Conan Doyle and The Sherlock Holmes Detective Series
When people think of detective novels, they immediately think of Sherlock Holmes, think of his partner Dr. Watson, and think of the great British writer Conan Doyle (1859-1930) who created these two vivid images. In 30 years, from the publication of his debut novel, The Study of Blood Letters, in 1887 to the publication of three sets of stories in New Quest, Conan Doyle wrote 4 novellas and 56 novellas, totaling 1.4 million words. For a hundred years, "Sherlock Holmes" has swept the world, and its circulation, wide readership, and influence are so great that I am afraid that no literary master can compare with it. Conan Doyle has not won the Nobel Prize in Literature, but according to a survey conducted by a British media in the past few years, among adults in Europe and the United States, 85% of them know about "Sherlock Holmes" and 63% of them have read it; in contrast, they have selected the 10 most influential Nobel Laureates of the 20th century, only 17% know their works, and only 5% have read their works. No one in China has done this kind of survey statistics, but anyone with a little culture is no stranger to Holmes.
Why did "Sherlock Holmes" have such an impact? Is it because it is unique and unprecedented? No. The creation of detective novels that use logical reasoning to solve crimes did not begin with Conan Doyle, but already existed. Detective novels created before and after Sherlock Holmes are full of sweat and cattle, many of which are excellent, but none of them can shake the supremacy of "Sherlock Holmes". Why? Some people say that all the tricks, logical reasoning, and means used by modern detective novels are almost exhausted in "Sherlock Holmes Detective", and it is impossible to surpass him, and the only thing available is that with the development of science and technology, there is still potential to be tapped in the use of new technologies to solve cases.
I do not share that view. I think that "Sherlock Holmes" has not been surpassed so far, because the spirit of the rule of law is permeated in the novel, which is its soul and the special creative method of Conan Doyle.
"Sherlock Holmes" has a unique theme idea, that is, strict law enforcement, punishing evil and promoting good. The law referred to here refers to the criminal law, not the general law such as civil law. Conan Doyle, through Holmes's mouth, has repeatedly stated that his duty is to "assist the national police in apprehending criminal offenders so that they can be brought to justice by law", that "they cannot be allowed to go unpunished", and that he is to "assist the state in this task as an ordinary citizen". These two sentences speak to the eternal theme of "Sherlock Holmes", so every detective story he portrays is a model of justice, conscious observance and maintenance of the rule of law. His philosophy set his detective novels fundamentally different in theme from other novels.
The storyline of "Sherlock Holmes" revolves around the detection of criminal cases, and it is mainly based on major criminal cases, such as homicide, robbery, fraud and other major cases. Because the detection of murder and other major criminal cases and important cases is the most mysterious, the most shocking power, the most stimulating people's senses, and the most able to publicize the theme awareness of detective novels. Of the 60 stories of Detective Koch, there are 20 murders. Because Koch's detective novels focus on promoting the spirit of the rule of law, they do not pay attention to the beauty of emotion, and there are few detailed descriptions of love in his detective novels, unlike other novels that take love as an eternal theme. Conan Doyle portrays Holmes as a solitary man, without a family, without children, with deep intentions.
Holmes is the protagonist of every novel. If the detective is not the protagonist, we can only call such novels "crime novels", like a large number of crime novels and their movies in the United States, although they sometimes advertise detective novels and detective films, but in fact, they are not. There can only be one protagonist in a detective novel, that is, the detective himself, such as Sherlock Holmes, and the assistant can have multiple assistants, but they cannot be the same as the protagonist. The protagonist must have the professional expertise of a detective, and have common sense, knowledge, skills, skills, and great wisdom and courage that are compatible with the ideas of the novel.
The layout of Koch's detective novels is also different from that of ordinary novels. Once the story of Ke's detective novel is carried out, it immediately enters the theme, points out the theme, and explains the story that occurs clearly, and if it is not clear for a while, it must also be explained, so that the reader can immediately enter the realm with the detective; then set up suspense, make the atmosphere, but do not explain, let the reader guess and judge on his own, and invisibly the reader also unconsciously follows the author as a detective. Finally, the climax, the case is solved, the truth is revealed, and convincing evidence is presented, and the reader thinks that he is a detective, which is very gratifying. If there is no such layout, laying the case flat and straight, like telling a story, it is not a detective novel, it is a criminal record.
Koch's detective novels have their own specific real background, so that readers feel that it is a real story when reading, not fiction, and stimulate the reader's enthusiasm for reading. The background of "Sherlock Holmes" is the London under the rule of Queen Victoria in the 19th century, and the fog, horse-drawn carriages, gas street lights, etc., are unique to London at that time.
The reasoning of Koch's detective novels strictly adheres to logic. No wonder some scholars, after reading The Sherlock Holmes, say that Conan Doyle could be a qualified professor of logic. Logic alone is not enough, logic is only to guide the detective to find clues, to solve the case must also use the latest scientific methods at that time, looking for human evidence, physical evidence, to confirm whether the logical reasoning is in line with the facts. Unlike some modern detective novels, the conclusions reached only by logical reasoning are declared to be solved. Unbeknownst to you, no court in any country will bring a suspect to justice without logical reasoning.
Ke's detective novels do not use fists and feet, do not use martial arts, to distinguish them from martial arts and violent crime novels. Wuxia novels, violent crime novels and the spirit of the rule of law are incompatible.
The detective technique of "Sherlock Holmes" and the method of solving cases by the national police under the rule of law are extremely similar, and they still have a revealing effect on today's criminal detectives, especially his logical reasoning and practical experience, which is worth learning from contemporary detectives. It makes sense that police academies in some Western countries have made "Sherlock Holmes Detective" a must-read reference book for students. Holmes's practices in the investigation of the case, such as fully understanding the case, extensive collection of social information, accurate investigation of the scene, etc., are what the current detective must also do when investigating the case.
After the case was basically understood, Holmes often sat on the sofa, with a pipe, staring at the ceiling, meditating, not eating or drinking, not sleeping, two days a day, or even three days, until a preliminary conclusion was reached. He had to judge the motive in his mind and outline the general process of the case. He told Watson that the plot was like a necklace, one link after another, and if one link was missing, there must be a trick in it. He also said that it is not difficult to portray the plot of the crime, but also to depict the opposite plot that may occur, and to exchange roles. He said that when I solved the case, I often thought of myself as a murderer, and if I were to commit the crime, what it would be like. After a preliminary conclusion about the course of the case, it is not easy to assert that it is accurate, but to be confirmed by evidence. In the detective novel The Masked Lodger, Holmes says to Watson: "If there are no facts to fill the gaps in the plot, all reasoning is in vain." In The Study of Blood Letters, he said: "To say that logical reasoning is accurate until all facts (evidence) have been discovered are a great mistake." ”
Holmes did not easily characterize the truth of the case. Watson was often dissatisfied with Holmes not telling him the truth of the case sooner. He told Watson: "To judge the facts before all the evidence has been mastered is to make a great mistake and to prejudice judgment." He added: "The more common the criminal case, the more difficult it is to solve, because the circumstances it provides are neither novel nor special, and it is difficult to use as a judgment." "It's a very reasonable saying, and everyone who has done investigative work has this experience."
Conan Doyle's insurmountable is that it makes the real police see and feel that the ideal case solving is like this.
Yin Shusheng