Valley of Fear Ch. 1 - 4
Having little to no experience reading any work regarding Sherlock Holmes, it was pleasantly surprising to find out how Sir Arthur Conan Doyle managed to portray the mysterious and well regarded detective in such a deeply interesting and illuminating manner. The reading starts off with a very commending attitude towards Holmes, as he overcomes his first challenge, deciphering the encrypted message sent to him by Porlock. Doyle particularly emphasizes the erratic nature by which Holmes solves his problems, making inferences that today would seem drawn out and unlikely, such as "guessing" that the key to the cipher was, in fact, an almanac. Holmes' exemplary detective skills and wry humor are the focus of the beginning of the reading, and they serve to show a sense of appreciation and respect for the famous detective.
Doyle very effectively managed to include a strong aspect of suspense and mystery in these beginning chapters as well, especially appealing to a human's reactions to death. For example, when Inspector McDonald arrives to meet Holmes to inform him about the death of Mr. Douglas, McDonald is already greatly surprised to find out that Holmes already knew about it. Doyle left that scene as a cliffhanger at the end of the first chapter, and this is the first most major instance of suspense in the story. The effect here is twofold. Doyle is appealing to the readers interest in the work itself, by ending the chapter in such a dramatic way and enticing the reader to continue in the work. Secondly, in the first paragraph of the second chapter, Doyle manages to portray Holmes, through the eyes of Watson, as a deeply focused character, but one who is so intent on his cases and unsolved problems that he can become desensitized to the situation at hand, which directly juxtaposes the initial level of praise given to Holmes by Doyle. He accomplishes this by stating that "[i]t would be an overstatement to say that he [Holmes] was shocked or even excited by the amazing announcement." Doyle, through his dramatic characterization of Holmes and his very suspenseful style of writing, manages to make Valley of Fear a very interesting and tense read, one which is very hard to put down once it is begun.
From reading the first four chapters of Valley of Fear, Doyle has wondrously crafted a piece of literature that is most certainly a mystery, but also one which seems impossible to forget. His superb control of the plot, characterization of Holmes, and his use of stylistic interjections which add to suspense, all come together in this case to bring about a deeply interesting and mysterious read.
Doyle very effectively managed to include a strong aspect of suspense and mystery in these beginning chapters as well, especially appealing to a human's reactions to death. For example, when Inspector McDonald arrives to meet Holmes to inform him about the death of Mr. Douglas, McDonald is already greatly surprised to find out that Holmes already knew about it. Doyle left that scene as a cliffhanger at the end of the first chapter, and this is the first most major instance of suspense in the story. The effect here is twofold. Doyle is appealing to the readers interest in the work itself, by ending the chapter in such a dramatic way and enticing the reader to continue in the work. Secondly, in the first paragraph of the second chapter, Doyle manages to portray Holmes, through the eyes of Watson, as a deeply focused character, but one who is so intent on his cases and unsolved problems that he can become desensitized to the situation at hand, which directly juxtaposes the initial level of praise given to Holmes by Doyle. He accomplishes this by stating that "[i]t would be an overstatement to say that he [Holmes] was shocked or even excited by the amazing announcement." Doyle, through his dramatic characterization of Holmes and his very suspenseful style of writing, manages to make Valley of Fear a very interesting and tense read, one which is very hard to put down once it is begun.
From reading the first four chapters of Valley of Fear, Doyle has wondrously crafted a piece of literature that is most certainly a mystery, but also one which seems impossible to forget. His superb control of the plot, characterization of Holmes, and his use of stylistic interjections which add to suspense, all come together in this case to bring about a deeply interesting and mysterious read.
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