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Omar Contreras
WR 37
Dr. Lynda Haas
November 26, 2014

Rhetorical Analysis: Sherlock Holmes Remains Popular

The detective genre has existed for over a century, and remains popular to contemporary
audiences through the adaptions of its known conventions; specifically, the complimentary
conventions of the laughable, incompetent police force, and the greater powers of observations
and superior mind of the detective. (Editors of Encyclopedia Britannica, web) Conan Doyle can
be credited for pushing the detective genre to its classical phase during the late Victorian era; his
famous Sherlock Holmes stories were relished by readers of the time because they were an
excellent mirror of the culture and time period of the Victorian era. In the midst of the industrial
revolution, crime was rampant where the poor and working class lived, and the early
metropolitan police force was incapable of alleviating this. Because of this, readers of the late
18th century saw the police as incompetent and immoral, and increasingly saw the genius, in
Doyles case, Sherlock Holmes, as a hero. According to Leroy Panek, in the chapter titled
Doyle, in his book An Introduction to the Detective Story, what enables the detective genre
to be popular is the combination of non-serious, comic, and playful with the serious, tragic and
human implications of crime. (48) This combination of attitudes is seen throughout the Sherlock
Holmes stories, as the eccentric Holmes amusingly uses his superior intelligence to solve the
serious crimes that the amateurish police force was incapable of doing. Holmess brilliance,
making the police force look foolish, all while in the midst of mysterious crimes, pleased readers

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of the Victorian era, and continues to please audiences of the 21st century as it has been adapted
for new mediums like television.
The BBC crime-drama Sherlock is a wonderful present-day adaptation of the Conan
Doyle stories, and has been reviewed as complex and contemporary, with references to a
remembered past, by Nancy Smith, reviewer for The Wall Street Journal. These references
include the display of incompetent police, and Sherlocks incredible deduction abilities. In the
first episode of the series titled A Study in Pink, Sherlock, played by Benedict Cumberbatch, is
invited by detective-inspector Lestrade to examine a crime scene and give his two cents on the
matter. At the twenty-four minute mark Sherlock, his companion Watson, and detective
Lestrade, walk into the crime scene; a low-key lit room in a decrepit, abandoned London flat.
Already the dcor and lighting of mise-en-scene conveys to the viewer the mystery and
seriousness of the situation. In the room lies Jennifer Wilson, a woman in pink, dead, with the
word Rache scratched on the floor above her left hand. As Sherlock approaches Jennifer, the
angle of framing is low, forcing the viewer the look up at Sherlock. This cinematic element is
used to make Sherlock look large, and powerful. Sherlock begins to examine Jennifer, and the
frame switches between point-of-views of Sherlock, and what specifically he is examining.
Paired with superimposition, the audience is able to see what Sherlock is thinking as he is
investigating Jennifers body and the items on her. As Sherlock finishes his examination,
forensics expert Anderson appears at the doorway saying the word rache was German for
revenge. Sherlock sarcastically thanks him for his input, and precedes to slams the door in his
face. Moments later Sherlock gives his deduction that Jennifer Wilson had been kidnapped, and
how he arrived to his conclusion.

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With detective Lestrade inviting Sherlock to the crime scene, it is suggested to the viewer
that the police are in need of Sherlocks help because they do not know what to do. This is
supportive of the genre convention that the police are incompetent. Shutting the door on
Andersons face while he is trying to help, which is pointless to Sherlock, also humorously adds
to the convention. Sherlock examining the body displays his amazing observational skills, and
intelligence. These two complimentary conventions of the detective- genre used by Conan
Doyle, are fantastically facilitated again to new audiences, and are still well-received. This may
be because, as P.D. James put it, as modern civilization becomes increasingly complex,
Detective stories help reassure us in the belief that the universe, underneath it all, is rational.
Theyre small celebrations of order and reason in an increasingly disordered world (Newsweek
October 20, 1986) Disorder partly arising from incompetent police. Other contemporary
adaptations of Sherlock Holmes have used these conventions successfully as well.
In CBSs crime drama Elementary, Sherlock Holmes, played by Jonny Lee Miller, is
the protagonist again, like in BBCs Sherlock, but has made with the intent of remaking [the]
show for an American audience. (10 Reasons Why Elementary Is Better Than Sherlock, web)
Similar to the first episode of Sherlock, in the pilot episode of Elementary, Holmes, along with
his companion Joan Watson, goes to a house covered in police tape. Holmes is there to use the
abilities he gained working as a consultant in Scotland Yard to help solve the crime which has
occurred. Between Sherlock and Elementary there are a few key differences in the two
deduction scenes. At 7 minutes and 29 seconds into the episode, Holmes enters the room, and a
point-of-view shot is used to show the viewer Holmes is examining a few elements of the room;
like the boot print on the broken front door, and Dr. Richard Mantlo the husband of the victim.
However unlike Sherlock, the environment changes as a tracking shot follows Holmes to the

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living room where he continues to investigate. He deduces, from photos on the victims wall, and
her cell phone, that the victim has had her appearance changed; he also notes that from the off
put symmetry of the room, something has been stolen from a particular spot. While Holmes is
doing this, the background music playing, sets a very mysterious, yet playful tone. As Holmes
exits towards the hallway, the frame switches to a long-shot showing Holmes sniffing a carpet,
and policemen in the background, then a point-of-view shot show Joan and Captain Gregson
staring at Holmes as he does so. The frame switches over to another longshot of Holmes, now
entering the kitchen. The long-shot allows the viewer to see the broken glass on the floor as well
as another detective in the room writing notes. A close-up shot of Holmess face displays that he
is examining the broken glass on the floor. Finally he deduces from two broken glass cups that
the victim let her attacker into her home herself. The other detective that was in the room
challenges Holmess inference, but this is quickly dismissed as Holmes finds the base of the
second broken glass cup.
In both scenes of Sherlock and Elementary the convention of the genius protagonist
is adapted, but differently. In Sherlock, Holmes is able, within moments, to deduce many facts
about Jennifer Wilson. This is shown through the superimposition of the scene, and the cut-in
and cut-away of Holmess face and the elements of Jennifer Wilsons body. Though in
Elementary, Holmess abilities seem a lot less super-hero like. The observation scene is longer
than the one in Sherlock, and instead of conveying an amazing talent, the viewer sees that
Holmes is freakishly observational; especially in the long-shot frame of Holmes sniffing a carpet.
On the surface Holmes sniffing a carpet is oddly funny, but it also displays the eccentric qualities
that Conan Doyles original Sherlock Holmes, and the Holmes from Sherlock share. The
convention of the incompetent police is still present in Elementary, but at a much lesser

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degree. In Elementary, Holmes is seen doing more than the police around him. He is sniffing
carpets, examining not only primary evidence, but secondary as well, like the photos on the
victims wall. The Holmes of Elementary is not shutting doors on detectives faces, but he
does still prove them to be slightly incompetent; just much more respectively. This is because In
a post-9/11 America, you dont call the Police stupid. Even if you did, the viewer would never
buy it since we have a bucketload of Police procedural television shows on the air, plus shows
such as CSI which show the Police conducting very smart investigations. (10 Reasons Why
Elementary Is Better Than Sherlock, web). However, the degree of harshness does not change
the fact that in both shows, the police are unable to solve crimes, if they could Sherlock Holmes
would not be needed. The only change to the convention is the degree of incompetence shown in
police. The paired conventions of the incompetent police and the superior detective display how
the detective-genre remains popular today.
Again, as stated by Leroy Panek, what keeps the detective genre popular is humor, which
stems from Sherlock as he makes police seem incompetent, and the tragic implications of crime,
which would never arise if the police matched Sherlocks intelligence, as they would be able to
solve cases. Though crime is not as rampant as it was in the Victorian era, it still exists today,
and police remain to be seen as incompetent, immoral, and untrustworthy. Sherlock Holmes is
still viewed as a hero because of this, and will remain popular. Both Sherlock, and
Elementary, have adapted the conventions of the fallible police and the genius detective from
the Conan Doyle stories in their own respected ways. Though the medium has changed from
literature to television, as well as audiences, Victorian to contemporary, what keeps the genre
popular has not; it has merely been adapted for todays audiences, whether it is the post 9-11
America, or otherwise.

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Works Cited
Chapman, Brian. "10 Reasons Why Elementary is Better than Sherlock." What Culture. What
Culture, LTD., 9 Jan. 2014. Web. 11 Aug. 2014.
Smith, Nancy. Everything Old Is New Again. The Wall Street Journal. Dow Jones &
Company, LTD., 10 Oct. 2010. Web. 26 November 2014
Panek, Leroy. Doyle. An Introduction to the Detective Story. Bowling Green, OH: Bowling
Green State University Popular Press, 1987. PDF File. 26 November 2014
Delamater, Jerome and Ruth Prigozy, eds. Theory and Practice of Classic Detective
Fiction. New York: Praeger, 1997. Print. PDF File. 26 November 2014
Panek, Leroy. Beginnings. An Introduction to the Detective Story. Bowling Green, OH:
Bowling Green State University Popular Press, 1987. PDF File. Paraphrase, 26
November 2014
A Study in Pink. Sherlock. BBC. United Kingdom. 25 July, 2010. Television. 26 November
2014
Pilot. Elementary. CBS. United States. 27 September, 2012. Television. 26 November 2014
"Film Analysis." Film Analysis. Yale University, New Haven., 1 Jan. 2002. Web. 19 Nov. 2014.
26 November 2014

James, PD. "Women Times Three." N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Nov. 2014.
The Editors of Encyclopedia Britannica. Detective Story. The Encyclopedia Britannica. The
Encyclopdia Britannica. April 28, 2014. Web. 26 Nov. 2014.