The Science of Sherlock Holmes

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Over the course of the nineteenth century, the reading public acquired a taste for the new genre of detective fiction. At the same time, science was transforming every aspect of human life. Arthur Conan Doyle, a young doctor and up-and-coming writer, brilliantly wove these two strands together to create detective fiction’s most memorable and enduring character: Sherlock Holmes.

Detailed yet eminently readable, The Science of Sherlock Holmes explores the life of Conan Doyle in the context of contemporary scientific achievement and the growing interest in detective fiction. It then looks briefly at the Sherlock Holmes stories, examining the hero’s forensic method and his expertise in various branches of science, from geology to graphology. The book concludes by emphasising how Conan Doyle’s stories contained enough science to make them appear real, convincing the average reader without overwhelming them.

Over the course of the nineteenth century, the reading public acquired a taste for the new genre of detective fiction. At the same time, science was transforming every aspect of human life. Arthur Conan Doyle, a young doctor and up-and-coming writer, brilliantly wove these two strands together to create detective fiction’s most memorable and enduring character: Sherlock Holmes.

Detailed yet eminently readable, The Science of Sherlock Holmes explores the life of Conan Doyle in the context of contemporary scientific achievement and the growing interest in detective fiction. It then looks briefly at the Sherlock Holmes stories, examining the hero’s forensic method and his expertise in various branches of science, from geology to graphology. The book concludes by emphasising how Conan Doyle’s stories contained enough science to make them appear real, convincing the average reader without overwhelming them.