Mysteries and Murder in Real Life

Author's Note: I wrote this on a particularly slow day, and I was having trouble relating almost anything to the book, or at least anything that I could actually write a significant paragraph or two about. Anyway, this is what I came up with...

A while ago, I read "The Five Orange Pips" in the Adventures Of Sherlock Holmes. There are many reasons that this mystery can relate to a real life mystery.  As we've seen on the news and in reality tv news shows, people are murdered all too often. Sometimes the person who was murdered even tried to warn someone and get help to try to stop someone else from hurting them.  In real life, we don't always see the evidence unfold the way it does in this mystery story, but there are still many similarities between this story and real life murders.

In the story, a man is afraid that he will be killed, just like his father and grandfather. The only problem is, we don't really know how they died, so the man can't prevent it. The only evidence that Sherlock and his client have is a letter from mysterious person and five orange pips (five seeds from an orange).  In real life there are times that a person feels they are being threatened by someone they know, or even stalked by a stranger.  Sometimes they even receive a note or threat from the person that they feel is trying to hurt them. I can't even imagine what it would be like to feel your life is in danger, but I'm sure it's horrible!

In this story, Sherlock ends up solving the case, but not before the man ends up getting pushed off of a bridge. Holmes then avenges his client by sending a letter along with five orange pips to the leader of the gang that killed the man. Days later, the captain's boat is seen in a shipwreck out at sea. This case is similar to real life crime scenes because often times, if the murderer is smart, they'll make the crime look like an accident, and get rid-of all of the evidence as well.  It takes a very careful analysis of the crime scene, and in depth investigation to solve these types of cases.  When the victim has sought help prior to their death, it helps the police and detectives to narrow down who may have committed the murder.  In the Sherlock Holmes story it was lucky that his client came to Sherlock when he did. Otherwise, Sherlock never would have caught the leader of the gang, and never would have avenged the man that had to die such a sorrowful, wrongful death.

Setting: Baker Street, London, 1800s

Have you ever thought about how the setting of a story impacts the characters and plot of the storyline?  The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes the story takes place in London, England in the 1800’s.  The time and location of the storyline effect the type of clients, the cases, and the resources involved in the mysteries that Sherlock Holmes is solving.

Taking place in London impacts how Sherlock Holmes finds and solves his cases.  Sherlock's case, "A Scandal in Bohemia", is a good example of this. In Holmes' first adventure, his client is a king. Having a king as a client makes perfect sense in Europe, but if Sherlock were located somewhere such as the United States, this wouldn’t make nearly as much sense. If the location were changed to the United States, the client might be changed to another type of important figure head, such as the President in Washington DC, or a famous celebrity in Hollywood.  The type of client affects the types of problems they encounter, and that Sherlock Holmes is trying to solve. 

The  fact that the story takes place in the 1800’s not only affects the clients and their cases, but it’s also directly related to how Sherlock Holmes solves the cases.   In "A Scandal in Bohemia", Holmes uses a smoke bomb to find a hidden picture that was a threat to a king.  The smoke bomb was a tool of those times.  If the storyline took place today, there would probably be some sort of x-ray vision machine that would serve the same purpose.

With reference to these examples, I conclude that the setting (London, England, 1800s)  of The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes,  plays a huge role in the development of the characters, plot and conclusion of the storyline. 

"You see, but you do not observe. The distinction is clear." ~Sherlock Holmes

Why is Sherlock Holmes so successful with all of his cases? He always seems to use the simplest pieces of evidence to solve a mystery. Somehow he puts all of the facts together in his head and makes sense of it, how nobody else could. After all, he did say himself, "You see, but you do not observe. The distinction is clear." This basically means that we judge things by how they look, but he observes them and takes his train of thought one step further, therefore coming one step closer to solving the problem, which just might give him the edge, when it comes to solving a mystery.

It always seems to be the small things he observes, because the are the most hidden, and anybody can see the obvious things. It doesn't actually take that much effort to see the small things, but it takes effort to observe them, and to think of why they are the way they are. Sherlock always goes the extra mile to think things through, and it usually is the deciding factor in the solution to a mystery. Sherlock once said, "It has long been a concept of mine that the little things are infinitely the most important." And he's right in that fact, and although the big things can play a huge part in a mystery, the small things are just as important. It helps to think that there is a reason that everything is how it is in life, and nothing is really the way it is for no reason. It just takes a powerful mind to further observe them.

I therefore conclude that the reason that Sherlock Holmes is successful in almost all of his cases is due to his ability to think about reasons for things, and is also never afraid to ask the question, "Why?"

The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes: (in 1890)

I think that there are many reasons why the story is greatly effected by the time period it takes place in. One reason is because of technology. They didn't have quite as sophisticated technology that could be used for crime-solving purposes back then. No DNA tests, no security cameras, and no cell phones to alert nearby officers. Today, a criminal simply wouldn't have been able to break into a bank quite as easily as the pawnbroker's assistant did in "The Red-Headed League". Depending on how the land that buildings were built on was back then, someone may or may not have been able to break in through a bank floor, but these days, It wouldn't be that easy, you would have to dig for at least a few weeks, and even if the floor of the bank was made of dirt, there would still be security systems.
Besides the fact that security was less sophisticated back in the late 1800's, it also seemed like you could get away with things a whole lot easier. In "A Scandal in Bohemia", Holmes instructs Dr. Watson to throw a smoke bomb in the window of Irene Adler's house, and gets away with it as if nothing happened. Didn't somebody see him? These days you would surely get arrested, and sent to jail for one reason or another, even if you did help solve a crime. Due to these reasons and several others as well, I conclude that the time period made a huge impact on crime, which provided a much needed use for an intelligent detective like Sherlock Holmes.

Sherlock Holmes

Sherlock Holmes is a very smart detective. He uses his power of intellect to solve even the most challenging problems. He always seems to be able to solve mysteries by using simple facts that only he can seem to make sense of. He sort of reminds me of the children's book character Encyclopedia Brown. They both recollect small details and use their intellect to piece together information which seems simple, after they explain it to you.
I think this book is comedy for many reasons. The reason that the entire book is comedy is because each of the short stories, or mysteries, all fit the comedy plot line. They start off with normalcy, with no problems or anything, and then a problem arises. It usually relates to a client having a case, and wanting Holmes to solve it. Holmes comes up with a simple, sometimes crafty, conclusion, and solves the problem. Sometimes there is no return to normalcy, but the rest of the plot line always matches up perfectly. These aspects of the storyline bring me to the conclusion that The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes is a comedy.