A Scandal in Bohemia

A Scandal in Bohemia

A Freudian Approach to Sherlock Holmes

A Freudian Approach to Sherlock Holmes

Summary• “A Scandal in Bohemia,” by Sir Arthur

Conan Doyle introduces Irene Adler into the Sherlock Holmes universe.

• The King of Bohemia has come to Holmes to help retrieve a compromising photograph of himself and Irene Adler, an “adventuress” who might use the photograph as blackmail.

• Holmes attempts to steal the photo, but he is outsmarted by Adler. She then flees the country, promising not to release the photo.

What does it mean?• “"A Scandal in Bohemia" is the first and

only story where Holmes is defeated by anyone.” (Krumm 196)

• Irene Adler is Sherlock Holmes’ equal, in a short story which takes places in Victorian England, where women had few roles outside that of housewife. She is much more than a villainess, she leaves an impression on Holmes which no man that came before has done.

Why Freud?• Sigmund Freud’s, “The Dream-Work,” when

used as literary theory, aides in the interpretation of, “A Scandal in Bohemia” because of it’s focus on representations of the abstract and metonymic associations. It does what a theory like New Criticism cannot do for a Sherlock Holmes story, which depends so much on ideas presented through other Holmes stories. Focusing on the text itself does not delve deep enough into its meaning.

Importance• “What appears in dreams, we might

suppose, is not what is important in the dream-thoughts but what occurs in them several times over.” (Freud 504)

• Wordle: the largest words are actually the least important. What’s smallest, or hidden, is the most important.

• Sherlock Holmes is not the lead character here, Irene Adler is, though her name is hardly used.

Importance cont.• Condensation: things are condensed

• Displacement: things that matter are displaced

• Overdetermination: things can be red-herrings

• Sherlock Holmes himself is a red-herring, as the story truly focuses on the character of Irene Adler. She hardly appears in the story, but she is characterized through Holmes’ wonder over her. She is condensed, and what she represents is displaced to Holmes.

Adler and Holmes• With her femininity and quicker wit, Adler

represents what Holmes is missing in this story. They are two parts of a whole - Adler is the female Holmes. She is his equal rather than a villain.

• “You do not know her, but she has a soul of steel. She has the face of the most beautiful of women, and the mind of the most resolute of men.”

“Although Holmes defeated, he reacts like a true Victorian gentleman, for despite a marked sting to his ego, he cannot hide his deep admiration for this exceptional woman.” (Krumm 203)

Abstract Representations

• “Abstract expressions offer the same kind of difficulties to representation in dreams as a political leadings article.” (Freud 508)

• Freud is saying that it’s impossible to dream of something abstract. Visible aspects are therefore representations of the abstract.

• Irene Adler is a representation of what Sherlock Holmes lacks.

Holmes as an Abstract Representation

• Holmes himself is a representation of the “eccentric Bohemian,” but so is Irene Adler. The narrator, Watson, describes Holmes as a precise thinking machine, but he does so with very passionate words, showing that Holmes does in fact have the capabilities of emotion, which he later shows for Adler, which causes him to lose the case.

Examples

• “He was still, as ever, deeply attracted by the study of crime”

• “...excellent for drawing the veil from men’s motives and actions.”

Metonymy

• Metonymy is very important in Freud’s Dream-Work. Because of the way our language is set up, even concrete meanings have varying associations, and it comes across in our dreams as well as in our literary works.

• Irene Adler is a Victorian woman, commonly associated with conservative values and the sphere of domesticity.

Metonymy

• However, she’s a well-known, “adventuress” and is well-traveled. Her associations to the Victorian woman separate her further from Sherlock Holmes when in fact, she can be held as his equal, if not his superior, thanks to her victory over him in, “A Scandal in Bohemia.”

• However, her marriage to the British lawyer Norton makes an interesting point.

It Ends with a Wedding• “The wedding is quite a clever feature, as it

elevates Adler's status in society, it also demotes her as a woman, proving the nineteenth-century view that a woman cannot be successful without a man. This marriage illustrates the ultimate defeat of Women.” (Krumm 203)

• I disagree, I think this solidifies her as Holmes’ equal. Holmes is frequently pulled away from his adventures due to his cocaine addiction. Not to say that marriage is like a drug addiction, but in this case it serves the same purpose. It’s what keeps our adventurer at bay.

Conclusion• “What is clearly the essence of the

dream-thoughts need not to be represented in the dream at all. The dream is, as it were, differently centered from the dream thoughts.” (Freud 503)

• Our story is not what is simply placed in front of us. This Sherlock Holmes case shows that a woman can be an equal to a man in Victorian England - it’s much more than a detective’s case.