A Scandal In Bohemia Analysis

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“A Scandal in Bohemia” the first of many Sherlock Holmes short stories. It was written by

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and was first published in 1891. Its a story that involves the beautiful

Ms. Irene Adler, an extremely cunning and smart woman as Sherlock Holmes adversary and The

King of Bohemia a foolish ex-lover of Ms. Irene Adler as Sherlock Holmes client. Dr. Watson said

it better when he described how Sherlock Holmes sees and feels about Ms. Irene Adler:

“To Sherlock Holmes she is always THE woman. I have seldom heard him mention her under any

other name. In his eyes she eclipses and predominates the whole of her sex”(Doyle 1). Sir Arthur

Conan Doyle probably wanted to showcase a women as a strong adversary for Sherlock Holmes …show more content…

The letter the King of Bohemia sent is not the only letter used in “A Scandal in Bohemia”.

There is the former love letters that the King of Bohemia and Ms. Irene Adler sent to each other in

which Sherlock Holmes was hired to retrieve and the letter Ms. Irene Adler leaves in her wall safe

for both Sherlock Holmes and the King of Bohemia to inform Sherlock Holmes and the King of

Bohemia that Ms. Irene Adler has fled the country with her new husband:

In a letter to Holmes and the king, she reveals that she has fled the country with her new husband, keeping the photograph purely for her protection. The king accepts this as an honorable ending, and Holmes sportingly accepts his defeat at the hands of “the woman.” (qtd, in Ake 203)

with Ms. Irene Adler 's letter revealing she had outwitted the great detective Sherlock Holmes.
Ms. Irene Adler disappears from the life of Sherlock Holmes forever never to be seen or heard from again. Upon learning of his defeat at the hands of a woman. Sherlock Holmes shocked that

his great detective skills has been outwitted by a women. Began referring to Ms. Irene Adler …show more content…

Ms. Irene Adler is never seen in a Sherlock Holmes story again.

The Sherlock Holmes short story “A Scandal in Bohemia” strays from the traditional

format of a Sherlock Holmes story. it showcases a women as a powerful opponent for

Sherlock Holmes in the form of Ms. Irene Adler:

Women are powerless entities in all stories, except in

"A Scandal in Bohemia," where Adler 's active male role

gives rise to her empowerment; as Adler takes center stage

"she eclipses and predominates the whole of her sex."(qtd, in Krumm)

The role of women are never portrayed in a Sherlock Holmes story the way the beautiful and

intelligent Ms. Irene Adler is portrayed in “A Scandal in Bohemia”. The wise and cunning

Ms. Irene Adler gets word that the King of Bohemia will plan to request the aid of the greatest

detective in the world Sherlock Holmes to regain the photograph and letters in Ms. Irene Adler 's

possession.

When women are placed in a story they are normally under the domination or control of

the men. “When Conan Doyle does place a female subject actively and vocally in the forefront of a

narrative, the woman is nevertheless subjugated to male characters by her potentially harmful

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