STAGE

The Hound of the

4 Baskervilles
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Introduction

This ungraded summary is for the teacher’s use only

and should not be given to students.

The story
Dr Mortimer visits Sherlock Holmes and Doctor
Watson and tells them about Sir Hugo Baskerville,
who was killed by an enormous black hound one
night on the moors in Devon in 1640. His descendant
Charles Baskerville died recently, apparently because
of his weak heart, but Dr Mortimer found the prints of
Background to the story
a huge hound nearby.
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (1859–1930) was born
Next morning Dr Mortimer returns with Sir Henry
in Edinburgh and studied medicine at Edinburgh
Baskerville, who is now head of the family. Sir
University. In 1897, while practising as a doctor in
Henry has received a note warning him not to go to
the south of England, he produced his first book, A
Baskerville Hall, so Watson arranges to accompany
Study in Scarlet. This introduced to the world his great
him there.
creation, the super-observant, eccentric and gifted
In the nearby village of Grimpen, Watson meets
detective Sherlock Holmes, along with his friend and
Stapleton, a naturalist who knows the dangerous
companion, the good-natured if naïve Doctor Watson,
Grimpen Marsh well. Stapleton’s beautiful sister
and his arch enemy, the scheming villain Professor
mistakes Watson for Sir Henry and secretly warns
Moriarty. The book was a great success, and Holmes
him to leave. Later, Sir Henry falls in love with her. One
became hugely popular. He remains so to this day; a
night Sir Henry and Watson see the butler signalling
hundred years after his creation, tourists still come in
with a light to someone on the moor – it is his wife’s
thousands to 221B Baker Street in London, Holmes’s
brother, an escaped convict. Watson and Sir Henry
well-known address.
hunt for the convict, but he escapes, and they hear a
The books did much to popularize detective stories,
frightening howl.
and The Hound of the Baskervilles has remained
Watson learns that when Sir Charles died he was
one of the most celebrated of the Holmes stories.
waiting to meet a lady called Laura Lyons. Holmes
With its eerie setting, the ghastly beast of the title,
arrives and reveals that Laura Lyons hopes to marry
the complicated plot and the rich seam of romantic
Stapleton, unaware that his ‘sister’ is actually his wife.
entanglement and deception, it has something for
Suddenly they hear the awful howl again. They find a
everyone. The Hound of the Baskervilles has also
man’s dead body on the ground, but it is the body of
been produced in the form of films and radio plays.
the escaped prisoner.
Holmes and Watson pretend to leave, but that Before reading
night they wait outside the Stapletons’ house, where
Here are some ways to help your students approach
Sir Henry is visiting. When Sir Henry begins to walk
the story:
home, a huge black dog appears and runs after him,
but Holmes and Watson shoot it. Stapleton flees to an 1 Give students the title of the book and show them
island in the marsh, but in the fog he loses his way the picture on the cover. Ask them to try and guess
and disappears. what kind of story it is.
Stapleton, they discover, was in fact Sir Henry’s 2 Give students a copy of the text on the back
cousin. With both Sir Charles and Sir Henry dead, he cover of the book, and of the story introduction
would inherit the fortune. But his elaborate and wicked on the first page. When they have read the texts,
plan did not succeed. ask them a few questions about the story, or use
the Before Reading Activities in the back of each
Bookworm.

63 © OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS

 STAGE
The Hound of the Baskervilles
4 Pre-reading activity

Anticipation through chapter titles

The Hound of the The Escaped Prisoner

Baskervilles
The Letter
The Case Begins
Laura Lyons
The Baskerville Papers
r
The Man on the Moo
How Sir Charles Died
Too Late
The Problem
Sir Henry Baskerville Death on the Moor
The Trap
More Mystery
The Search for
Baskerville Hall the Murderer

The Stapletons Looking Back

of Pen House
To the teacher

Aim: To anticipate plot, speculate about clues
and details
Time: 15–20 minutes
Organization: Supply the students with the following
list of chapter titles, either as individual copies or on
an overhead projector. Check to make sure that there
are no problems with vocabulary items in the list.
Then divide the students into small groups and ask
them to speculate as widely as they can about the
meaning of the chapter titles, their connection with
one another, and their connection with the title. It is
not important whether their guesses are correct or
not; they should simply be encouraged to speculate
about possible connections. They may be able to
come up with an idea of a plot line, but this is not
essential. If they find it difficult to start, give them a
few questions to consider, e.g.:
Chapter 1: What does ‘case’ tell you about the book?
What kind of story is it?
Chapter 3: How did Sir Charles die? Why is it
important?
Chapter 5: Who is Sir Henry Baskerville? Is he related
to Sir Charles? If so, how?
When students have finished, allow each group to
outline its ideas in a short verbal report to the class.
Give no indication as to whether they have guessed
correctly, but let them listen to all the ideas and
discuss them if they wish.

PHOTOCOPIABLE © OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS 64

 STAGE
The Hound of the Baskervilles
4 While reading activity

Quiz

1 The head of the Baskerville family in 1640. ____

2 Mortimer said the dog’s footprints were _____________ . ________
3 The city where the story begins. ______
4 The moor gate was closed and ___________ . ______
5 The Alley has two ________ of yew trees. ______
6 The gate was the only ____________ from the Alley to the moor. _______
7 Sir Henry has been living in this country. ___
8 The dead girl was the daughter of Sir Hugo’s ________________ . _________
9 Dr Mortimer came from this county. __________

People say the hound is a supernatural creature – a _ _ _ _ - _ _ _ _ _.

To the teacher

Where: At the end of Chapter 4
Aim: To check comprehension of facts and ideas
Time: 10–15 minutes
Organization: Divide the students into pairs and
give each pair a copy of the prepared acrostic.
(More able students may wish to tackle the puzzle
individually, possibly comparing answers with another
student later.) Tell them that the answers to all the
questions can be found in the first four chapters of
the book. When they have completed the puzzle, the
first letters to the answers will give the word that
completes the sentence below the puzzle.
Once all the students have finished, you may like to
quickly check the answers together. Later, students
can work either individually or in pairs to produce an
acrostic puzzle for a different section of the book.
This could be done in class or as homework.
Key: 1 Hugo; 2 enormous; 3 London; 4 locked;
5 hedges; 6 opening; 7 USA; 8 neighbour;
9 Devonshire; Answer: hell-hound.

65 © OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS PHOTOCOPIABLE

 STAGE
The Hound of the Baskervilles
4 After reading activity

Ten years on

Ten years have passed since the events described in the book. Imagine you are a journalist
writing an article about what has happened to the various characters now. Where do they
live now, and what jobs are they doing? Are they still in contact with any of the other
characters? Have they changed in any way since the story ended?

Mrs Stapleton Laura Lyons

..................................................................................................... .....................................................................................................

..................................................................................................... .....................................................................................................

..................................................................................................... .....................................................................................................

..................................................................................................... .....................................................................................................

..................................................................................................... .....................................................................................................

..................................................................................................... .....................................................................................................

..................................................................................................... .....................................................................................................

..................................................................................................... .....................................................................................................

Sir Henry Dr Mortimer

..................................................................................................... .....................................................................................................

..................................................................................................... .....................................................................................................

..................................................................................................... .....................................................................................................

..................................................................................................... .....................................................................................................

..................................................................................................... .....................................................................................................

..................................................................................................... .....................................................................................................

..................................................................................................... .....................................................................................................

..................................................................................................... .....................................................................................................

To the teacher

Aim: To revise and reassess character and plot ability of the students involved will influence the
through imaginative extension of plot teacher’s choice.
Time: 20–30 minutes (longer if wished) Depending on time, ability and inclination, students
Organization: The story ends where the author may present their conclusions simply as an oral
decides to end it, but we may imagine that the report, a letter from one character to another, a
characters continue their lives afterwards. This newspaper report, or in any other form that appeals
activity may occupy part of a lesson or continue as to them. When the work is presented or shown
homework; it may be done by individuals, pairs or to the class, students may like the opportunity to
groups, and it may lead to an oral report or a written discuss, challenge or comment on one another’s
summary. The amount of time available and the conclusions.

PHOTOCOPIABLE © OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS 66