Discussion Post: The Resident Patient
Mar. 18th, 2012 01:04 am![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
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sherlock60Hi, everyone! Was it a good week? It should be a good end either way as we dig into The Resident Patient! How did you find it? As always, here are some of my thoughts and questions. Feel free to add your own!
- The opening sequence of this story can be different, depending on the edition you read. From Wikipedia: Most American editions of the Sherlock Holmes stories contain a bastardized edition of the text in which the first few pages of this episode and "The Adventure of the Cardboard Box" are almost identical; both contain the same, rather impressive example of Holmes's deductive powers. The reason for this stems from the original American publication of The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes in which the story of "The Cardboard Box" was eliminated; but its opening scene was retained and transferred to "The Resident Patient". Even today, this change continues to be propagated and editions of the stories which contain the original, correct text of "Resident Patient" are comparatively few.
- "Are you not the author of a monograph upon obscure nervous lesions?" Watson has time on his hands to read during his recovery, certainly. But an monograph on admittedly obscure issues seems a bit odd, especially when noticing that "nervous" disorders were generally euphemisms for mental health problems. Do you think he had a reason to be reading up on these subjects? Is it for professional curiosity or is he looking for more personal reasons -- for himself or his newfound friend, perhaps?
- I want to hear the story behind Holmes faking catalepsy. Sounds like a good one.
- Holmes is positive that it is mere coincidence that Blessington's accomplices come in the day when Blessington himself is out on his constitutional. But isn't it more likely they were there running reconaissance? Killing a man is best done quietly in the dark of night, and that's precisely what they end up doing quite successfully. They escape the law's justice, even if they don't escape nature's in the end.
- Speaking of that ending, it's another case where murderers escaping Holmes' grasp ultimately pay for their crimes at the hands of the sea, as also seen in the ending of The Five Orange Pips. Does this seem likely to you? Is it coincidence or Watson's creative license? Maybe Lord Poseidon reads the papers.
- The opening sequence of this story can be different, depending on the edition you read. From Wikipedia: Most American editions of the Sherlock Holmes stories contain a bastardized edition of the text in which the first few pages of this episode and "The Adventure of the Cardboard Box" are almost identical; both contain the same, rather impressive example of Holmes's deductive powers. The reason for this stems from the original American publication of The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes in which the story of "The Cardboard Box" was eliminated; but its opening scene was retained and transferred to "The Resident Patient". Even today, this change continues to be propagated and editions of the stories which contain the original, correct text of "Resident Patient" are comparatively few.
- "Are you not the author of a monograph upon obscure nervous lesions?" Watson has time on his hands to read during his recovery, certainly. But an monograph on admittedly obscure issues seems a bit odd, especially when noticing that "nervous" disorders were generally euphemisms for mental health problems. Do you think he had a reason to be reading up on these subjects? Is it for professional curiosity or is he looking for more personal reasons -- for himself or his newfound friend, perhaps?
- I want to hear the story behind Holmes faking catalepsy. Sounds like a good one.
- Holmes is positive that it is mere coincidence that Blessington's accomplices come in the day when Blessington himself is out on his constitutional. But isn't it more likely they were there running reconaissance? Killing a man is best done quietly in the dark of night, and that's precisely what they end up doing quite successfully. They escape the law's justice, even if they don't escape nature's in the end.
- Speaking of that ending, it's another case where murderers escaping Holmes' grasp ultimately pay for their crimes at the hands of the sea, as also seen in the ending of The Five Orange Pips. Does this seem likely to you? Is it coincidence or Watson's creative license? Maybe Lord Poseidon reads the papers.
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no subject
Date: 2012-03-18 08:50 am (UTC)I laughed my bum off at that line in the story.
Concerning the ever-wet criminals: I'm convinced that Holmes has karma on his side. He gives it massages when nobody's looking.
Tropism
Date: 2012-03-18 10:35 am (UTC)Re: Tropism
Date: 2012-03-18 02:18 pm (UTC)