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may well engender the world of letters [with] as much scepticism as surprise” (Meyer, 1974, p. 9). While admitting to scepticism does not necessarily remove it, Meyer‟s (1974) cultivates my interest by addressing my negative preconceived notions: “Certainly there has been a surfeit of forgeries – some of them admittedly well done and others merely preposterous” (p. 9). Such a stance enables his pastiche to avoid an outcry from Holmes traditionalists and provides a loophole for any discrepancies. Meyer (1974) also achieves this through aging Watson and his talents as a writer: If the narrative which follows occasionally fails to bear the impress of my usual style, age must partly share the blame, along with the fact that years have elapsed since last I wrote. Similarly, a narrative which is not based on my usually copious notes is bound to differ significantly from previous works, however perfect my memory. (p. 18) Meyer contextualises the ideology that reality is relative, by introducing historical figures into the narrative. The usage of Freud not only fulfils Sherlockian theory, but also grounds the text in plausibility and encourages the reader towards embracing the text‟s enchantment. More often than not pastiches tend to create an intellectual equal for Holmes. Therefore, just as King in The Beekeeper’s Apprentice (1994) constructed Mary Russell, Meyer (1974) uses Freud to realistically challenge Holmes‟s superiority: You disappoint me, sir. Is this the Holmes I have read about? The man whom I have come to admire not only for his brain but for his chivalry, his passion for justice, his compassion for suffery? (p. 99) By the end of the novel, Watson reveres Freud‟s psychological deductions and promptly proclaims: “You are the greatest detective of all” (Meyer, 1974, p. 218). Now the plausibility of this statement could only be achieved through the reader allowing a comparison to be made between the world of fiction and the world of non-fiction. Such results make me wonder whether the cultivation of a consumer into a fan may just be the cultivation of enchantment. Surely, whether one is an educated fan or an enamoured fan, they are in essence simply enchanted by their “object of consumption” (Gray et al., 2007, p. 11). 66
Official secondary products: The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes (2008) images The last official secondary product of my journey was Vincent Starrett‟s classic, The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes (2008). Private Life (2008) was originally published in 1934 and was “admired not only because it was so good but because it was so unusual” (Redmond, 2009, p. 285). Starrett‟s book was unlike any other of its time because it was a biography. At the turn of the century Holmes parodies made way for more serious endeavours – pastiches. Therefore by the end of Doyle‟s last volume of short stories, The Case-book of Sherlock Holmes (1927/2005k), “Sherlockians were treating Holmes and Watson as real people, the Canon as history, and Doyle as „The Literary Agent‟” (Redmond, 2009, p. 263). While the image of Holmes portrayed in this book is that of a real person, I was far more interested in Starrett‟s (2008) depiction of the reader, of me. Starrett‟s (2008) image of the Sherlockian reader cultivates an impression of how one should react to Doyle‟s stories. During the “death” of Sherlock Holmes, Starrett (2008) describes “the stain of tears among the thumbprints in the margins” (p. 38) and how we “suffer[ed] with poor Watson” (p. 34). Similarly, Starrett (2008) imagines the feelings of joy that the reader shares with Watson upon Holmes‟s return: “Moriarty has fallen to his doom! “O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay!” (p. 47). Assuring us that while he “is not quoting Watson literally . . . it is all there between the lines – his joy, his affection, and his satisfaction” (Starrett, 2008, p. 47). Official secondary products: The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes (2008) ideologies Ideologically, all Holmes pastiches are alike. They each, through constructed enchantment, imply that reality is relative; “modern enchantments are enjoyed as constructs in which one can become immersed but not submerged” (Saler, 2003, p. 607). With Sherlockian fandom, this form of constructed enchantment is practised as The Great Game, in which fans often gather to examine the canon as if it were a historical document. Often such activities inspire much of the Sherlockian scholarship published today. The tone of such work, as established by Starrett in Private Life (2008), is often that of mock seriousness and enthusiasm over the most trivial: The Sherlockian “game” made it a faux pas to acknowledge Doyle as anything more than “The Literary Agent.” A narrow circle of enthusiasts wrote with passion on questions about which only a Sherlockian could be truly passionate, and maintained the pretence that Holmes and Watson and their associates were historical characters. (Redmond, 2009, p. 286) 67
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The Case Study of Sherlock Holmes (
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Table of Contents Attestation of Au
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List of Figures Figure 1. Abercromb
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Attestation of Authorship I hereby
Page 9 and 10:
Abstract This study investigates a
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Abercrombie and Longhurst‟s audie
Page 13 and 14:
and Morgan‟s (1990) and Shanahan
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two and turn them into action” (G
Page 17 and 18:
Jenkins (1992), however, would disa
Page 19 and 20:
that to be a secondary phase, a res
Page 21 and 22: they designed their continuum, were
Page 23 and 24: economistic theory, alongside Aberc
Page 25 and 26: informs us that we take our communi
Page 27 and 28: Methodology This chapter explains t
Page 29 and 30: albeit in Sherlock Holmes for Dummi
Page 31 and 32: Figure 2. Original model from Maste
Page 33 and 34: and like many, have a stereotypical
Page 35 and 36: Drawing from Shanahan and Morgan (1
Page 37 and 38: Model My research advocates the the
Page 39 and 40: Creative component Critiques Regard
Page 41 and 42: ethnographic position is made on tw
Page 43 and 44: Table 2. Ethnographic order of prod
Page 45 and 46: Good Doctor to placate any qualms t
Page 47 and 48: preconception was derived from its
Page 49 and 50: and Watson in defeating Lord Blackw
Page 51 and 52: The common picture of Holmes is of
Page 53 and 54: “embrace of fiction” (p. 606) a
Page 55 and 56: was lost. Therefore, Doyle‟s orig
Page 57 and 58: this was the only Holmes novel the
Page 59 and 60: 9). While the tale and its quick pu
Page 61 and 62: his feet with a cry of pleasure.
Page 63 and 64: Cultivation analysis: Official seco
Page 65 and 66: their flaws and their frailties, in
Page 67 and 68: may suggest, this film is not a dir
Page 69 and 70: Holmes in the role of supporting ac
Page 71: have endeavoured to intertwine and
Page 75 and 76: 245). Redmond‟s (2009) statement,
Page 77 and 78: “shocking affair of the Dutch ste
Page 79 and 80: cited in Jenkins, 1992, p. 32). In
Page 81 and 82: The fan Sandvoss (2005) believes th
Page 83 and 84: emotional, or cognitive); they tres
Page 85 and 86: knowledgeable fans [who] may . . .
Page 87 and 88: negative connotation, for it no lon
Page 89 and 90: Figure 6, the consumer-to-fan culti
Page 91 and 92: Creative Component Introduction Fan
Page 93 and 94: esponsible, Lord Blackwood, played
Page 95 and 96: short and are exposed as fraudulent
Page 97 and 98: Conclusion We take our communicatio
Page 99 and 100: References Abercrombie, N., & Longh
Page 101 and 102: Davies, D. S. (2009). The further a
Page 103 and 104: Doyle, A. C. (2005k). The case-book
Page 105 and 106: Jenkins, H. (2007). Afterword: The
Page 107 and 108: Signorielli, N., & Morgan, M. (1990
Page 109 and 110: Bibliography Ackroyd, P. (2001). In
Page 111: Miller, P. V. (1994). Made-to-order
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