Marriage & scandal : Sherlock Holmes’s treatment of women in the Doyle Canon

Abstract

In both present-day media and criticism, the character of Irene Adler looms over any other female figures within the Doyle canon, continuing into modern adaptations. However, the original stories, particularly the short story case files, contain a cast of female characters serving a wide array of roles as clients, assistants, witnesses, accomplices, and even vigilantes. While diverse in scope, the case files highlight the drama of middle and upper-class marriage, struggles centered around the reality of Victorian-era values on love, marriage, and masculinity; the stories’ critique focuses on the abuse of these values for personal gain by male figures and the need for Sherlock Holmes to remedy the situation.