A Study in Scarlet

Sherlock Holmes is the protagonist of the novel and an iconic literary detective. He is obsessed with discovering the truth and uses his finely tuned powers of deduction and analysis to solve criminal cases that no one else can make sense of—abilities that fuel his strong sense of superiority. Holmes is eccentric, both in his knowledge and characteristics. He has extremely deep and specific knowledge of things he deems relevant to his job, but is ostensibly ignorant in areas others would deem common knowledge. However, he arguably exaggerates this ignorance to Watson when they first meet to emphasize how invested he is in the science of deduction and in his vocation of solving mysteries. Holmes also comes across as socially inept because he is so self-absorbed and appears to have little awareness of or consideration for others. Despite his projected indifference, however, he also desires recognition and admiration. He is thrilled to be able to put on a show for Watson and never misses an opportunity to demonstrate—and then elucidate—his brilliance.



Holmes is proficient at solving mysteries because of his deductive approach. He brings an outsider’s perspective to cases, rather than relying on training or experience to cloud different possibilities; relying only on the information relevant to the case at hand, he deduces from known and observed clues rather than generalizing from similar crimes.