4.1.3

Victorian Fear

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Fear in The Sign of the Four

Much of the story focuses around a crime which has been committed by an unknown, unseen criminal. This creates a huge amount of fear in the Victorian reader.

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Title

  • The very title of the story, The Sign of the Four, is vague and mysterious until Jonathan Small explains the link at the end of the tale.
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Mary's letters and pearls

  • The letters and pearls Mary received are unexplained and mysterious. Readers cannot know whether the person sending these items is good or bad – we also wonder in Chapter 2 about why this person wants to meet Mary and what the possible consequences of this are.
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Bartholomew Sholto's murder

  • Mystery and fear is increased when Bartholomew Sholto is murdered inside a locked room.
  • It is only through Sherlock’s close examination of the evidence that we begin to understand how it happened, although we are then presented with a poisoned dart and are left with a mystery as to where it came from and to whom it belonged.
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One-legged man

  • Fear is increased again when Sherlock determines that a one-legged man had been on the window ledge outside the room.
  • We are reminded of Thaddeus’ tale of Major Sholto being terrified of a one-legged man and mystery increases as the reader wonders who this man is and what he wants.

Fear of Tonga

Tonga is an interesting character in the story, as he highlights the Victorian fear of unknown cultures.

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Tonga the savage

  • Because he is different and has different mannerisms, he is described as a ‘savage’, as less than human, and is used as the murderer in the story.
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Victorian attitudes

  • Victorian society feared other societies, believing that races and cultures who behaved differently to English people were dangerous and substandard.
  • Essentially, Victorians believed that their way of life was the correct one, and feared anyone who threatened that viewpoint.

The Fear of Characters

Several of the characters live their lives in fear because of the Agra treasure and the Sign of the Four:

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Major Sholto

  • Major Sholto lived his life in fear of the treasure being discovered – he was terrified of a ‘one-legged man’ and very rarely ventured outside.
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Thaddeus Sholto

  • Thaddeus Sholto is constantly nervous-looking and behaves in a very anxious manner.
  • He knows what his father did and is also terrified of any possible consequences.
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Dr Watson

  • Dr Watson fears that his feelings for Mary Morstan may not be reciprocated because she will inherit a great deal of wealth.
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Exception: Sherlock Holmes

  • Interestingly, Sherlock Holmes is the only character in the story who does not appear to be affected by fear.
  • Instead, he allays any worries for many of the characters, using scientific reasoning to uncover the truth and abolish fear.

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