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Susanne Sullivan

Professor Lynda Haas

Writing 37

2 February 2014

Watson's Role as a Supporting Character

In order to solve a mysterious crime it takes a person of great wit and unmistakable knowledge to find the clues that will lead to finding a person of interest, this person 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" that aids the investigator in his or her work. In Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's, Sherlock Holmes novels, Dr. John Watson serves as Sherlock Holmes highly esteemed partner. Watson is a very intelligent person, he being a medical doctor after all, but what sets him apart from his colleague, Sherlock Holmes, is that he does not possess the remarkable knowledge that Holmes 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 Ch. 1). The purpose of having Watson in the Sherlock Holmes novels is to give a new light to situations that Holmes might overlook, and in doing this, Watson helps to spark an idea that may help Holmes to solve the mystery.

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What is it about Watson's character that may be the "conductor" for Holmes's so called "light"? In many situations it is important to have another individual's thoughts or feelings on a situation, and that is what Watson does. 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 has as well. Watson also has a very specific form of intellect, that being his knowledge of the medical field. All these aspects help to develop the profound character that is Dr. John Watson. Now we must try to understand what it is about his character that Holmes considers to be of such importance that he chooses to have Watson as his partner. Watson, as previously stated, has many characteristics, these being some that Holmes does not have. Watson is the metaphorical heart in their relationship, from the perspective of the reader; Watson is the one that keeps Holmes grounded. 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 Ch. 1). 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 Ch. 1) Watson has the reaction that many like-minded people would have in this scenario, and with his questioning of Holmes; he must contemplate why it is he does this, bringing a better light to Holmes's character. Watson's questions do not change Holmes's view on using drugs, but it does help him to think about why he takes these drugs, letting the reader have more insight on his character, and this helps him to appear more humane. Conan Doyle's series is called The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes" but 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 relates to Watson's thoughts and feelings. We do not need to know more about Watson, because we can use our own personal idea 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. One 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, this is uncharacteristic of Watson, and is more so like what Holmes would observe. 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. 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.

Watson can be seen as just being 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 greater intellect, he is a character a reader can relate to and understand, his attractable attitude

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keeps Holmes sane and keeps him from becoming overwhelmed. Without Watson, there would be no Sherlock Holmes adventures. Without the development of 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. Dr. John Watson will forever be known as the most notable supporting character that aids one of the most beloved detectives of all time.

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.