Series VI: Medical Sciences – SUPPLEMENT ... - Krongres

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O. MURE�AN et al: Medical and Toxicological Aspects in Arthur Conan Doyle’s Writings 123 his eyes to produce dilated pupils, as are those of a dying person); for poisoning (e.g. curare in “The Sussex Vampire”, strychnine in The Sign of Four); to induce anaesthesia (e.g. ether and chloroform); for addiction (cocaine, morphine, opium). The most medical story in the Canon is considered to be “The Resident Patient”, where both Holmes and Watson demonstrate an understanding of the medical practice. Alcohol is presented not as an addictive drug but as a favorite medicament in the Canon. For instance, in “The Engineer’s Thumb”, Watson uses brandy and water as a painkiller, and in “Blue Carbuncle”, brandy is given to the hotel attendant as a stimulant. Holmes also makes use of his knowledge of chemistry to solve crimes, such as in “The Naval Treaty”. The most fanciful use of poisons in the Canon appears in “The Devil’s Foot.” The hallucinatory and lethal effects of “devil’s-foot root” described in this story seem to have no correspondence in the pharmacopoeia or in the literature of toxicology. [5] ““Radix pedis diaboli” ... has strange properties … it stimulates those brain centres which control the emotion of fear and … either madness or death is the fate of the unhappy native who is subjected to the ordeal by the priest of his tribe.” [1] Billings believes that in this way Conan Doyle might have deliberately attempted to “divert prospective users of poisons by switching the type of one lethal alkaloid for another.” [3] Conan Doyle’s heavily annotated Pharmacopoeia [3] (containing, in the margins, brief summaries of detailed topics, directions for preparing medication and descriptions of effects of drugs on the human body) appears to have contributed to the accurate presentation of drugs mentioned in the Canon and other literary works. This evidence accounts for the professionalism the physician writer employed in approaching the interdisci- plinary attempt to write stories combining his literary talent and imagination with knowledge and good research skills in the field of medicine and other related sciences. To conclude, although Sir Arthur Conan Doyle changed his first profession as a physician to that of full-time writer, he continued to show interest in medicine. Moreover, the influence of his medical training and experience on his work and activities also contributed to the recognition he received as an author even during his lifetime. Although his second profession was the one that brought him fame and fortune, he was always proud of being a physician: “The title I value most is that of ‘Doctor’, which was conferred by your self-sacrifice and determination”, he wrote in a letter to his mother. [2] In the article The Romance of Medicine, he also stated that “a medical training is a most valuable possession for a man, even if he did not afterwards engage in practice” [4], a belief that has been shared by other renowned writers and artists throughout the time. References 1. Baring-Gould WS. The Annotated Sherlock Holmes, 2 vols. Clarkson N. Potter, New York 1967. 2. Bendiner E. Elementary My Dear Doctor Doyle. Hosp Pract 1982, 17:180-212. 3. Billings H. The Materia Medica of Sherlock Holmes. Baker Street Journal 2006, 56(3): 37-46. 4. Doyle AC. The Romance of Medicine. Lancet 1910, 2: 1066-8. 5. Jones KI. The Sherlock Holmes Pharmacopoeia: Being an Examination into the Uses and Effects of Drugs and Poisons in the Sherlock Holmes Stories. Oakmagic Books, Weston-super-Mare, England, 2002.
124 Bulletin of the Transilvania University of Bra�ov • Vol. 2 (51) - 2009 • Series VI 6. Lycett A. The Man Who Created Sherlock Holmes: The Life and Times of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Free Press, New York, 2007. 7. Markel H. The Medical Detectives. N Engl J Med 2005, 353(23): 2426-8. 8. Owen AH. Doctor Behind the Supersleuth. Br Med J, Oct 1977: 33- 57. 9. P.H. William Osler et Arthur Conan Doyle contre les antivivisectionnistes: quelques leçons de l’histoire pour un débat actuel. Med et Hyg 1985, 43: 1996-7. 10. Rodin AE. The Nature and Significance of Drugs and Poisons in the Sherlock Holmes Canon. Calabash 1982, 1:42-49. 11. Rodin AE, Key JD. Medical Casebook of Doctor Arthur Conan Doyle: From Practitioner to Sherlock Holmes and Beyond. Robert E. Krieger Publishing Company, Inc. Malabar, Florida, 1984.
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Series VI: Medical Sciences – SUPPLEMENT ... - Krongres

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