Fictional character biography Sherlock Holmes

1 fictional character biography

1.1 family , life
1.2 life watson
1.3 great hiatus
1.4 retirement

fictional character biography
family , life

the cover page of beeton s christmas annual issue contains holmes s first appearance in 1887 (a study in scarlet).

details sherlock holmes s life, except adventures in books, scarce in conan doyle s original stories. nevertheless, mentions of life , extended family paint loose biographical picture of detective.

an estimate of holmes s age in last bow places year of birth @ 1854; story, set in august 1914, describes him sixty years of age. parents not mentioned in stories, although holmes mentions ancestors country squires . in adventure of greek interpreter , claims grandmother sister french artist vernet, without further clarifying whether claude joseph, carle, or horace vernet. holmes s brother mycroft, 7 years senior, government official appears in adventure of greek interpreter , final problem , , adventure of bruce-partington plans , mentioned in adventure of empty house . mycroft has unique civil service position kind of human database aspects of government policy. lacks sherlock s interest in physical investigation, however, preferring spend time @ diogenes club.

holmes says first developed methods of deduction undergraduate; earliest cases, pursued amateur, came fellow university students. meeting classmate s father led him adopt detection profession, , spent 6 years after university consultant before financial difficulties led him accept john h. watson fellow lodger in 1881 (when first published story, study in scarlet, begins).

the 2 take lodgings @ 221b baker street, london, apartment @ upper (north) end of street, seventeen steps.

life watson

holmes , watson in sidney paget illustration silver blaze .

holmes worked detective twenty-three years, physician john watson assisting him seventeen. roommates before watson s 1887 marriage , again after wife s death. residence maintained landlady, mrs. hudson. of stories frame narratives, written watson s point of view summaries of detective s interesting cases. holmes calls watson s writing sensational , populist, suggesting fails accurately , objectively report science of craft:

detection is, or ought be, exact science , should treated in same cold , unemotional manner. have attempted tinge [ study in scarlet ] romanticism, produces same effect if worked love-story ... facts should suppressed, or, @ least, sense of proportion should observed in treating them. point in case deserved mention curious analytical reasoning effects causes, succeeded in unravelling it.

nevertheless, holmes s friendship watson significant relationship. when watson injured bullet, although wound turns out quite superficial , watson moved holmes s reaction:

it worth wound; worth many wounds; know depth of loyalty , love lay behind cold mask. clear, hard eyes dimmed moment, , firm lips shaking. 1 , time caught glimpse of great heart of great brain. years of humble single-minded service culminated in moment of revelation.

the great hiatus

holmes , moriarty struggle @ reichenbach falls; drawing sidney paget.

the first set of holmes stories published between 1887 , 1893. wishing devote more time historical novels, conan doyle killed off holmes in final battle criminal mastermind professor james moriarty in final problem (published 1893, set in 1891). after resisting public pressure 8 years, author wrote hound of baskervilles (serialised in 1901–1902, implicit setting before holmes s death). in 1903, conan doyle wrote adventure of empty house , set in 1894; holmes reappears, explaining stunned watson had faked death in final problem fool enemies. adventure of empty house marks beginning of second set of stories, conan doyle wrote until 1927.

holmes aficionados refer period 1891 1894—between disappearance , presumed death in final problem , reappearance in adventure of empty house —as great hiatus (though 1908 s adventure of wisteria lodge described taking place in 1892 due error on conan doyle s part). earliest known use of expression in article sherlock holmes , great hiatus edgar w. smith, published in july 1946 issue of baker street journal.

retirement

in last bow , holmes has retired small farm on sussex downs , taken beekeeping primary occupation. move not dated precisely, can presumed predate 1904 (since referred retrospectively in second stain , first published year). story features holmes , watson coming out of retirement aid war effort. 1 other adventure, adventure of lion s mane (narrated holmes), takes place during detective s retirement.