The Hound of the Baskervilles

by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

What is the character of Dr. Watson in this story?

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"What is the character of Dr. Watson in this story?" eNotes Editorial, 10 Apr. 2012,
https://www.enotes.com/homework-help/what-is-the-character-of-dr-watson-in-this-story-329506.
Accessed 26 Jan. 2023.

Expert Answers
Dr. Watson's character in The Hound of the Baskervilles is no different from his character in all the
other Sherlock Holmes stories. He is a conservative, unimaginative Britisher who is devoted to
Sherlock Holmes and acts as his biographer. He enjoys sharing in Holmes's adventures and
frequently acts as his assistant. Watson is a foil to Holmes because he is not brilliant or
imaginative; he is orthodox in his behavior and opinions, whereas Holmes is a complete
individualist. Both men, however, are patriotic Englishmen and politically conservative.

In The Hound of the Baskervilles, Sherlock Holmes stays out of the picture for most of the book. I
believe this story was converted into a Sherlock Holmes story and had not originally been intended
as such. That would explain why Holmes is absent so much of the time and why Watson is so
much on his own.

Watson's outstanding traits are loyalty, courage, and kindness. He is a doctor, which means that he
sympathizes with people who have troubles. Holmes, by contrast, is not especially interested in
people but in the intellectual problems and challenges their troubles present. Watson's greatest
weakness is that he is not intelligent. He would like to be a detective like his friend Holmes, but he
has no imagination and cannot make logical deductions. You could describe Watson by
contrasting him with Holmes, as this was Doyle's intention.

Arthur Conan Doyle got the idea for writing Sherlock Holmes stories from Edgar Allan Poe's two or
three "tales of ratiocination," especially from Poe's "The Murders in the Rue Morgue." These stories
are told by a narrator who, like Watson, is a friend of the amateur detective-hero and who
accompanies him on his investigations but cannot see what the hero sees. The other important
Poe story is "The Purloined Letter."