The Adventure Of The Speckled Band Analysis

The Adventure of the Speckled Band by Conan Doyle

In the story “The Adventure of the Speckled Band” the author Conan Doyle portrays many different narrative techniques. He uses these techniques to provide meaning for the audience as well as help them visualize the situation that was being described. The different techniques used are narrative discourse, suspense, conflict, close, and focalization in his story. Narrative discourses are events, to describe a series of events that are contingent one on another. Typically focuses on one or more performers of actions. Personal experience can influence narrative discourse due to the explaining of significant events in the life of the narrator. Narrative discourse is made up of setting, developing

The suspense is created by the different characters and many mysterious setting. In this story suspense is presented in a way to keep the reader engaged in the story. The main suspense begins with Helen Stoner telling her story to Sherlock Holmes. Helen told Holmes about the mysterious and strange events that occurred. The events such as, whistling in the middle of the night, as well as her sister’s mysterious death. Doyle describing the dark bedroom that Watson spend the night in, made the reader feel the suspense as if they were in the same room. He uses descriptions such as “...This is very interesting. You can see now that it is fastened to a hook just above where the little opening for the ventilator is” as well as “Holmes as we sat together in the gathering darkness” (Conan Doyle) made the reader more engaged into the story. Foreshadowing is also created in the story to give clues that suggest events that will occur later in the story. Foreshadowing is seemed to be seen when the pole rope was connected to a ventilator and the ventilator went to the next room. The poisonous snake was the weapon used to kill the daughter, by traveling through the

Conflict creates “rising action” leading the character towards the climax of the story. In the story it seemed that there was external conflict between Dr. Roylott, the stepfather and the two daughters. It appeared to be conflict of interest due to the inheritance of the money. He killed the first daughter and tried to kill the second daughter in order for him to receive all the money. The different conflict that was explored was man versus man, Sherlock Holmes versus Dr. Roylott. Dr. Roylott appears at Sherlocks Holmes’s home, frustrated because his stepdaughter went to Holmes for help; the quote used “I will do nothing of the kind. My stepdaughter has been here. I have traced her. What has she been saying to you?.” Roylott threatened Holmes to not interfere, but he does either way. Holmes going to Roylotts house made the story more interesting for the readers with regards the different finds that he saw. An internal conflict seems to arise with Helen and her stepfather. She loves her stepfather but is afraid that he might have something to do with her sister’s death. This causes Holmes to investigate the