Sherlock Holmes Character Traits

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In Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's novel, The Hound of the Baskervilles, Sherlock Holmes exhibits many character traits; however, the most momentous are his success, his cunning personality, and his courage. Success is one of Holmes’s most important character traits. After the passing of Sir Charles, Dr. Mortimer begins looking for someone to investigate the tragedy. Dr. Mortimer was Sir Charles’s doctor and knows of Sir Charles’s poor health. Although Dr. Mortimer knows this, he believes there is more regarding the story of Sir Charles’s death. Under these circumstances, he hires Holmes to investigate. Dr. Mortimer believes Holmes’s world renowned practical mind can solve the case. This is conveyed in the book when Dr. Mortimer says “But as a practical man of affairs it is acknowledged that …show more content…

This illustrates Holmes’s cunning personality, by displaying how in a short amount of he was able to exploit Laura Lyon’s belief that Mr. Stapleton would marry her and use this to his advantage. His cunning personality allowed him to get key information that would help solve the mystery. Lastly, Holmes’s courage was a paramount trait. The final stage of Holmes’s plan was commencing. Following an evening at the Merripit house, Stapleton’s residence, Sir Henry walks back to Baskerville Hall as instructed by Holmes. While Sir Henry is making the journey back, Stapleton releases the hound on him. The dogs looked terrifying and are known for the damage they can deal. Sir Henry is defenseless but Holmes and his Watson, his partner, kill the beasts. This took a great deal of courage because Holmes and Watson could have easily been hurt. This is portrayed when Watson states “Then Holmes and I both fired together, and the creature gave a hideous howl”(Doyle, 112). Courage was one of Holmes’s most paramount character traits because it enabled him to save Sir Henry from Mr. Stapleton. It also gave Holmes enough evidence to know Stapleton was the murderer and to solve the

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