Susanne Sullivan Professor Lynda Haas Writing 37 13 February 2014 The Conductor of Light

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In order to solve a mysterious crime, it takes a person of great wit and unmistakable knowledge to discover the clues that will lead to finding a person of interest; this individual would identify as the detective. A keen feature of a detective that is a very prominent aspect to the character, and holds a very important role in every mystery novel is having a person who can serve as the detectives' "side kick". In Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's, Sherlock Holmes novels, Dr. John Watson serves as Sherlock Holmes highly esteemed partner. Watson is a highly skilled medical doctor which makes him an intelligent person, but what sets him apart from Holmes is that Watson does not possess the remarkable knowledge that he uses in every novel. In The Hound of the Baskervilles, Holmes states why it is important that he have a partner like Dr. John Watson, "It may be that you are not yourself luminous, but you are a conductor of light. Some people without possessing genius have a remarkable power of stimulating it." (Conan Doyle Loc. 27). Holmes does not need the help of Watson to resolve a crime; but just the mere presence of Watson helps to spark new ideas for Holmes and helps him to be the wellknown character that he is today. What is it about Watson's character that may be the "conductor" for Holmes's so called "light"? Holmes can solve the mystery without the insight of Watson; he often has solved it long before Watson ever has an idea. Because of this Watson serves as the outlet for Holmes to convey his ideas. It is clear that Watson does not possess the knowledge of the great Sherlock Holmes, but he does have the emotions, and thoughts that the reader of the story may possess as well. Watson also has a very specific form of
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intellect, that being his knowledge of the medical field. In Victorian England, the era that Conan Doyle wrote these books, Watson would be conceived as the typical English gentleman; he was intelligent, charming, and intellectual. All these aspects help to develop the profound character that is Dr. John Watson. Watson has many features that make up his character; these being some that Holmes does not have. If Watson is the typical English gentleman then that makes Holmes a very unique character. Holmes is intelligent and intellectual, but he does not always come across as charming, to most readers he often comes across as eccentric. From the perspective of the reader Watson is the metaphorical heart in their relationship. Watson essentially brings life to the mysterious Sherlock Holmes. Through his writings, Watson can shape Holmes to be more appealing to the audience. This can be seen in the novel The Sign of The Four when Watson is with Holmes at 221 B Baker St. Watson is appalled at Holmes's behavior with relying on a drug to keep his mind stimulated. "Yet upon that afternoonI suddenly felt that I could hold out no longer" (Conan Doyle Loc. 28). Watson decides to express his frustration with Holmes, and after this he describes Holmes's response, "He did not seem offended. On the contrary, he put his finger-tips together and leaned his elbows on the arms of the chair" (Conan Doyle Loc. 28). Watson has the reaction that many like-minded people would have in this scenario, and with his questioning of Holmes; Holmes must contemplate why it is he does this, bringing a better light to Holmes's character. Holmes "leaned his elbows on his chair" from this we can assume that Holmes, being the peculiar man that he is, is deep in thought deciding how best to answer Watson. Watson's questions do not change Holmes's view on using drugs, but it does help him to think about why he takes these substances; letting the reader have more insight on his character, and this helps him to appear more humane. Many of Conan Doyle's short stories are compiled into collections with titles like "The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes" or "The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes". With these titles in mind, we also know that he writes the stories through the perspective of John Watson. We, as the reader, spend more time learning
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about Sherlock Holmes, than we do about Watson. The reason that this is, is because the reader can learn about Watson's character through his thoughts and the assumptions he makes about Holmes's. The reader now is from 21st century, but they can still relate to the ideas of the Victorian gentleman, because of this they have a better insight of who Watson is more so than Holmes. We do not need to know more about Watson, because we can use our own personal ideas to create the character that he is. With a mystery novel, the reader becomes acquainted with many of the typical genre conventions; we familiarize ourselves with these stereotypical aspects, and when something changes, it is very apparent. In the Sherlock Holmes novels, it is typical that Holmes solves the mysteries and Watson is there to help when need be. In the short story by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle called "Silver Blaze" this genre convention is slightly changed when Watson is the one who finds a clue that Holmes had evidently overlooked. "His eyes were on the trail, but I happened to look a little to one side, and saw to my surprise the same tracks coming back again in the opposite direction. O ne for you, Watson,' said Holmes" (Conan Doyle Adventure 1). When reading this small passage for the first time, the knowledge that Watson uses may seem insignificant. He observed the area and found a trail that may lead them to the missing horse; it is uncharacteristic of Watson to find a clue before Holmes does. Although, after further analysis, one may ask themselves why did Conan Doyle have this happen in the story? If Sherlock Holmes is so great, why did he not notice this other trail leading in the opposite direction? It may be that Holmes was very content on the trail ahead of him, and did not observe the things around him, but it is not like him to overlook something like this. This example is unique in that Watson was able to serve as the "light" instead of the "conductor". For once Conan Doyle gives Watson the opportunity to help Holmes in seeing a scenario in a different light; Watson was there and was able to see the scene from a different perspective.
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Watson may often be seen as Holmes's "side-kick", but after further analysis we can see that he is much more than just a person Holmes takes on his cases. Watson is a man of great intelligence, he is a character a reader can relate to and understand, his attractable attitude keeps Holmes sane and "brings humanity to Holmes, who without Watson's sympathetic telling, would come off cold, inaccessible and unpleasant" (The Society). Without the development of Dr. John Watson, the genre convention of a "side-kick" would be irrelevant. Watson brings a whole new light to the meaning of a partner, which in today's pop culture has become very common in most of the stereotypical detective stories. It is now important to have a supporting character in most modern day stories. Dr. John Watson will forever be known as the most notable supporting character that aids one of the most beloved detectives of all time.
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Works Cited

Doyle, Arthur Conan. "Lit2Go." Adventure 1: "Silver Blaze" N.p., 1894. Web. 31 Jan. 2014. Doyle, Arthur Conan. The Hound of the Baskervilles (Sherlock Holmes Vol. 5). Vol. 5. N.p.: Fair Price Classics, 2010. Sherlock Holmes. Kindle Edition. Doyle, Arthur Conan, Sir. The Sign of the Four. N.p.: Public Domain Book, 2012. Kindle Edition. The Society. "The Wide World of Sherlock Holmes." Sherlock Holmes Society of London. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Feb. 2014