Wong 1

Lena SzeYin Wong

Professor Haas
Writing 39B
June 8 2014
Sherlock Holmes amazing skills
What exactly is the detective genre? Literary scholar George Dove defines it in his book-
length study, The Reader and the Detective Story. Dove explains that the detective genre engages
with readers in a way like no other genre. Detective fiction should be transitory, fundamentally
an intellectual undertaking, recreational, and disciplined (2).The purpose of these stories is not
educational or emotional engagement that requires a serious attitude from the audience. Readers
can enjoy the structured plot of the detective story, and know that by the end, problems will
always be solved (2). These are some of the reasons that the detective genre has withstood the
test of timethe conventions Sir Arthur Conan Doyle instituted over a century ago are still
followed and enjoyed by the audience today. Although genres are not fixed in time and undergo
different stages as they develop to fit the culture and audience of the respective time period, they
can, like the detective story, remain popular. As Professor Lee Horsley of Lancaster University
writes, for over a hundred years now, Doyles stories have both influenced the development of
crime fiction and created an inevitable point of reference. The evolution of a genre depends on a
combination of continuity and change, and Holmes is unquestionably the first key figure from
whom other writers differentiated their protagonists. (Lee).
According to literary critic Leroy Panek, even though Conan Doyle employed ideas from
a fusion of other authors and writers, he set a foundation for the detective genre during the late
Victorian era. Some of the conditions during the time period that contributed to the genres
Wong 2

success were the incompetent police force, the appreciation of a hero, the rising of literacy within
the middle class, and the invention of short story (Panek 10). Holmes was a successful character
because he reflected some of the hopes and desires of readers in that time period. For example,
his intellectual and scientific approach to life was highly appealing at a time in history when
science was on the rise. In Conan Doyles second novel The Sign of Four, Holmes describes the
three qualities of an ideal detective as power of observation and that of deduction knowledge
(Doyle 213). Throughout Doyles stories, Holmess observation and deduction skills are
illustrated and still present in the modern-day texts. As Dove claims, the pleasure a reader gets
from the detective novel is of watching a magic trick (3). Holmes performs his magic tricks
with his observation and deduction skills, which became one of most followed conventions of
Holmes. For example, Guy Ritchies 2009 film Sherlock Holmes, and Stephen Moffatts 2011
television series Sherlock adapt this convention by visually presenting Holmess thoughts and
shifting the role of narrator in order to fit the television and film medium.
As a psychologist and journalist Maria Konnikova states, [t]he scientific method begins
with the most mundane seeming of things: observation. Its not for nothing that Holmes calls
the foundations of his inquiry elementary. For, that is precisely what they are, the very basis of
how something works and what makes it what it is (14). Holmess scientific method of thinking
and solving cases is one of the important conventions of a detective. Guy Ritchies film,
Sherlock Holmes, demonstrates how Holmes close observations is followed and updated to
appeal to current day audience. It is the scene when Holmes and Watson are in Reordans
laboratory. When Reordan is found dead in the coffin, Holmes and Watson, with series of clues,
find Reordans house. With Holmess observation, he and Watson concludes that Reordan is
trying to combine science and magic. Holmess observation is shown through his actions, which
Wong 3

are invisible in Doyles texts. When he is in the room, he performs close observation by sniffing
several times, even though audience is not able to participate in this aspect of the game.
Furthermore, in this scene, several cinematic elements, especially camera scales and movements,
editing, and sounds, are used to illustrate Holmes skill at close observation. In terms of camera
scales and movements, Ritchie uses a long shot to establish the setting and environment of the
room. In order to allow the audience to view from Holmes mind, a point of view shot is
established, which means the camera is placed approximately where Holmes eyes are. The
camera follows Holmess staff as he points to different objects such as test tubes, burned paper,
glass bottles, chemicals, and dead frogs. Through the camera movements, the audience can
identify with Holmes who is a skilled observer. In addition, editing plays an important role in
this scene. Throughout the scene, the technique of play and replay, which refers to the transitions
between two scenes, appears several times. In our case, the frequent transitions occur between
the laboratory and Holmess clear predictions of future incidents. The technique of play and
replay helps the audience to visualize Holmess mind and observation. In fact, a reviewer Katey
Rich claims this scene allow[s] him [to] visual[ly] flashbacks to all the clues that led him to his
conclusions and avoiding the dreadful slowness that comes with most mystery-solving
monologues. Miraculously the audience is right there with Holmes (Rich). Moreover, the sound
effects are designed to focus the audiences attention to Holmes mind. The background sound is
low until Holmes visually imagines Reordans actions in the room. The sound bridge between
the laboratory and the flashback turns loud to capture the audiences attention. During Holmess
pre-cognitive moments where he can see each step that will happen before it does, Reordan has
internal diegetic sound in Holmess mind, which means only Holmes and the audience can hear
it. These cinematic elements all work together to achieve the same goal, which is to shift the role
Wong 4

of narration from Watson to Holmes. The audience is able to see what Holmes is thinking; rather
than reading Doyles text where readers can only see from Watsons eyes. The convention of
Holmess observation is followed from Doyles texts because this is the magic trick (Dove 3)
that ties the stories together. Ritchies film Sherlock Holmes adapts the convention of Holmes
close observation by utilizing the technique of play and replay and shifting the role of narration.
Besides Holmess observation, his deduction skills are shown throughout Conan Doyles
stories, as well as each episode of the British television series Sherlock. However, unlike
Ritchies film, Moffatts film shifts the role of narration from a different approach. In the first
episode A Study in Pink, where Holmes starts his partnership with Watson, Holmes deduces
the ladys marriage status with close observation. In the ladys death scene, Holmess deductive
skills are shown through several cinematic elements such as camera angles and shots, and sounds.
The precise use of camera shots plays a significant role in the scene. When Holmes and Watson
first enter the crime scene, the camera is set close to the victim and establishes a long shot from a
low angle to set the environment of the room. When Holmes examines the nails, jewelries, and
clothes of the lady, the camera shows a close-up shot on each part. The audience, thus, is able to
view from Holmess perspective. The camera often stays static to indicate Holmess process of
thinking and deducing. In addition, the technique of using texts illustrates Holmes deduction
skills. During the process of Holmess deduction, the camera shows visual words next to the
items that Holmes is looking at to indicate his thoughts. However, when some of these words are
displayed, the camera is placed in a position behind the words, which are flipped to face Holmes,
meaning that the audience is viewing Holmess process of deduction. After series of deductions
and observations, Holmes deduces that the lady is unhappily married for more than ten years, she
is a serial adulterer, and she removes her ring regularly. In addition to camera angles and shots,
Wong 5

the sound effect is important as well. The background music is low throughout the scene. Yet,
whenever Holmes starts deducing, a light bulb sound tells audience that Holmes is processing
information. The main focus of this scene is on Holmes. When Holmes is looking at the note R-
A-C-H-E, the background sound becomes a typewriter that types out the words as the letters
appear on the screen. The typing sound represents the process of deduction. The cinematic
elements of camera angles, shots and sound serve to shift the role of narration through the
component of visual texts. The displayed texts play a significant role because without Holmess
explicit explanation to Watson as in Doyles texts, the audience will have no way of knowing
Holmes mind. In the modern day adaptations, Watson is no longer the narrator. In comparison,
throughout the entire scene, Watson is puzzled and shows discomfort of a death woman. He
doesnt have the power to deduce the same information. He cannot see into Holmes mind and
show us the gears turning, but that is what the cinematic elements allow in this scene. This
convention is twisted in order to engage audience in a different way than Doyle does. The
audience learns about Holmes mind through the visual texts. Moreover, Holmess deduction
models after Doyles text because these are the key features of a detective genre. These features
are important to solve cases and to tie the stories together. Moffats television series Sherlock
adapts the convention of Holmess deduction by displaying important visual texts and shifting
the role of narration.
Different adaptations in the modern era exemplify transitions among genre development.
In the classical phase, Conan Doyle brought the detective genre to its peak of popularity. Doyle
has created different characteristics of Holmes that become conventions of a detective. However,
when the revisionist phase approaches, some conventions are updated to fit the audience in the
21
st
century; though other classical conventions still exist. Ritchies film Sherlock Holmes and
Wong 6

Moffats television series Sherlock both adapted Holmess observation and deduction skills.
Ritchie utilizes the technique of play and replay while Moffat displays visual texts. With a
different medium, Ritchie and Moffat twisted the conventions by shifting the role of narration
and visually presenting Holmess thought. In the book Sherlock Holmes for the 21
st
Century,
Lynnette Porter states, whether an adaptation for a non-print medium, an attempt to re-create
Conan Doyles prose style Sherlock Holmes is perhaps the most popular he has even been,
especially to an international audience (5).


















Wong 7

Works Cited
Conan Doyle, Arthur. The Sign of the Four. Seattle: Amazon Digital Services, 2013. Kindle
eBook. Online.
Dove, George N. The Reader and the Detective Story. Bowling Green, OH: Bowling Green State
University Popular Press, 1997. Print.
Konnikova, Maria. Mastermind: How to Think Like Sherlock Holmes. New York: Viking, 2013.
Print.
Lee, Horsley. "Classic Detective Fiction." Crime Culture. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 May 2014.
Panek, Leroy. An Introduction to the Detective Story. Bowling Green, OH: Bowling Green State
University Popular Press, 1987. Print.
Porter, Lynette. "Introduction: In Search of the Real Sherlock Holmes. Sherlock Holmes for the
21st Century. ed. Lynette Porter. Jefferson, NC: Macfarland & Company, 2012, 5 Print
Rich, Katey. "Sherlock Holmes Review." CinemaBlend.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 May 2014.