Summary:
The Hound of the Baskervilles has combined a traditional detective story genre with elements of a Gothic tale. The many clues of the detective case are made even more interesting by the possibility that a supernatural force could be at work in the form of the evil black hound.
The Hound of the Baskervilles was written in the late 1800's by Arthur Conan Doyle. The Baskervilles had lived at Baskerville Hall for many generations. In the time of the Great Rebellion the master of Baskerville Hall is Hugo Baskerville, a "wild and godless" man, who kidnaps the daughter of a local farmer and locks her up in his estate, while he is drinking with his friends. The girl escapes and is followed by Hugo over the moors, and Hugo is followed by his drunken friends. They find the girl dead from fright and fatigue, and Hugo's body is next to her, as a huge evil black hound, larger than a mastiff, tears open Hugo's throat. From then on, local farmers claim to have seen a terrifying black dog roaming the moors at night in the vicinity of Baskerville Hall. Several of the Baskerville descendents meet their end mysteriously and violently. Many years later, at the time that this story takes place, close to 1900, Sir Charles Baskerville dies a mysterious death from unknown causes just after smoking a cigar next to the gate that opens onto the moor at Baskerville Hall on a dark night. His friend and doctor, James Mortimer, consults with Sherlock Holmes, asking if he should take Sir Henry Baskerville, the nephew and heir to Sir Charles' estate, to Baskerville Hall. Unfortunately Sir Henry plans to live at Baskerville Hall, and will not be persuaded, under any circumstance. The Hound of the Baskervilles is both a classic example of the detective story genre, and an example of a gothic novel.
The traditional detective story is made up of a mysterious crime, and the detective, who must solve it. What makes a detective novel appealing is the development of clues that must be pursued, and the narrowing down of the possible suspects. The Hound of the Baskervilles is a perfect example of this genre. Sherlock Holmes and his assistant, Watson, must attempt to solve the mystery of Sir Charles' death, and after being introduced to Sir Henry, the mystery deepens, when Henry receives a note from an unidentified person, who warns him to stay away from Baskerville Hall. The note is made mostly from newspaper scraps from the London Times to prevent identification of the handwriting. Holmes believes the author could be someone concerned for Sir Henry's safety, or perhaps someone trying to scare him away, possibly to get hold of his estate. The mystery grows when Holmes sends someone to search the track of hotels near the Northumberland Hotel, where Sir Henry is staying, but comes back empty handed. Holmes suspects that the person who sent the note is following Sir Henry. Holmes and Watson secretly follow Sir Henry and Dr. Mortimer to see if they can spot a stalker, and Holmes' guess proves correct. He sees a man with a dark beard in a horse drawn cab, who is watching Sir Henry, but the man sees Holmes, and orders the cab driver to race away before Holmes can catch him. Holmes tracks down the cabby by the number on the cab, and discovers that the man he is pursuing has told the cab driver he is a detective named Sherlock Holmes. Holmes now realizes that his rival is very clever, as well as mysterious. Holmes starts to think of possible suspects. He believes the author of the note must be someone who already knows Sir Henry, or someone who expects to meet him since this person is being so careful to hide his identity. When Holmes hears that Sir Charles' caretaker at Baskerville Hall, Barrymore, has a black beard like the stalker, he immediately sends a telegram to Devonshire to see if Barrymore is there, and discovers to his disappointment that Barrymore is in fact in Devonshire, which means he could not possibly have been in London a few hours earlier. At this point, Holmes is left with a number of clues that have led nowhere. However, all of these events have built a larger and larger mystery, which is the trademark of a detective novel. These "threads", which are now "broken", have actually increased the suspense, as well as the reader's interest, and have created a reason to keep on reading.
As the story progresses from this point, it changes in mood and setting to resemble a gothic tale. The classic Gothic novel includes horror, the supernatural, and a dark and gloomy atmosphere. The Hound of the Baskervilles has all of the elements of a Gothic tale. The Hall, where Sir Henry is now traveling with Watson and Dr. Mortimer, is surrounded by the gloomy moors, and wild countryside with "brambles", and rushing streams. Watson is to stay with Sir Henry in case of danger. Autumn has come, and the leaves are falling. Unfortunately, "The Notting Hill Murderer" has escaped and is in the area. He is especially known for his brutality, and is possibly insane. While Watson and Sir Charles are traveling to the hall, they drive through "drifts of rotting vegetation" and a "valley dense with scrub oak and fir." They also notice "the gloomy curve of the moor" and "the jagged and sinister hills" in the distance. When Sir Charles and Watson arrive at Baskerville Hall, they think it is very gloomy, with its iron gates, the ruined stone lodge, and the long drive with dark trees hanging over it. The Hall has two Gothic looking towers, which are covered with ivy, and inside, the main parlor is darkly paneled. The dining room is also very dreary, and is decorated with intimidating portraits of stern ancestors. In the night there are frightening sounds. As Watson goes to sleep he hears the wind blowing, the tree branches outside his window, and the chimes of a clock. Then suddenly in the dark, he hears a woman sobbing in enormous grief somewhere inside the house, and then she stops, and he does not hear her again. The woman's sobs seem to come from a ghost rather than a living person. The vast gloominess and supernatural atmosphere demonstrate a Gothic tale.
The Hound of the Baskervilles has combined a traditional detective story genre with elements of a Gothic tale. The many clues of the detective case are made even more interesting by the possibility that a supernatural force could be at work in the form of the evil black hound. The reader is left to decide whether a very clever person planned Sir Charles' murder, or perhaps the Hound of the Baskervilles is to blame, or possibly there is a combination of a badly intentioned person trying to get hold of the estate, while at the same time the evil black hound really exists. Whatever it may be, the combination of detective genre and Gothic characteristics has worked together to make a more interesting story than the result would probably have been if the story were restricted to only one particular genre.
This is the complete article, containing 1,156 words
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