Holmes Is Made Possible By Watson. :: Free Essay Writer

Holmes Is Made Possible By Watson. Sherlock Holmes is one of the most popular characters in literature. I read the three stories; ‘The Speckled Band,’ ‘The Engineer’s Thumb’ and ‘The Beryl Coronet.’ I have looked at; how the stories were structured, Dr Watson as the narrator, language used in the stories and the difference between Dr Watson and Sherlock Holmes as characters in the stories. Most crime fiction stories are structured in the same way. Sherlock Holmes stories usually employ this structure; the crime is committed, an investigation is launched, a solution is thought up and an explanation is given. This structure is used to build up suspense and keep you guessing what happened until the end, when it is revealed. An example of this is in ‘The Engineer’s Thumb,’ where the crime was reported to Holmes, Holmes then investigated the crime, by making observations and deducing he reveals the solution and finally explains his solution to the characters and readers. Dr Watson is vital in the structure of the stories because he is an eye-witness throughout all the cases. Holmes explains his theories and methods to him, so Watson is in the reader’s position. This is because he obtains information from Holmes and writes it as the narrator for the readers. As the narrator, Watson eye-witnesses the investigations and tells us every development in the cases. Watson also enables Holmes to explain his methods, the explanation to each case and how he solved it. For example where it says in ‘The Speckled Band’, â€Å"There is no mystery, my dear madam†, said he, smiling. â€Å"The left arm of your jacket is splattered with mud in no less than seven places. The marks are perfectly fresh. There is no vehicle save a dig-cart which throws up mud in that way and then only when you sit on the left-hand side of the driver.† Holmes makes a deduction from the fresh mud on her left arm that she had come in a dog-cart. This is achieved by Watson allowing Holmes to convey his method. Every time that Holmes explains something to Watson, another clue is revealed to the reader. He does this by explaining in detail to Watson and the readers in detail. An example of this is in ‘The Engineer’s Thumb,’ â€Å"†¦as fast as the horse could go.† â€Å"One horse?† Interjected Holmes. â€Å"Yes, only one.† â€Å"Did you observe the colour?† â€Å"Yes †¦ It was a chestnut.† Watson makes all this possible, just by narrating ‘The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes.’ Holmes and Watson are two very different characters, Holmes is the detective and Watson is his sidekick. This makes Sherlock look