Student’s name
Instructor’s name
Course
Part II
Question 1
Sherlock first disguised himself as a slovenly groomsman to gather the latest information on Irene Adler. From the disguise, he learned that Irene was about to get married and decided to find the picture faster. Next, Sherlock Homes disguised himself as a clergyman outside the house of Irene Adler. The disguise of Sherlock was effective because he was a talented actor whose expressions matched the deception he desired.
Question 2
Irene and Godfrey went to church to get married.
Question 3
Holmes got into Briony Lodge by stepping in to help Adler after a group of men fought over her. Homes sustained injuries from his action drawing the concern of Adler who took him to her house to tend on his wounds.
Question 4
The threat of fire in Miss Adler’s house made her rush to save her most prized possession. In this case, the property she wouldn’t want to be destroyed was the compromising picture of the king. Sherlock closely watched the actions of Adler during the fire which led him to the location of the photograph.
Part III
Question 1
Irene left swiftly after the incident of the fire because she realized that Sherlock was after the picture. She left a letter indicating that she went with Norton whom she considered an honorable man.
Question 2
Sherlock did not get the photograph of Irene and the King because when he went back to recover it, he found it moved. Irene left with the photo noting that she did not intend to give it to the King’s fiancee’s family but to use it to prevent any action against her by the king.
Question 3
Sherlock only asked to take Irene Alder’s Picture.
Perception of women during the Victorian era
In A Scandal in Bohemia by Doyle, the narrative illustrates the role of gender and the societal expectation in the Victorian era. The story follows the activities of Sherlock Homes, a famous detective, as he attempts to retrieve a picture from Irene Adler. The detective is on a mission from the king to recover the photo from Adler because she uses it to blackmail him (Doyle). In this case, Irene Adler occasionally threatened to stop the king’s wedding by sending the photo to his newly found love. Doyle uses women limitedly in the narrative primary as an object for the detective’s inquiry. The narrative summarizes the role of women during the Victorian era as second class citizens. However, Irene Adler’s actions in the story go against the conventional expectations on how women should behave in society. The narrative places women in the background preventing the audience from understanding their attributes.
Firstly, the author uses Irene Adler in the narrative to illustrate how Victorian women should not behave. The story shows how Adler uses a compromising picture to threaten the king (Doyle). Irene Adler is portrayed as a strong woman who plays the role of the antagonist and the villain. The king describes Adler to Watson and Holmes as a woman with a soul of steel and the “mind of most resolute men” (Doyle). Adler’s attributes in the story were unique including her style of dressing like men. In this instance, she liked to gather information in disguise and viewed the men’s clothes to be more comfortable than dresses and Victorian dresses. Therefore, while the Victorian community saw women as inferior beings, Irene Adler shows that women are equally capable. She steps out of her comfort zone contrary to the perceptions of the society to outwit the men. In essence, Adler shows that women should never accept the secondary role forced on them by the community.
Next, during the Victorian era men lacked respect for women as talented people in society. King Wilhelm’s attempts to gain possession of the picture from Irene Alder were driven by his desire to protect his image rather than preventing his future wife from knowing about the affair. In this case, the King does not care about the feelings of his future wife but to protect his image. Besides, he does everything he can to gain access to the photograph by trying to dominate Adler. For instance, he confesses to Sherlock that about five failed attempts to regain possession of the picture from Irene have been made (Doyle). They even stole her luggage while she was traveling but still were unable to recover it (Doyle). The king, therefore, violated the privacy of Adler on several occasions illustrating the disrespect for women. He was frustrated because the woman had the upper hand and appeared more intelligent than him. During the Victorian era, women were perceived to be inferior creatures; therefore Adler’s intelligence challenged the King’s masculinity. In essence, the actions of the king towards his former lover and future wife fits into the Victorian’s era perceived status of women.
Ultimately, the narrative summarizes the role of women during the Victorian era as second class citizens. Irene Adler is portrayed as a strong woman who plays the part of the antagonist and the villain. Her attributes in the story were unique including her style of dressing like men. She liked to gather information in disguise and viewed the men’s clothes to be more comfortable than dresses and Victorian dresses. Therefore, Adler steps out of her comfort zone contrary to the perceptions of society. She shows that women should never accept the secondary role forced on them by the community. Also, King Wilhelm’s attempts to gain possession of the picture from Irene Alder were driven by his desire to protect his image rather than preventing his future wife from knowing about the affair. The king, therefore, violated the privacy of Adler on several occasion an illustration of disrespect for women. He was frustrated because the woman had the upper hand and appeared more intelligent than him. During the Victorian era, women were perceived to be inferior creatures; therefore Adler’s intelligent challenged the King’s masculinity.
Works cited
Doyle, Arthur Conan. “A Scandal in Bohemia.” The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (1891): 5-29.