AN: One of the first research papers I did. We were supposed to consider how an author created a character. I investigated Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's famous character: Sherlock Holmes.

Rache des Ruhmes: Revenge of Fame

Enrique Jardiel Poncela said, “When something can be read without effort, great effort has gone into its writing (Phillips 410).” When something can be read without effort, there is one incredible author behind a genius work. The words “genius work” often are implied when one speaks of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes stories. It is true that the character of Sherlock Holmes speaks volumes and may be the first character that comes to mind when someone says the word “detective.” However, Conan Doyle did not only write mysteries, but also adventure, historical romance, and of spiritualism. What prompted this man to write such a wide medley of literature? What is the relationship of his books and all the events of his life? The relationship between Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s stories, characters, and life is clearly revealed in his works.

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle was brought up in a Jesuit school for his elementary, middle, and high school career. The classes were old fashioned and divided into ‘elements,’ ‘figures,’ ‘rudiments,’ ‘grammar,’ ‘syntax,’ ‘poetry,’ and ‘rhetoric’. This fashioning of Conan Doyle’s schooling most likely laid the beginnings of his reactions to skepticism and rejection of Catholicism later in life (Nordon 20). After the agonizing experience of the Jesuit school, Conan Doyle went to Edinburgh University. At Edinburgh University, Conan Doyle pursued a medical career, an unorthodox choice for the son of an artist (Nordon 24). Conan Doyle studied under Professor Rutherford an anatomist and under Professor Joseph Bell the surgeon. Pierre Nordon describes Prof. Rutherford in one of Conan Doyle’s biographies. “… Rutherford, the anatomist, whose impressive figure, bushy beard, thunderous voice and eccentric manner were revived thirty-five years later in the character of Professor Challenger” one of the main characters in The Lost World (25). While growing up, Mary Doyle, Conan Doyle’s mother, implanted in Doyle a love of the Middle Ages and the romantic aspect of history. Conan Doyle also had a love for humanity which came from his mother, and later on helped him in his medical profession. Pierre Nordon says,

“In 1907, he told a representative of The New York World: ‘…My real love for letters, my instinct for story-telling, springs, I believe, from my mother…with the glamour and romance of the Celt very strongly marked…In my early childhood…the vivid stories she would tell me stand out so clearly that they obscure the real facts of my life…(19).’”

Conan Doyle began full time writing after a serious bout of influenza in 1891, which kept him away from his practice of ophthalmology in London. He “finally decided to give up the struggle to earn his living as a doctor and devote himself entirely to his writing (Norton 35).”

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s travels about the globe also influenced his writing. In 1880, Conan Doyle was hired as a ship’s surgeon on a voyage to the Arctic. This added the occupation of whaler to the list of his vocations. The voyage awakened a “spiritual revolution” in Doyle, which seemed to have been at work longer than he himself realized (Nordon 27). The world that Conan Doyle experienced on this voyage was again conjured up in The White Company, a historical novel about a ship of whalers. He came back to England and settled into a combined practice with a Dr. Budd in Plymouth. It was here The Stark Munro Letters were written. While practicing as a physician, Conan Doyle observed his partner and all his idiosyncrasies. These personality traits were seen revived in Dr. Knock of The Stark Munro Letters. This novel was not meant to be autobiographical, however it seems to depict Doyle’s time in Plymouth and some of his time in Southsea. The novel which depicts more of Doyle’s time in Southsea is The Duet. The Duet depicts a couple in the first few years of their marriage as Doyle and his wife were when they stayed in Southsea. Conan Doyle wrote his next great historical novel while serving in the military during the South African War (1899-1902). “…Doyle served as a physician in a field hospital, where he wrote The Great Boer War in which he defended the policy of his homeland (“Arthur Conan Doyle”2).” It was because of his bravery in the Boer War that Conan Doyle was knighted in 1902.

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle had wonderfully realistic characters. Some of them were based on friends and teachers he had encountered at his Jesuit school (“Arthur Conan Doyle”2). However, most people have wondered who Sherlock Holmes was based on. “When questioned about the origins of his detective, Sir Arthur claimed for him one literary ancestor, Edgar Allen Poe’s Chevalier Dupin, and another from real life, Dr. Joseph Bell, professor of medicine at the University of Edinburgh. Dupin and Holmes certainly have an extremely striking family resemblance, and much has been written on the subject.” Sherlock Holmes and Chevalier Dupin are alike in many ways. Both solve cryptic crimes by use of a seemingly supernatural phenomenon (their minds), and observe things usually thought to be useless to the solving of a crime. Both are “able to read the inner thoughts of people by observing ‘trivial’ surface indications” and have “a double almost schizophrenic personality.” Both Dupin and Holmes are amateur musicians, are addicted to some type of drug, and have a male roommate who chronicles their exploits (Rosenburg 55-56). Dr. Joseph Bell and Sherlock Holmes share many of the same interests through not to the same degree (Norton 212-213).

Sherlock is also likened to Friedrich Nietzsche by Samuel Rosenburg: “They are both philologists lovers of words and paleographers liking to decipher ancient languages…Nietzsche and Holmes were amateur musicians with similar tastes in music (59).” Rosenburg also explains that he believes Doyle to know of Friedrich Nietzsche, because the Sherlock Holmes stories hold so much allusion to the philosopher (36).

Dr. John Watson seems to be based on real people as well. The most probable person seems to be Major Wood. Major Wood served with Conan Doyle during the Great War (the Boer War). Major Wood became Conan Doyle’s secretary in 1897, and when “Wood became Sir Arthur’s assistant, Watson was promoted (Norton 276).” Even though Conan Doyle appears to use Major Wood as a model for Watson there is undoubtedly some of himself in the character of Dr. Watson (Norton 276). Holmes’ “intrepid companion and chronicler, Dr. Watson, is widely accepted to have been modeled on none other than Conan Doyle himself (“Arthur Conan Doyle”1).” Both Conan Doyle and Watson were physicians, writers, and served in the army as a surgeon.

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle eventually went, or rather threw, himself into the cause of spiritualism. This mostly happened after his son’s death and Conan Doyle’s marriage to his second wife. Before those two events however, Doyle was reading extensively on the subject and subjects associated with spiritualism (Edwards). His first book on the subject, The New Revelation, had two principles, one stated, “‘Religions are mostly petrified and decayed, overgrown with thorns and choked with mysteries (Norton 158-159).’” The other principle was “that a positive religion…was possible and need not be incompatible with traditional religious teaching (Norton 159).” The second book, which Doyle wrote, was The Vital Message. In it Doyle revealed his idea that the objects and happenings in the world are religious. He also complained about the people who would talk about the suffering of people but would do nothing about the suffering. It is clear Conan Doyle’s ideas about life changed considerably when he began to lecture about spiritualism.

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle was a man with many objects of affection. He was a devoted sportsman, a brilliant author, and an obsessed spiritualist. He created one of the most popular literary characters of English literature, yet he did not want to be known for envisioning Sherlock Holmes, but for his historical and adventure novels. His life and times found their way into his stories and made his tales masterpieces to be read by generations to come. Perhaps this quote says it best: “Sir Arthur Conan Doyle was nothing if not a product of his times, and his writing both reflected and promoted the Victorian ideals of manly adventure and liberal imperialism singular to that period in British history. However, despite Doyle's efforts, the ingenious character of Sherlock Holmes transcends Doyle's time and views. Inspiring countless movies, novels, and plays, Sherlock Holmes helped revolutionize modern popular fiction and remains today one of the most recognizable figures in popular culture, and is the last and greatest legacy of Conan Doyle's career (“Arthur Conan Doyle”1).” No matter if Conan Doyle wanted it this way or not.

Works Cited

“Arthur Conan Doyle”1. April 14, 2003. Conan Doyle”2. April 14, 2003. Austin. “Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, a biography.” April 14, 2003. http://fl. Pierre.

Conan Doyle A Biography. New York, NY: Holt, Rinehart, and Winston, Inc., 1966.

Phillips, Bob. Phillips’ Awesome Collection of Quips & Quotes. Eugene, Oregon: Harvest House Publishers, 2001.

Rosenburg, Samuel. Naked is the Best Disguise. New York, NY: Bobbs-Merrill Company, Inc., 1974.