A Study in Scarlet: Chapters 5 - 7
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victorian221bApologies for the delay due to life! Hopefully, my scribbles on the next part of STUD will incur forgiveness. Looking forward as ever to your opinions =^_^=
A Study in Scarlet
Chapter 5
---The chapter starts with Watson stating that "...the morning exertions had been too much for my wrak health…" He consequently spends the afternoon on the sofa.
It is a stark reminder of how Watson, despite being reinvigorated by Holmes' company & the case, still is afflicted by his injuries & poor health.
Yet even so, Watson shows that he is well suited to being Holmes' companion and fellow crime solver for he spends a sleepless afternoon recalling & debating the facts of the case.
---Watson's moral fibre also is on display, noting that despite Enoch J. Drebber's depravity, this doesn't condone him being murdered.
This is an important line, because it links to the story set in America where we are told the very good reason for why Drebber was killed; without it, like Watson or Holmes, one cannot feel sympathy for the murderer or that justice is easy.
---The lovely exchange between Holmes and Watson upon Holmes' return is lovely. Music and Holmes' compassion towards Watson feeling horror at the crime, (with Watson remarking quite casually yet horrifically on Maiwand).
---Watson being quite fine with his name being used for the ruse is charming!
---Watson and his revolver! Holmes already depending on Watson. I say, they found each other in time didn't they?
---Holmes is correct about the importance of the ring to the man.
---What I like is that Doyle allows Holmes to be fallible when he is deceived by the disguise. This shows Holmes is human and whilst, unlike Lestrade or Gregson he has inferred much about the case, contacting America and so forth, he can be taken in.
---Still, Holmes is in good humour and while understandably doesn't wish the Yard to know, he has no issue with telling Watson. Not much sign of a man who can't admit his faults!
---Holmes to Watson:
"...Now, Doctor, you are looking done-up. Take my advice and turn in."
I was certainly feeling very weary, so I obeyed his injunction.
Another sweet example of Holmes noticing someone's fatigue and ensuring that they take rest, here if course, it is Watson who listens to Holmes playing melancholy wailing into the night. Though there is no indication this prevents Watson from resting since on the morrow he appears fine.
Holmes is actually quite gentle when needed and not unfeeling or ignorant of the condition of others unlike some would have you believe.
Chapter 6
I haven't too many notes on this chapter considering it is mainly a recounting of Gregson's encounter which while interesting but not much to comment on from me, so any additions are extra welcome!
---Holmes is dreadfully sweet to Watson over his naivety in how Gregson and Lestrade will be treated whether they catch or lose their man. Their banter is wonderful for short acquaintances.
---Our introduction to the Baker Street division of youths!
---I'm amused how Holmes is genuinely concerned that Gregson has the right man!
---Of course Gregson is terribly wrong, which Holmes encourages a little, bad form Holmes though understandable ;)
---Lestrade's sombre entrance and his utterance is quite dramatic and shocking.
Chapter 7
---I like that even our remarkable detective is stunned by the news imparted by Lestrade:
"The intelligence with which Lestrade greeted us was so momentous and so unexpected that we were all three dumbfounded...I stared at SherlockHolmes, whose lips were compressed and his brows drawn over his eyes."
---Holmes regains his equanimity quickly however and he causes a marvel when guessing the word "RACHE" being left on the wall.
---Watson gets to display his medical knowledge :-) and skipping the dog part! He has a miraculous recovery ok?
---I do think Gregson was correct to press Holmes on revealing the assassin, with Lestrade & Watson, especially since at that moment none of them have a clue to the motives of the killer. Much as I love Holmes' dramatic flair, occasionally it must bow before logic and reason...and our consulting detective isn’t always coldly logical as accused ;)
---Ah, I cannot outdo the dramatic capture of our murderer! Truly, the stage lost a great actor! And now we too can learn the tragic story behind the killings which grants us sympathy with the murderer and not his victims. In fact, where justice and law become complex & uneasy.
A Study in Scarlet
Chapter 5
---The chapter starts with Watson stating that "...the morning exertions had been too much for my wrak health…" He consequently spends the afternoon on the sofa.
It is a stark reminder of how Watson, despite being reinvigorated by Holmes' company & the case, still is afflicted by his injuries & poor health.
Yet even so, Watson shows that he is well suited to being Holmes' companion and fellow crime solver for he spends a sleepless afternoon recalling & debating the facts of the case.
---Watson's moral fibre also is on display, noting that despite Enoch J. Drebber's depravity, this doesn't condone him being murdered.
This is an important line, because it links to the story set in America where we are told the very good reason for why Drebber was killed; without it, like Watson or Holmes, one cannot feel sympathy for the murderer or that justice is easy.
---The lovely exchange between Holmes and Watson upon Holmes' return is lovely. Music and Holmes' compassion towards Watson feeling horror at the crime, (with Watson remarking quite casually yet horrifically on Maiwand).
---Watson being quite fine with his name being used for the ruse is charming!
---Watson and his revolver! Holmes already depending on Watson. I say, they found each other in time didn't they?
---Holmes is correct about the importance of the ring to the man.
---What I like is that Doyle allows Holmes to be fallible when he is deceived by the disguise. This shows Holmes is human and whilst, unlike Lestrade or Gregson he has inferred much about the case, contacting America and so forth, he can be taken in.
---Still, Holmes is in good humour and while understandably doesn't wish the Yard to know, he has no issue with telling Watson. Not much sign of a man who can't admit his faults!
---Holmes to Watson:
"...Now, Doctor, you are looking done-up. Take my advice and turn in."
I was certainly feeling very weary, so I obeyed his injunction.
Another sweet example of Holmes noticing someone's fatigue and ensuring that they take rest, here if course, it is Watson who listens to Holmes playing melancholy wailing into the night. Though there is no indication this prevents Watson from resting since on the morrow he appears fine.
Holmes is actually quite gentle when needed and not unfeeling or ignorant of the condition of others unlike some would have you believe.
Chapter 6
I haven't too many notes on this chapter considering it is mainly a recounting of Gregson's encounter which while interesting but not much to comment on from me, so any additions are extra welcome!
---Holmes is dreadfully sweet to Watson over his naivety in how Gregson and Lestrade will be treated whether they catch or lose their man. Their banter is wonderful for short acquaintances.
---Our introduction to the Baker Street division of youths!
---I'm amused how Holmes is genuinely concerned that Gregson has the right man!
---Of course Gregson is terribly wrong, which Holmes encourages a little, bad form Holmes though understandable ;)
---Lestrade's sombre entrance and his utterance is quite dramatic and shocking.
Chapter 7
---I like that even our remarkable detective is stunned by the news imparted by Lestrade:
"The intelligence with which Lestrade greeted us was so momentous and so unexpected that we were all three dumbfounded...I stared at SherlockHolmes, whose lips were compressed and his brows drawn over his eyes."
---Holmes regains his equanimity quickly however and he causes a marvel when guessing the word "RACHE" being left on the wall.
---Watson gets to display his medical knowledge :-) and skipping the dog part! He has a miraculous recovery ok?
---I do think Gregson was correct to press Holmes on revealing the assassin, with Lestrade & Watson, especially since at that moment none of them have a clue to the motives of the killer. Much as I love Holmes' dramatic flair, occasionally it must bow before logic and reason...and our consulting detective isn’t always coldly logical as accused ;)
---Ah, I cannot outdo the dramatic capture of our murderer! Truly, the stage lost a great actor! And now we too can learn the tragic story behind the killings which grants us sympathy with the murderer and not his victims. In fact, where justice and law become complex & uneasy.
no subject
Date: 2020-09-24 05:05 pm (UTC)Re: H&W being a team from the get-go, agreed. They already read each other so well. Watson can tell that Holmes has a theory, and Holmes knows exactly what upset Watson. Agreed that Holmes is so sweet with Watson and goes out of his way to make Watson’s life brighter. After the crime scene Holmes goes to the concert—later it would become his and Watson’s usual interlude—but now Watson is too shaken to come along. I love the authenticity with which ACD depicts Watson’s PTSD. Watson twitches, scenes of violence impress him deeply, and he clearly suffers from mood swings. The morning he and Holmes discussed Holmes’s article, Watson, by his own admission, was moody with no apparent reason. He wonders why the crime scene affects him so. He didn’t lose his nerve on the battlefield. But seeing one’s comrades killed doesn’t pass without trace. War is catching up with him.
Also, Watson is quite a connoisseur of good looks, male beauty included. As you noted, he is against murder like any good citizen, but on the other hand, he is so repelled by Drebber’s appearance that he is grateful to the murderer. In ILLU, for example, he would have lamented the ruin of Baron Gruner’s physical beauty, had he not known what a monster the baron was.
References to books are also interesting here. Holmes mentions out of the blue “De jure inter Gentes”, an obscure book on law. It was a complete non-sequitur, and I wondered why this piece was included at all. Collecting obscure books resurfaces in later stories as Holmes’s hobby, and Watson did mention in his list Holmes’s knowledge of law. It seems like “De jure inter Gentes” was a real book ACD owned https://devoursjohnlock.tumblr.com/post/183154688326/of-the-law-between-men
But then Holmes quotes in the original French “L’Art Poétique” by Nicolas Boileau-Despréaux. He clearly pulled Watson’s leg about being an ignoramus, and it’s proved even in STUD, so perhaps it wasn’t the case that ACD’s vision of him changed.
Watson meanwhile passes time reading “Vie de Bohème”—another reference to the Bohemian life he and Holmes lead.
Holmes’s youth and inexperience are so adorable in STUD. He makes blunders, laughs heartily, shrieks in delight, and has face journeys all the time so that Watson can hardly keep a straight face watching him. As you mentioned, he is taken in by acting despite being an actor himself. His quarry sees him when he follows him. That is changed by DEVI, where Sterndale exclaims, “I saw no one,” and he replies testily, “This is what you expect to see when I follow you.”
As you pointed out, the way Holmes reacts to Gregson’s narrative shows how still insecure Holmes is: at first he is genuinely afraid that Gregson might have solved the case, but then Holmes’s self-assurance returns. Gregson and Lestrade did a good job, nonetheless. Gregson investigated the Drebber part and thus spared Holmes the trouble. Holmes admitted himself that tracing his former lodgings by the hat was clever.
no subject
Date: 2020-09-25 09:01 pm (UTC)YES to all you said about Watson and Holmes reading each other! I agree with you that ACD portrayed Watson's PTSD realistically. The little mentions, Watson twitches and nerves are understandable as is his frustration. As you say, war is catching up with him and a crime scene may recall the horrors of war far more than W. realises.
Excellent link! Watson truly admires the male form and his internal fight against his natural attraction versus justice are compelling.
Thank you for the background info on the books mentioned! It highlights Doyle's breadth of reading, but also how again Holmes & Watson are well suited since they both appreciate a variety of subject matter.
I do agree with you that ACD's vision of Holmes did not change much from STUD. A lot here merely lays the foundation for future stories.
Youthful Holmes is a true delight and it is fascinating how he matures.
Indeed! Here we are offered a Holmes still insecure in his powers, though he does regains his confidence. I do like how Gregson and Lestrade did a good job :-)