Edinburgh
Journal on 6 September 1879. Following his studies at university, Conan Doyle was employed as a
doctor on the Greenland whaler Hope of Peterhead, in 1880, and, after his graduation, as a ship's
surgeon on the SS Mayumba during a voyage to the West African coast, in 1881. He completed his
doctorate in 1885. Doyle struggled to find a publisher for his work. His first significant piece, “A
Study in Scarlet”, was taken by Ward Lock & Co on 20 November 1886, giving Doyle £25 for all
rights to the story. The story featured the first appearance of Watson and Sherlock Holmes, partially
modelled after his former university teacher Joseph Bell.

A sequel to “A Study in Scarlet” was commissioned and “The Sign of the Four” appeared in
February 1890, under agreement with the Ward Lock company. Doyle felt grievously exploited by

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Ward Lock and he left them. Short stories featuring Sherlock Holmes were published in the Strand
Magazine.

In 1890 Conan Doyle studied ophthalmology in Vienna, and moved to London, first living in
Montague Place and then in South Norwood. He wrote in his autobiography that not a single patient
crossed his door. This gave him more time for writing, and in November 1891 he wrote to his
mother: "I think of slaying Holmes... and winding him up for good and all. He takes my mind from
better things." His mother responded, "You won't! You can't! You mustn't!"

Conan Doyle was married twice and fathered five children. He died of a heart attack at the age of
71, in Crowborough, East Sussex, on 7 July 1930.

A statue honours Conan Doyle at Crowborough Cross in Crowborough, where he lived for 23
years. There is also a statue of Sherlock Holmes in Picardy Place, Edinburgh, close to the house
where Conan Doyle was born.

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3. The character of Sherlock Holmes

Sherlock Holmes is a fictional detective , a London-based "consulting

detective" whose abilities border on the fantastic, famous for his
astute logical reasoning, his ability to adopt almost any disguise, and
his use of forensic science skills to solve difficult cases.

Holmes, who first appeared in publication in 1887, was featured in

four novels and 56 short stories. The first novel, “A Study in Scarlet”,
appeared in 1887 and the second, “The Sign of the Four”, in 1890.
The character grew tremendously in popularity with the first series of
short stories in The Strand Magazine, beginning with "A Scandal in Bohemia" in 1891; further
series of short stories and two novels published in serial form appeared between then and 1927. The
stories cover a period from around 1880 up to 1914.

Doyle said that the character of Sherlock Holmes was inspired by Dr. Joseph Bell, for whom Doyle
had worked as a clerk at the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh. Like Holmes, Bell was noted for
drawing large conclusions from the smallest observations. However, some years later Bell wrote in
a letter to Conan Doyle: "you are yourself Sherlock Holmes and well you know it." Sir Henry
Littlejohn, lecturer on Forensic Medicine and Public Health at the Royal College of Surgeons, is
also cited as a source for Holmes. Littlejohn served as Police Surgeon and Medical Officer of
Health of Edinburgh, providing for Doyle a link between medical investigation and the detection of
crime.

Sherlock’s life

Explicit details about Sherlock Holmes's life outside of the adventures recorded by Dr. Watson are
few and far between in Conan Doyle's original stories; nevertheless, incidental details about his
early life and extended families portray a loose biographical picture of the detective.

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An estimate of Holmes's age in the story "His Last Bow" places his birth in 1854; the story is set in
August 1914 and he is described as being 60 years of age. Leslie Klinger cites the birth date as 6
January.

Holmes states that he first developed his methods of deduction while an undergraduate. His earliest
cases, which he pursued as an amateur, came from fellow university students. According to Holmes,
it was an encounter with the father of one of his classmates that led him to take up detection as a
profession, and he spent the six years following university working as a consulting detective, before
financial difficulties led him to take Watson as a roommate, at which point the narrative of the
stories begins.

From 1881, Holmes was described as having lodgings at 221B, Baker Street, London, from where
he runs his consulting detective service. Until the arrival of Dr. Watson, Holmes worked alone, only
occasionally employing agents from the city's underclass, including a host of informants and a
group of street children he calls "the Baker Street Irregulars".

Little is said of Holmes's family. His parents were unmentioned in the stories and he merely states
that his ancestors were "country squires". In "The Adventure of the Greek Interpreter", Holmes
claims that his great-uncle was Vernet, the French artist. His brother, Mycroft, seven years his
senior, is a government official who appears in three stories and is mentioned in one other story.
Mycroft is described as even more gifted than Sherlock in matters of observation and deduction, but
he lacks Sherlock's drive and energy, preferring to spend his time at ease in the Diogenes Club,
described as "a club for the most un-clubbable men in London"

Life with Dr. Watson

Holmes shares the majority of his professional years with his

close friend and chronicler Dr. Watson, who lives with Holmes
for some time before his marriage in 1887, and again after his
wife's death. Their residence is maintained by the landlady, Mrs.
Hudson.

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Watson has two roles in Holmes's life. First, he gives practical assistance in the conduct of his
cases; he is the detective's right-hand man, acting variously as look-out, decoy, accomplice and
messenger. Second, he is Holmes's chronicler (his "Boswell" as Holmes refers to him). Most of the
Holmes stories are frame narratives, written from Watson's point of view as summaries of the
detective's most interesting cases.

Nevertheless, Holmes's friendship with Watson is his most significant relationship. In several
stories, Holmes's fondness for Watson—often hidden beneath his cold, intellectual exterior—is
revealed.
Retirement

In "His Last Bow", Holmes has retired to a small farm on the Sussex Downs. The story features
Holmes and Watson coming out of retirement one last time to aid the war effort. Only one other
adventure, "The Adventure of the Lion's Mane", which is narrated by Holmes, takes place during
the detective's retirement. The details of his death are not known.

Habits and personality

Watson describes Holmes as "bohemian" in habits and lifestyle. According to Watson, Holmes is an
eccentric, with no regard for contemporary standards of tidiness or good order. In “The Musgrave
Ritual”, Watson describes Holmes thus:

“Although in his methods of thought he was the neatest and most methodical of mankind ... [he]
keeps his cigars in the coal-scuttle, his tobacco in the toe end of a Persian slipper, and his
unanswered correspondence transfixed by a jack-knife into the very centre of his wooden
mantelpiece ... He had a horror of destroying documents.... Thus month after month his papers
accumulated, until every corner of the room was stacked with bundles of manuscript which were on
no account to be burned, and which could not be put away save by their owner”.His chronicler does
not consider Holmes's habitual use of a pipe, or his less frequent use of cigarettes and cigars, a vice.
Even so, it is obvious that Watson has stricter limits than Holmes, and occasionally berated Holmes
for creating a "poisonous atmosphere" of tobacco smoke. Holmes is portrayed as a patriot acting on
behalf of the government in matters of national security in a number of stories. He also carries out

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counter-intelligence work in “His Last Bow”, set at the beginning of World War I. As shooting
practice, the detective adorned the wall of his Baker Street lodgings with "VR" (Victoria Regina) in
bullet pocks made by his pistol.

Holmes has an ego that at times borders on arrogant, albeit with justification; he draws pleasure
from baffling police inspectors with his superior deductions. He does not seek fame, however, and
is usually content to allow the police to take public credit for his work. Heis pleased when he is
recognised for having superior skills and responds to flattery, as Watson remarks, “as a girl does to
comments upon her beauty”. Holmes's demeanour is presented as dispassionate and cold. Yet when
in the midst of an adventure, Holmes can sparkle with remarkable passion. He has a flair for
showmanship and will prepare elaborate traps to capture and expose a culprit, often to impress
Watson or one of the Scotland Yard inspectors. He is a loner and does not strive to make friends,
although he values those that he has, and none higher than Watson. He attributes his solitary ways to
his particular interests and his mopey disposition.

Knowledge and skills

In the first story, “A Study in Scarlet”, something of Holmes's background is given. In early 1881,
he is presented as an independent student of chemistry with a variety of very curious side interests,
almost all of which turn out to be single-mindedly bent towards making him superior at solving
crimes. (When he appears for the first time, he is crowing with delight at having invented a new
method for detecting bloodstains; in other stories he indulges in recreational home-chemistry
experiments, sometimes filling the rooms with foul-smelling vapours). In “A Study in Scarlet”,
Holmes claims he does not know that the Earth revolves around the Sun, as such information is
irrelevant to his work. Directly after having heard that fact from Watson, he says he will
immediately try to forget it. He says he believes that the mind has a finite capacity for information
storage, and so learning useless things would merely reduce his ability to learn useful things. Dr.
Watson subsequently assesses Holmes' abilities thus: knowledge of Literature, Astronomy, Botany,
Geology, Chemistry, Anatomy, Sensational Literature, plays the violin well, is an
expert singlestick player, boxer and swordsman, has a good practical knowledge of British law.

At the very end of “A Study in Scarlet” itself, it is shown that Holmes knows Latin and needs no
translation of Roman epigrams in the original—though knowledge of the language would be of

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dubious direct utility for detective work, all university students were required to learn Latin at that
time.

Holmes is also a competent cryptanalyst. He relates to Watson, "I am fairly familiar with all forms
of secret writing, and am myself the author of a trifling monograph upon the subject, in which I
analyse one hundred and sixty separate ciphers".

Holmes's analysis of physical evidence is both scientific and precise. His methods include the use of
latent prints such as footprints, hoof prints and bicycle tracks to identify actions at a crime scene
(“A Study in Scarlet”, "The Adventure of Silver Blaze"), the use of tobacco ashes and cigarette butts
to identify criminals, the comparison of typewritten letters to expose a fraud, the use of gunpowder
residue to expose two murderers, bullet comparison from two crime scenes ("The Adventure of the
Empty House"), analysis of small pieces of human remains to expose two murders and even an
early use of fingerprints ("The Norwood Builder"). Holmes also demonstrates knowledge of
psychology in several occasions.

Despite the excitement of his life (or perhaps seeking to leave it behind), Holmes retired to the
Sussex Downs to take up beekeeping. His search for relaxation can also be seen in his love for
music, particularly Wagner ("The Adventure of the Red Circle").

4. Holmesian deduction

Holmes's primary intellectual detection method is abductive reasoning. "From a drop of water", he
writes, "a logician could infer the possibility of an Atlantic or a Niagara without having seen or
heard of one or the other". Holmes stories often begin with a bravura display of his talent for
"deduction". It is of some interest to logicians and those interested in logic to try to analyse just
what Holmes is doing when he performs his "deductions". "Holmesian deduction" appears to
consist primarily of drawing inferences based on either straightforward practical principles—which
are the result of careful observation, such as Holmes's study of different kinds of cigar ashes—or
inference to the best explanation. One quote often heard from Holmes is "When you have
eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth".

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Deductive reasoning allows Holmes to impressively reveal a stranger's occupation, such as a
Retired Sergeant of Marines in “A Study in Scarlet”; a former ship's carpenter turned pawnbroker in
"The Red-Headed League"; and a billiard-marker and a retired artillery NCO in "The Adventure of
the Greek Interpreter". Similarly, by studying inanimate objects, Holmes can make astonishingly
detailed deductions about their owners.

5. Influence

 FORENSIC SCIENCE

Sherlock Holmes remains a great inspiration for forensic science in literature, especially for the way
his acute study of a crime scene yields small clues as to the precise sequence of events. He makes
great use of trace evidence such as shoe and tire impressions, as well as fingerprints, ballistics and
handwriting analysis, now known as questioned document examination. Such evidence is used to
test theories conceived by the police, for example, or by the investigator himself. All of the
techniques advocated by Holmes later became reality, but were generally in their infancy at the time
Conan Doyle was writing. In many of his reported cases, Holmes frequently complains of the way
the crime scene has been contaminated by others, especially by the police, emphasising the critical
importance of maintaining its integrity, a now well-known feature of crime scene examination.

Owing to the small scale of the trace evidence (such as tobacco ash, hair or fingerprints), he often
uses a magnifying glass at the scene, and an optical microscope back at his lodgings in Baker Street.
He uses analytical chemistry for blood residue analysis as well as toxicology examination and
determination for poisons. Holmes seems to have maintained a small chemistry laboratory in his
lodgings, presumably using simple wet chemical methods for detection of specific toxins, for
example The Adventure of the Naval Treaty. Ballistics is used when spent bullets can be recovered,
and their calibre measured and matched with a suspected murder weapon, as in The Adventure of
the Empty House.

Holmes was also very perceptive of the dress and attitude of his clients and suspects, noting style
and state of wear of their clothes, any contamination (such as clay on boots), their state of mind and
physical condition in order to infer their origin and recent history. Skin marks such as tattoos could

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reveal much about their history. He applied the same method to personal items such as walking
sticks (famously in The Hound of the Baskervilles) or hats (in the case of The Blue Carbuncle), with
small details such as medallions, wear and contamination yielding vital indicators of their absent
owners.

In 2002, the Royal Society of Chemistry bestowed an honorary fellowship of their organisation
upon Sherlock Holmes, for his use of forensic science and analytical chemistry in popular literature,
making him the only (as of 2010) fictional character to be thus honoured.

 ROLE IN THE HISTORY OF THE DETECTIVE STORY

Although Sherlock Holmes is not the original fictional detective (he was influenced by Edgar Allan
Poe's C. Auguste Dupin and Émile Gaboriau's Monsieur Lecoq, for both of whom the character
openly expressed disdain or contempt), his name has become a byword for the part. His stories also
include several detective story characters, such as the loyal but less intelligent assistant, a role for
which Dr Watson has become the archetype. The investigating detective became a
popular genre with many authors such as Agatha Christie and Dorothy Sayers after the demise of
Holmes, with characters such as Hercule Poirot and Lord Peter Wimsey. Forensic methods became
less important than the psychology of the criminal, despite the strong growth in forensics in use by
the police in the early 20th century.

6. Legacy

 "Elementary, my dear Watson"

A third major reference is the oft-quoted catchphrase: "Elementary, my dear Watson", which is
never actually uttered by Holmes in any of the sixty Holmes stories written by Conan Doyle. In the
stories, Holmes often remarks that his logical conclusions are "elementary", in that he considers
them to be simple and obvious. He also, on occasion, refers to Dr. Watson as "my dear Watson".
The two fragments, however, never appear together. One of the closest examples to this phrase

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appears in "The Adventure of the Crooked Man", when Holmes explains a deduction: "'Excellent!' I
cried. 'Elementary,' said he."

 "Great Hiatus"

Holmes and Moriarty fighting over the Reichenbach Falls, by Sidney Paget.

Holmes aficionados refer to the period from 1891 to 1894—the time

between Holmes's disappearance and presumed death in "The Final
Problem" and his reappearance in "The Adventure of the Empty
House"—as the "Great Hiatus". It is notable, though, that one later story
("The Adventure of Wisteria Lodge") is described as taking place in
1892.

Conan Doyle wrote the first set of stories over the course of a decade. Wanting to devote more time
to his historical novels, he killed off Holmes in "The Final Problem", which appeared in print in
1893. After resisting public pressure for eight years, the author wrote “The Hound of the
Baskervilles”, which appeared in 1901, implicitly setting it before Holmes's "death" (some theorise
that it actually took place after "The Return" but with Watson planting clues to an earlier date).

 Societies

In 1934, the Sherlock Holmes Society, in London, and the Baker Street
Irregulars, in New York were founded. Both are still active (though the
Sherlock Holmes Society was dissolved in 1937 to be resuscitated only
in 1951). The London-based society is one of many worldwide who
arrange visits to the scenes of the Sherlock Holmes adventures, such as
the Reichenbach Falls in the Swiss Alps.

The two initial societies founded in 1934 were followed by many more
Holmesians circles, first of all in America (where they are called "scion

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societies"—offshoots—of the Baker Street Irregulars), then in England and Denmark. Nowadays,
there are Sherlockian societies in many countries, such as Australia, India and Japan.

 Museums

During the 1951 Festival of Britain, Sherlock Holmes's sitting-room was reconstructed as the
masterpiece of a Sherlock Holmes Exhibition, displaying a unique collection of original material.
After the 1951 exhibition closed, items were transferred to the Sherlock Holmes Pub, in London,
and to the Conan Doyle Collection in Lucens (Switzerland). Both exhibitions, each including its
own Baker Street Sitting-Room reconstruction, are still open to the public. In 1990, the Sherlock
Holmes Museum opened in Baker Street London and the following year in Meiringen, Switzerland
another museum opened; naturally, they include less historical material about Conan Doyle than
about Sherlock Holmes himself. The Sherlock Holmes Museum in Baker Street, London was the
first Museum in the world to be dedicated to a fictional character. A private collection of Conan
Doyle is also housed in the Portsmouth City Museum which has a permanent exhibit, due to his
importance in the city where he lived and worked for many years.

 Original stories

The original Sherlock Holmes stories consist of fifty-six short stories and four novels written by Sir
Arthur Conan Doyle.

 Novels
 “A Study in Scarlet” (published 1887, in Beeton's Christmas
Annual)
 “The Sign of the Four” (published 1890, Lippincott's Monthly
Magazine)
 “The Hound of the Baskervilles” (serialised 1901–1902 in The
Strand)
 “The Valley of Fear (serialised 1914–1915 in The Strand)

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  Short stories

The short stories, originally published in periodicals, were later gathered into five anthologies:

 “The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes” (contains stories published 1891–1892 in The Strand)
 “The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes” (contains stories published 1892–1893 in The Strand as
further episodes of the Adventures)
 “The Return of Sherlock Holmes” (contains stories published 1903–1904 in The Strand)
 “The Reminiscences of Sherlock Holmes” (including “His Last Bow”) (contains stories
published 1908–1913 and 1917)
 “The Case-Book of Sherlock Holmes” (contains stories published 1921–1927)

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7. Bibliography

1. Lycett, Andrew (2007). The Man Who Created Sherlock Holmes: The Life and Times
of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Free Press.
2. Barring-Gould, William S. The Annotated Sherlock Holmes. Clarkson N. Potter, Inc.
3. Doyle, A. Conan (1961). The Boys' Sherlock Holmes, New & Enlarged Edition.
Harper & Row.
4. Klinger, Leslie (2005). The New Annotated Sherlock Holmes. New York: W.W.
Norton.
5. Doyle, Arthur Conan (1893). The Original illustrated 'Strand' Sherlock
Holmes(1989 ed.). Ware, England: Wordsworth. pp. .
6. Internet Broadway Data Base – Baker Street.
7. http://en.wikipedia.org

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