Theme of Gender in Sherlock Holmes and The Hound of The Baskervilles Essay Example

“Sherlock Holmes and The Hound of Baskerville” is a notorious novel written by Arthur Conan Doyle in 1902. The storyline in this edition of “Sherlock Holmes” focuses on the murder of Sir Charles of Baskerville. Throughout the book, there are many references relating to the time the book was written. The stereotypes, roles in society, social class, etc. In the novel “Sherlock Holmes and The Hound of Baskerville”, we can conclude the occurring difference between gender by analyzing John Watson and the female characters used, as well as insinuate the depiction of wealth and class during this period of time.

The roles of gender and the social construct created associated with gender have been changed throughout the years. The Modern day views of women, men, and the idea of gender overall have been altered significantly compared to the early 1900’s, which was when the “Sherlock Holmes and The Hound of Baskerville” novel was released. We can better understand the “rules” of gender during certain years by simply reading the literature that was released during that time. Although the storylines that were published may not have focused on the ideas of gender, how that plays into society, and the issues within it, these roles were still implied. The majority of these traditional views on gender were surrounded by women. Mainly described as soft, caring, obedient, and submissive to the males of society. Nevertheless, we do see the same traditional views on men. They are described as masculine, bread winners, hard workers, and dominant. Not all men in literature have been described as this ideal man. Some have been described as the opposite. Still being associated with masculinity, but not as much as other characters in the novel. Seen as less powerful. In “The Hound of Baskerville”, and many other Sherlock Holmes stories, there is a character who “breaks” this stereotype, and his name is John Watson.

John Watson is Holmes' right hand man. He is that narrator of this novel and is responsible for telling us about the adventures he and Homles concur with this case. He did the main investigating and analysis of these cases for Holmes. Because of Watson working for Holmes he can be seen as less powerful. He is seen as more obedient compared to the other male characters because of the amount of tasks he is taking on for Sherlock. Where did this dedication to Holmes come from? Why is Watson willing to do so much for him? Why is his loyalty so strong for Holmes? An analysis by Adam Kyncl on the characters and gender aspect in the novel can give us a clearer idea on his loyalty for Holmes and why he is seen as more obedient. In “Gender Aspects in Sherlock Holmes”, Kyncl talks about Watsons backstory that could explain this. A writing by Watson in “A Study in Scarlet” explains that his life was “objectless” and wasn’t able to do much because of his injuries he has. So when Sherlock came around he basically latched onto him because he was his only friend. Due to Watsons loyalty to Holmes and working for Holmes, people have made the conclusion of Watson being less of a man and even possibly in love with Holmes, according to both “Gender Aspects in Sherlock Holmes” and “Sherlock Holmes for the 21st Century: Essays on New Adaptations”. Describing them as having a “bromance” in both novel and the film adaptations said by Lynette Porter in her essay “True to Their Victorian Roots The House of Silk”. The speculation of Watson's relationship proves the stereotypes back then of men who work for other men, as well as those who don’t have access to a great amount of money or power. Watson is a more subtle, but great example of the gender staple that was implemented during the early 1900’s.

Although Watson is seen as “whimpier” to his colleague Sherlock Holmes, he is still seen as an ideal man compared to the other women characters in the novel. From reading “Sherlock Holmes and The Hound of Baskerville”, it is clear that there is a lack of women representation. The book doesn’t mention a female character as a character until later chapters. The lack of women characters can show representation of how little women were thought of during that period of time. When women were mentioned in “The Hound of Baskerville”, they were mentioned as a past lover of the male characters involved or simply as a wife. It shows that the stereotype of women in real life was to simply serve the husband. Mention of women being beaten is also in the book, but it is brushed off very quickly rather than it being taken seriously. Proving the reality that women are allowed to be treated like objects and property. Mari Isokoski in “The Victorian Middle Class, Imperialist Attitude and Women In Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes Adventures” writes about these standards society had created. She writes, “...middle-class women were confined to the domestic sphere: woman’s position was totally dependent on the social and economic of her father or her husband.” She later writes how the women that broke this standard “were considered to threaten the very fabric of society.” The points that Isokoski writes about can be seen in “The Hound of Baskerville”. That the overall idea of women is to be there for the man and that they are considered second class citizens of the world because of what society- at the time and continues to do so- decided what makes a women.