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Yesha Patel
Professor Lynda Hass
Writing 39B
27

July 2014
Sherlock Holmes: A Paradigm of Victorian Ideas for Growth and Development
During the late Victorian Era, the stories of Sherlock Holmes were a popular fiction
as it was a concoction of blithe, witty, frisky along with severe, dreadful, and human
consequences of crime. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle created Sherlock Holmes as a fusion of
ideas from Poe, Gaboriau, and Collins but was mainly inspired by his professor Joseph Bell.
His stories were a reflection of the ideas of colonialism as well as the ideas of power of
observation and science of deduction, which were treasured by the Victorians. The
detective stories comprised of escapades, emotions, excellence, and glory as mentioned in
scholarly texts like Doyle, Racial and Criminal Types, and How To Think Like Sherlock
Holmes.
Holmes is a demonstration of the scientists of the Victorian era, as with his ability of
deductions and scientific methods, he is able to solve mysteries. As observed in The Sign of
Four, Sherlock smells creosote and notices the footprint of the killer. He uses the smell of
creosote to locate the residence of the killers with the help of the dog Toby. Holmes uses
new scientific methods like in The Scandal of Bohemia, he uses a method to decrease the
rate of his pulse in order to be assisted by Irene Adler. Sherlock uses his extensive
knowledge of science by observing the area of the crime and deducing possibilities to come
to a conclusion and identify the killer. Also, we can infer that Sherlock uses his
observational skills to link crimes like that of Major Sholto and his son. He arrives at a
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conclusion that the thorn was tipped with poison used in a blowpipe, which was the reason
for their death. There have been many observations like these, which represent the ideas of
progress and power of the Victorians. These scientific theories and equipment used in
Sherlocks stories represent the traits possessed by the real scientists and their methods
evident during the Victorian era and even today.
Victorian era is suffused with mysteries and crimes to be solved by the inefficient
police forces, which brings the detectives as a consultant to clarify the investigations. Panek
illustrates Sherlock as an assortment of the detective stories. He integrates his
characterization of plots and assistance from a narrator from Poe. Holmes is not
romantically involved with females which was a charming quality making him a serious
detective. Detectives were exemplified as Heroes as they rescued the investigations, which
needed further attention. Another unique quality of Holmes was that he was a cogent
genius. With his massive knowledge based on science and human behavior extended his
crime solving abilities. His power of observation, which is strongly reflected in all of Conan
Doyles works created Sherlock to deal with masterminds. This quality was inspired by
Gaboriaus works. Sherlock is described as a crime solving machine and bloodhound or
tracker due to his accuracy in mathematical derivations and logic. Holmes method of
taking disguises to investigate crimes was a hike to his skill. The theme of mastermind
criminals like professor Moriarty was inherited from Collins. Sherlock is depicted as hero,
who stakes his life to bring about a revolution in criminal world, to the Victorians, like that
noticed in The Final Problem. Doyles exclusive contribution derived from Joe Bell, who
used observation and deductions to understand his patients by glancing at them was a
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fascinating skill instilled in the character of Sherlock Holmes. This skill separated him from
other fictional detectives, which is one of the major reasons for his success.
Another Victorian perception manifested in Conan Doyles works was the concept of
Colonialism over Indians. In The Sign of Four, we observe that the Indians were not given
a high rank in the army, which constituted power. They were denigrated as shallow by
involving them in crimes like burglary. In the scholarly text, Racial and Criminal Types:
Indian Ethnography and Sir Arthur Conan Doyles The Sign Of Four, McBratney draws our
attention towards the extreme ideas of the Andaman tribe, as stated fierce, morose and
intractable while they were merry, talkative, petulant, inquisitive, and restless. He
mentioned that Tonga used the pipe to blow a thorn tipped with poison even though they
didnt possess poison. Conan Doyle considers that they were born to be hostile but the
actual reason for their hostility was due to the invasion of the Victorian intruders. In the
story The Sign of Four, Major Sholto is characterized as a selfish man, who betrays his
fellow mates to acquire the treasure. This acts as a mirror image of the ideas of Victorians
by the Indians.
Sherlock Holmes thought process was a provoking epiphany, which captivated the
middle class of Victorians. The difference in the systems of judgment are described by
Maria Konnikova provides a further insight on his character. She reveals them as two
systems: Watson system and Sherlock System. . Watson system is the normal human
psychological thinking, which lacks curiosity, motivation, limited knowledge, and simple
ignorance to observations while Sherlock system is an analytical, conscious, and
relatively rational. The difference in the two systems is not only an additional effort of
being observant and aware of the surroundings, but also staying ignorant towards the
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daily inspections of our lives with no sense of motivation. The incompetent police forces
of Victorians are represented by Watson system as they lack the abilities, which are
advertised by Sherlock. These indications help the readers construct an image of the
government and their extent of accuracy.
The stories of Sherlock Holmes did not only represent an appearance of the
Victorian authorities but also constructed an inspiration for the audience to bring about a
revolutionary change in the method and system of their rule. It validates the immense
power withhold during the Victorian era and the system of organization. Sherlock
Holmes is not only a character but a vision, for an effective functioning of the human
mind, which can be acquired by additional effort to achieve greater power and command
in order for success, growth and development.

Works Cited:
Konnikova, Maria. Mastermind: How to Think Like Sherlock Holmes. New York:
Viking, 2013. Print.

Conan Doyle, Arthur. The Sign of the Four. Seattle: Amazon Digital Services, 2013.
Kindle eBook. Online.

Panek, Leroy. An Introduction to the Detective Story. Bowling Green, OH: Bowling
Green State University Popular Press, 1987. Print.

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McBratney, John, Racial and Criminal Types: Indian Ethnography and Sir Arthur Conan
Doyles The Sign Of Four.