The stories we have studied Essay Example for Free

The stories we have studied Essay In the Blue Carbuncle Watson is again narrating the story. We see Holmes persuasive techniques and how he also doesnt reveal too much to Henry Baker. Its quite certain that he knows nothing whatever about the matter, we also see his persuasive techniques when he convinces the goose seller to show him the records. But Ill have a sovereign on with you, just to teach you not to be obstinate. Holmes here appeals to the sellers greedy side, as soon as money is mentioned he shows him the records. The Musgrave Ritual is narrated originally by Watson but Holmes tells the story of the Musgrave ritual. The butler makes quite and interesting criminal because he can speak a few other languages so he is a bit cleverer than an average butler. He has started deciphering the Musgrave ritual and when he is caught in Musgraves desk he pleads with Musgrave, Only a week, sir. He cried in a despairing voice The way he talks tells us that he is close to discovering the secret and that he only needs one more week. Towards the end of the story, Musgrave says What is it then? He gasped in astonishment, he says this because Holmes is about to tell him that he has found the ancient crown of the king of England. Throughout Doyles stories involving Sherlock Holmes he gives us insights into the view of Victorian England at the time. In the Speckled Band we see that there are lots of manors littered around the countryside and we also see that because people are rich they believe that they are above the law. We also see the want for money, and we see how far Dr Roylott was going to go to get it. The Man with the Twisted Lip shows us the poorer part of Victorian England; it shows Mrs Neville St Clair travelling up Upper Swandam Lane which is a typical poor place in London. We also learn that most of the races that have come to England have poor jobs, like we see Lascar-who is a black, running the opium den. The Blue carbuncle shows us that Geese were a familiar Christmas food (Turkeys came later). It gives us an insight into how geese were either town bred or country bred. Mrs Oakshott breeds geese in her backyard as a means of income and this shows Victorian women being enterprising. The Musgrave ritual shows us that they have Butlers and maids who lived and worked in estates for the rich. We also gain a further insight into the amount on manors and estates in Victorian England. Doyle uses two main characters within his Sherlock Holmes stories: Watson and Holmes. Both of these characters contrast vastly and I think that this contrast works well together in delivering the reader/audience with entertainment. Throughout the stories I have read Watson is often the funny character whereas Holmes is the one who solves the cases and has interesting habits. We see this within the Blue Carbuncle when Watson and Holmes are examining Henry Bakers hat. My dear Holmes! Watson said this when Holmes revealed all his knowledge that he could extract from Henry Bakers hat. This creates humour and acts as a contrast to Holmes more professional mood. In Conclusion I think that the Sherlock Holmes stories retain our interest today and remain so popular because of the contrasting characters of Watson and Holmes. Another reason is how Doyle varies the structure of the stories and how he makes the reader guess what has happened. Doyle also uses words like ejaculated to describe Holmes speech and this would appeal to people today as well as people in Victorian England.