A Study in Scarlet: A Social Scientific Review

SOCIAL SCIENCE

Table of Contents
Assessment 1: Review of A Study in Scarlet with a social scientific idea......................................2
Assessment 2: Presentation of the review.......................................................................................4
Example of the central point: Jefferson Hope.................................................................................4
Social scientific idea: Criminology.................................................................................................4
Applications of the social scientific idea to A Study in Scarlet.......................................................5
Reference List..................................................................................................................................6
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Assessment 1: Review of A Study in Scarlet with a social scientific idea
A Study in Scarlet written and published in 1886 and 1887 respectively by Sir Arthur Conan
Doyle is cited as one of the first detective novels. The novel in its initial stages had received
negligible attention upon release; however, it went on to become one of the most famous
detective novels of all time. This study evaluates the novel not only on the basis of the use of
literature in the text, but also aims at investigating its significance in terms of a societal impact.
The novel involves multiple characters, along with out-of-the-ordinary plot twists to keep the
readers interested. It may be stated in this context, that the publishers had initially been reluctant
to publish the novel due to the prevalence of ‘cheap fiction’ in the market. Hence, a considerable
insight into society, the Victorian era, as well as the city of London as a whole can be gathered
through a social scientific review of A Study in Scarlet.
The novel is segregated into two parts. The first part of the novel describes the murders, the
scene of the murder as well as the meeting of the protagonists of the story, Sherlock Holmes,
private detective and his associate Dr. John Watson in 1881. Furthermore, it may be mentioned
in this context that a geographical description of London can be obtained from the narration. The
murder in the hotel rooms, along with the conveyance of Jefferson Hope, the antagonist of the
novel from the United States of America, to parts of Europe and finally London, in the hope of
achieving revenge for his long-lost love (Brombley, 2017). The arrival of Hope at London, may
be considered significant as London, during the Victorian era had housed several immigrants
from a number of countries (Bailey, 2017). Furthermore, the theories of institutional as well as
sociocultural approaches formulated by urban anthropologists and urban sociologists can be
implemented for describing the condition of London and the implications it has on the events
described in the novel (Downes, 2016). Evaluating the ‘ways of life’, as performed in this study
may prove beneficial in gaining an insight into the psychology of the antagonist of A Study in
Scarlet. However, whether or not Jefferson Hope can be considered an antagonist for the novel
may be regarded as a central point of this review.
In order to comprehend the back-story of Jefferson Hope, one would discuss the second part of
the novel, which goes back to 1847. The story begins in Salt Lake Valley, Utah in America,
where Lucy, a little child and a man, John Ferrier have been left for dead and are rescued by a
group of Mormons. The pair is allocated a generous share of a land and is asked to convert to the
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