When reading old books, you expect some things to be different. Descriptions of people are written with slightly different words, “to-day” is used instead of “today”, dialogue may go on for pages with no reminder of who is saying what, and women always stay in the background. When you read books from the 1800s, you expects sexism, but what surprised (and frustrated) me was how subtle it often was.
The Hound of the Baskervilles is one of the four sherlock Holmes novels, and it tells the tale of Sherlock Holmes and his companion Dr. Watson as they investigate a terrible curse that has apparently been visiting the Baskerville family and killing them. They are approached by Sir Henry Baskerville as he inherits Baskerville Hall after his uncle is killed, seemingly by the surse. A fine mystery. Entering the …show more content…
There is an escaped convict in the land, who happened to also be Mrs. Barrymore’s brother. Because of this, the Barrymores snuck the convict food, and this sneaking promoted Watson to be suspicious. Later, the convict is killed by the very hound that haunts the Baskervilles, and Watson must break the news to Mrs. Barrymore, saying: “She wept bitterly in her apron. To all the world he was a man of violence, half animal and half demon; but to her he always remained the wilful boy of her own girlhood, the child who had clung to her hand. Evil indeed is the man who has not one woman to mourn him.”(pg.118-119) This quote portrays women in a way that seems a compliment and yet isn’t. It says that being kind or sentimental is a woman’s greatest downfall, when in fact, that can be anyone’s downfall. Despite the explanation Watson gives, the reader still feels that Mrs. Barrymore herself was just stupid for helping a convict, no matter the personal ties. And beyond this, she serves no purpose in the narrative. We also meet Mr. Stapleton and his sister Miss Stapleton, only to find by the end that the two were not siblings and were actually
The Hound of the Baskervilles is one of the four sherlock Holmes novels, and it tells the tale of Sherlock Holmes and his companion Dr. Watson as they investigate a terrible curse that has apparently been visiting the Baskerville family and killing them. They are approached by Sir Henry Baskerville as he inherits Baskerville Hall after his uncle is killed, seemingly by the surse. A fine mystery. Entering the …show more content…
There is an escaped convict in the land, who happened to also be Mrs. Barrymore’s brother. Because of this, the Barrymores snuck the convict food, and this sneaking promoted Watson to be suspicious. Later, the convict is killed by the very hound that haunts the Baskervilles, and Watson must break the news to Mrs. Barrymore, saying: “She wept bitterly in her apron. To all the world he was a man of violence, half animal and half demon; but to her he always remained the wilful boy of her own girlhood, the child who had clung to her hand. Evil indeed is the man who has not one woman to mourn him.”(pg.118-119) This quote portrays women in a way that seems a compliment and yet isn’t. It says that being kind or sentimental is a woman’s greatest downfall, when in fact, that can be anyone’s downfall. Despite the explanation Watson gives, the reader still feels that Mrs. Barrymore herself was just stupid for helping a convict, no matter the personal ties. And beyond this, she serves no purpose in the narrative. We also meet Mr. Stapleton and his sister Miss Stapleton, only to find by the end that the two were not siblings and were actually