Features of Detective Fiction Essay

Holmes is a detective who is made for his job. He solves the problems by using his intelligence and power if deduction. He is an archetypal detective; his assistant Dr Watson is also an archetypal who is not as smart as the detective itself is. Dr Watson is the narrator of all the Sherlock Holmes stories. He is known as a doctor in every story because it would make the readers trust him and therefore believe in the stories told by him. Watson is shown as less skilful, lacking the reason skills compared to Holmes, this makes us the same level as well as him because he too doesn’t know what’s behind the curtains. If in any case the detective was to narrate the story to the reader, he/she would straight away give out who they suspect and spoil the tension rising. If we find out from a second persons point of view it would slowly build up tension because they too do not know what is going on behind the detective’s mind. The famous feature of Sherlock Holmes character is his intelligence, which he reveals very modestly. Sherlock Holmes talks very little compared to his visitors, and have the ability to listen completely attentively to every detail of his victim’s description, ‘Leaning back in his chair with his eyes closed†¦ ‘ (The Speckled Band) This shows that Sherlock Holmes obviously has some amazing powers of concentration and imagination as he questions the victim and considers the situation, this would give him a fair idea of the story before he leaves the room. Sherlock Holmes would have had a very good idea of the crime; he would then go to the actual place only to confirm what he has already assumed. The three stories which we have studied on were ‘The Red Headed League,’ ‘The Speckled Band,’ and ‘The Priory School. ‘ All three stories were usually set in a rich upper class establishments, such as the Manor for’ The Speckled Band, ‘ the local shops and banks for ‘The Red Headed League,’ and the countryside school(and Inn) for ‘The Priory School. ‘ The summary for ‘The Speckled Band’ is †¦ A twin sister has died just prior to her marriage; her last words were ‘The Band! The Speckled Band. ‘ The other sister, Helen, finds herself, as her wedding approaches, seeing similar signs of things that her sister described just before her death. Fearing that her own end is close, Helen rushes to the world-renowned Sherlock Homes in a desperate attempt to save herself. After her situation is described Holmes and Watson investigate her house leading them to an action packed final. The summary for ‘The Red-Headed League’ is†¦ Jabez Wilson is a pawnbroker whose store is located on Coburg Square next to a bank. He told Holmes about his employee Vincent Spaulding and the ‘League of Red-Headed Men. ‘ This is a group established by a red-headed American millionaire, who left a large amount of money for men such hair colour. Spaulding introduces him to the head of the operation, who is also red-headed. Poor Wilson had to work four hours everyday copying out the Encyclopaedia Britannica in an office. So far, he did eight weeks until he found the office locked. Holmes becomes excited at Spaulding description. That evening Holmes gathers the Scotland Yard police officer, Inspector Lestrade, Mr Merryweather, the director of the bank, to descend into its vault beneath the bank. They lay wait in the dark, until Spaulding was spotted descend into the vault. Later Holmes found out that his real name was John Clay, a criminal of who Holmes is well aware. There is a typical plot structure for most detective stories. They begin with an exposition, where we are then introduced to the characters involved and we learn something of their background. ‘†¦ he beat his native butler to death’ Dr Grimsby Roylott (The Speckled Band) This is when a little rise of tension begins. Next, someone arrives and announces a death or something dreadful that has happened. The tension is raised significantly. After that, the individuals who are suspected are investigated, or it could mean that they have collected clues. Often in most detective stories if the person suspected turns out to be innocent, then this is called a red herring. Finally, the perpetrator is revealed in a moment of high tension; generally, it is the last person the readers expect it to be. The guilty person admits their guilt and explains why they did it, and within this conclusion, the tension drops significantly. In the stories I have read, the victim sometimes turns out to be the lower class people. ‘†¦. pawnbroker whose store is located on Coburg Square next to a bank. ‘ Jabez Wilson (The Red-Headed League) For example, Jabez Wilson was a male victim, who is respectable, honest, and hard working. ‘†¦ small pawnbroker business†¦ late years it has not done more assistants†¦ ‘ The character such as Mr Wilson is described ‘†¦ obese, pompous, and slow. ‘ Here the writer is looking down at Jabez Wilson and making negative remarks. Conversely, if it was a female victim then she would be sweet, devoted, and respectable. ‘It is not cold which makes me shiver†¦ it is fear, Mr Holmes. It is terror. ‘ Helen Stoner (The Speckled Band) However, the villain would be well educated and physically unacceptable. They come from the high aristocracy and would speak English frequently. They all seem to have an attitude towards the lower class because they think they are better then them in everyway. John Clay matches this description because he is educated †¦ ‘I beg that you will not touch me with your filthy hands, you may not be ware that I have royal blood in my vein. ‘ John Clay said this to Jones, the Scotland Yard Officer, because he was putting on the handcuffs upon Clay’s wrists. The moral message in all the stories is†¦ ‘What goes around comes around, ‘Dr Grimsby Rowlott tried to kill his second victim but got into his own trap. ‘The Speckled Band’ ‘Never commit theft because sooner or later you’ll get caught red handed,’ at the end John Clay was caught up with his guilt ‘The Red-Headed League’ ‘Never commit fraud or murder because it is a crime,’ kidnapping the child let the criminal to murdering an innocent person. ‘The Priory School’ In this coursework, I was told to read three books based on Arthur Canon Doyle. He wrote Detective stories and one of the famous detective stories ever told was about Sherlock Holmes. Doyle succeeded in writing the mystery stories and the perfect way of solving it. There was other writer like Agatha Christie who was well known worldwide and was famous for her incredible detective stories. One of he other author was J. B Priestly who wrote detective stories, but the difference between other authors and his was that his stories were always a moral crime, this means the criminal comes out in his own. In conclusion, I will say that using all these devices, Doyle successfully builds up inquisitiveness and hence mystery and intrigue. He uses little but heavy description; he is able to build up a powerful image into the readers mind and has the ability to shock the reader to submission. The way the whole truth is revealed is more dramatic and much more successful in entertaining the reader. Sanjida Akhtar 11Fa Mr Moore-English Coursework Show preview only The above preview is unformatted text This student written piece of work is one of many that can be found in our GCSE Arthur Conan Doyle section.