A Study in Scarlet(1)

Sherlockian Way of Thinking

In the follwing chapter, we will explore how Holmes combines and applies his various reasoning methods to solve cases, using four representative works: A Study in Scarlet, The Sign of Four, The Hound of the Baskervilles, and The Five Orange Pips.

The works were selected on the basis of three criteria:

Do they contain scenes that vividly showcase logical reasoning?

Is the narrative tense and compelling?

Are they regarded as original, influential, and highly accomplished in literary history?

1. A Study in Scarlet (1887)

A Study in Scarlet is not merely the starting point of the Sherlock Holmes stories; it is also an experimental work in terms of structure and narrative technique. Its division into two parts—one depicting the present crime and the other the backstory in the distant past—was a structural innovation that influenced countless detective stories to follow.

A Study in Scarlet is an experimental work in terms of structure and narrative technique.

Its greatest distinction lies in its focus on the question “Why did this happen?” rather than simply “Who did it?”. Readers follow not only Holmes’s deductions but also the full human drama of the culprit’s life, tracing the path that led to the crime.

The novel is also notable within the Holmes canon for its strong undercurrent of social criticism. The oppressive authority of a religious community, the violation of a woman’s freedom of choice, and the closed world created by the fusion of faith and power are more than just background—they are essential devices that give rise to the violence and revenge at the heart of the plot.

In short, A Study in Scarlet marks not only the birth of the iconic Holmes character, but also a turning point in detective fiction’s journey toward deeper narrative and literary legitimacy.

The Book of Life

In the opening pages of A Study in Scarlet, we encounter a lively exchange between Holmes and Watson over a paper Holmes has written, boldly titled “The Book of Life.”

In it, Holmes declares his belief that a person’s outward appearance—the condition of their hands, their clothing, posture, and gait—contains condensed clues to their profession, habits, and place of origin. These outward signs, he insists, can be read like a text.

Watson is skeptical. The theory is clever, yes—but in the real world, can one truly read a person with such accuracy? Holmes smiles, and with a spark of mischief in his eye begins his demonstration.

“When I first met you, I said, ‘You have been in Afghanistan,’ did I not? You were surprised.”

Holmes explains his reasoning with the precision of a surgeon. He began not with any rash conclusion, but with observation: the upright bearing of a soldier, a complexion darkened by fierce sunlight, the weary set of the shoulders, the guarded movement of an injured arm, and, in conversation, the effortless use of medical terminology.

From these signs, he formed the most plausible hypothesis: “An army doctor recently returned from active service, bearing an injury.” This was not strict deduction from a general law, but abduction—inferring the most likely cause from specific clues.

When Holmes first met Dr. Watson, he found out Watson's background using his method.

If the hypothesis were correct, Holmes reasoned, he should find further evidence: the soldier’s posture, the sunburnt skin, the signs of fatigue, the guarded arm, the professional vocabulary. Each prediction was borne out before his eyes.

Now the field narrowed. Britain’s army had just returned from a campaign in a hot, harsh theatre of war: Afghanistan. Combining this historical context with the observed signs, Holmes reached his final conclusion:

“An army doctor, wounded in service, lately returned from Afghanistan.”

This scene is a perfect example of Holmes’s method—not the sudden flash of intuition, but a deliberate sequence: observation, abduction, hypothesis, deduction, and verification.

It reminds us that A Study in Scarlet is more than a detective story—it is a primer in disciplined thought and a model of logical reasoning.