The Hound of the Baskervilles

The Hound of the Baskervilles

Josh Branham

9th Grade

1. Author

Arthur Conan Doyle was born on May 22, 1859, in Edinburgh, Scotland. In 1876 Doyle attended the University of Edinburgh Medical School. This is where he met Joseph Bell. Joseph's dramatic lifestyle caused Arthur to obtain the nickname Sherlock Holmes. After an unsuccessful medical practice, Conan had much time to write. After several of his writings were published, in 1891, Conan Doyle agreed to supply the new magazine called the Strand with a series of Sherlock Holmes short stories. When the writings of Holmes's short stories for the magazine company were over, an American publisher offered Holmes a lot of money. He took the offer. This led him to write The Hound of the Baskervilles.

2. Setting

The late setting of The Hound of the Baskervilles is what makes the book interesting. The opening scene takes place with Sherlock Holmes in the relaxed surroundings of his home on Baker Street in London. But quickly the setting changes to the dreary "Grippen Mire." This is a vast moor or marshy area of England. This deserted wasteland shows a surprising difference to Sherlock's London world.

3. Characters

A. Protagonist

The protagonist of The Hound of the Baskervilles is Dr. James Watson. Watson is Holmes's roommate, best friend, and the recorder of his adventures. He is Holmes's right hand man. Dr. Watson is the one who tells the story. He is the one who is sent to discover all the clues of the mystery of the death of Sir Charles Baskerville and write back to Holmes.

B. Antagonist

The antagonist of this story is the hound of the Baskervilles. This is not an ordinary hound that most people think of. This is more like a monster. The hound is said to have glowing eyes and fire coming from its mouth. The howl that it makes in the moor is enough to haunt anybody forever.

C. Characters

Sir Henry Baskerville is an interesting character in that he was born into an upper-class family but spent much of his life in the Americas. Sir Henry moves into the house that is past down to him. This is the house upon the moor. Sir Henry is a nice gentleman that helps Dr. Watson out with many things.

Dr. James Mortimer is the man who reveals the mystery at Baskerville to Holmes and Watson. Mortimer is not only Sir Charles's physician but also his friend. He is deeply concerned about the safety of Sir Henry.

Stapleton is an intelligent, cruel, and brutal man. He has been abusive toward his wife, Beryl, whom he uses as a toy for his crime schemes. He lives close to Sir Henry. He plans his murders so skillfully that it seems that Sir Charles's death was accidental.

Miss Stapleton is a beautiful young lady from Costa Rica who is known at the beginning of the story to be Stapleton's sister. After investigations, it is a fact that she is married to Stapleton. She is misused and cannot wait to get away from him.

Selden is an escaped convict who lives in the moor. He is the brother of Mrs. Barrymore who is secretly feeding him. He is murdered by the hound because he is thought to be Sir Henry Baskerville.

Mr. Barrymore is the elder butler of the Baskervilles family. He is married to Mrs. Barrymore. Mr. Barrymore helps solve some of the mystery by giving advice to Dr. Watson.

Mrs. Barrymore is the husband to Mr. Barrymore. They live in the house with Sir Henry and take care of him. She is the sister of the escaped convict, Selden.

Frankland is another neighbor of the Baskervilles. Frankland is an odd man who spends his time filing lawsuits for the joy of combat. Frankland has a daughter, Laura Lyon, whom he mistreated in her youth.

Laura Lyons is separated from her father, Frankland, because she married an artist. Because of her finance problems, Miss Lyons is desperate to get money from Sir Charles Baskerville and Stapleton, whom she also wants to marry.

Cartwright is a young boy who is employed by Holmes. Holmes uses him to investigate hotels, post telegrams, and bring him food while he is living on the moor.

4. Themes

One theme in the book is the determination and work shown by many people, especially Dr. Watson, to try to solve the mystery of Sir Charles's death.

The second theme in this book is the wickedness shown by Stapleton. He appears to be an innocent man until the investigations led by Dr. Watson showed his true side.

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