A Critical Analysis on “A study in Scarlet” by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

In his book, “A study in Scarlet” Sir Arthur succeeded in marrying mystery, intrigues, and suspense together into one. The book has an unusual style of writing, for it is written in two different writing styles that dissolve into one another.

The first part has a first-person singular diction, while the second part has third-person narrative style. It also has two settings, the first has London settings, while the second setting is America. It is a classical novel that revolves around a detective, Sherlock Holmes, a character who later became famous in other subsequent novels.

The novel is divided into two parts, the diction in the first part is rather sarcastic, which has Doctor Watson relates the story in a personal experience style. He briefly explained how he was wounded at the second “Afghan war” and came back to London to find a decent apartment.

It was this search for accommodation that led to his meeting of with Sherlock Holmes, an enthusiast chemist, who can also be described as eccentric, a cosmos and that later turned detective as the novel unfolds.

“Holmes is a little too scientific for my tastes—it approaches to cold-bloodedness.”

The novel delves into its mystery theme when a dead body was found at dilapidated building in Brixton with the word “RACHE” scribbled with blood on a wall near it. Sherlock, who is very vast in science and criminal investigation, took it upon himself to fish out the culprit irrespective of the fact that he does not have anything to gain from it.

“You seem to be a walking calendar of crime,”  “You might start a paper on those lines. Call it the ‘Police News of the Past. ”

As he proceeds with the investigation, he keeps unfolding mystery. Firstly, with the help of a wedding ring found at the crime scene, which he advertised in the paper, he found out that the old woman, who came to claim the ring was only disguised as a woman but was indeed a man. But as he traces this woman, the woman escaped. Not much later, police come to inform Holmes of the arrest of the murderer and one would think that was all about the play, but Sir Arthur had more plots up his sleeves.

As the first detective was done, a second detective came to announce another similar murder, a proof that the murderer is still at large, that the first police had only jailed an innocent fellow. Holmes told both police that he had already solved the puzzle of the mystery killer, that it will only take short while before he apprehends the murderer.

 He later fulfilled his promise by arresting the culprit, pretending to be going for a journey; he deceived the culprit to help him pack his luggage. As the cabman was packing these things, he brought out a handcuff and arrested him. After severe struggle with Holmes and his friends, the cabman realized he was caught and resigned to his fate as the first part of the play ends.