Canon Discussion Post: The Disappearance of Lady Frances Carfax

[spacemutineer.livejournal.com]

Welcome back, everyone! Let's have some canon Sherlock Holmes discussion, shall we? What did you all think of The Disappearance of Lady Frances Carfax? As always, I've written up a few of my own random thoughts and questions, which are behind the jump. Please add your own in the comments!

Discussion about the Granada TV adaptation of this story is available in this week's Granada discussion post.


- "Because for the last few days I have been feeling rheumatic and old." - Time is moving on for our heroes. They're both pushing fifty at this point in their lives. At the beginning of LADY, Watson has just spent a day at the Turkish baths, due to feeling under the weather. That need for restoration and recovery makes sense for their age, but it also makes sense for the chronology, which puts this story starting only five days after The Three Garridebs resolved with Watson taking a bullet wound. The good doctor is not as strong as he used to be. When he confronts Philip Green, Green easily overtakes him, nearly choking him out in the process. Luckily, Holmes is there with a cudgel to assist.

- Any idea who "old Abrahams" is? Why is he in such mortal terror? What does Sherlock Holmes do about it? I have a theory whatever it was may have been rather hands off, because….

- I think Holmes was following Watson around Europe throughout the doctor's investigation. Isn't it terribly convenient he happens to be just steps away watching and ready with a weapon when Watson ends up needing help? Why is he incognito at all? It's entirely unnecessary - unless Holmes was trying to hide from Watson. The scene is even less comprehensible when you consider Holmes traveled all that way to intercept Watson in an effort to get him back on the trail of the lady in London. But if that's where she was, why did Holmes ever leave London in the first place? My proposal: he wasn't there to begin with. He's been trailing Watson, keeping an eye on him and his work. The real question is when he started following. Was it from the beginning? Maybe he was still worried about Watson, recently injured and feeling unwell. Maybe there was no old Abrahams at all, simply an alibi that Holmes rattles off, knowing Watson is unlikely to question him on it.

- Why is Holmes so sure Frances is going to be killed or is likely dead already? He states his belief as fact multiple times before mentioning at the very end that "these people had never, to my knowledge, done a murder." Wait, what? Then why the certainty they would in this particular case?

- Was I the only one creeped out by the so-called Honorable Philip Green? Is there any reason to believe Frances wanted anything to do with him other than his own word? He swears she loved him, but every other piece of evidence we have says she was terrified of him and made every effort to get away from the savage brute. Either way, Holmes likes him, and promptly hands Frances over to him as soon as he finds her.

- I love you, unnamed sergeant guy. For abiding the law but respecting and helping Holmes and Watson at all times, you deserve credit. And a proper name.

Comment away, and join us next week for The Illustrious Client!

Comments

[scfrankles.livejournal.com]

Perhaps ACD is trying to have it both ways - driving up the tension by saying Lady Frances is in danger of being murdered by Peters and Fraser but also saying they've never done it before, so she can be rescued alive. But I don't think Holmes is being illogical in his thoughts. He's not thinking about their previous behaviour - he's considering this particular set of circumstances. These are desperate people, and the situation pushed them into doing something they wouldn't normally have considered. And even then they didn't have the nerve to directly kill her.

Have to admit - Green doesn't creep me out ^^ (Though "not worse than others of my class" does make me a little uneasy. What exactly did he do that it was thought best he leave the country? Was it his behaviour towards young working class women? Was it violent acts?) But I don't doubt that he genuinely loves Lady Frances - his behaviour while she's missing bears that out. And I don't think there's any reason not to believe that Lady Frances did love Green when she first knew him.

However, that doesn't necessarily mean that she loves him now, of course. I personally don't think she was afraid of him - just wanted to get away from him, and wanted to make sure he couldn't follow her. There may possibly be mixed motives for this - he's a man she doesn't approve of, but she does have some affection for him still. She might have been worried that her emotions would overcome her commonsense. I had been considering writing a 60 word story in which, after Lady Frances has recovered, she agrees to marry Green. But out of mixed motives and a sense of resignation - she's lost her faith in humanity. She believes she needs a "rough fellow" to protect her from a rough world.

And I heartily agree - hurrah for the unnamed sergeant!

[spacemutineer.livejournal.com]

I don't doubt Green loves Lady Frances. But her feelings toward him are important to me. If she didn't want him before her kidnapping, that she ends up in his care after her injuries is disturbing. Your idea about mixed emotions makes sense, though. Let's hope for that. I'm going with your concept as headcanon so I can feel less creeped by the story.

[scfrankles.livejournal.com]

Perhaps if you look at Lady Frances being given into Green's care as the lesser of 2 evils... She has no close family or friends; her maid is in Switzerland and Miss Dobney is surely too old to take care of her. Lady Frances may not have chosen to be in this situation but Green will make sure she gets the very best of care. She might otherwise have ended up in the care of strangers - people who might not be so concerned.