Emotion in the Detective & Notions of Character Fluidity
Today's class offered some interesting insights on Sherlock Holmes and its cultural context. Sidney Paget's illustrations reveal an aspect of the stories that is concealed or even otherwise absent in the text. What interested me specifically was the empathy and humanity displayed in the illustrations of Holmes for "The Adventure of the Speckled Band."
First Production of Salome censored, 1892
Oscar Wilde's French tragedy in one act, Salome, was consored by the London Examiner of Plays in 1892 for its perverse depictions of biblical figures before it had a chance to premiere at the Palace Theatre, London.
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France: Origins of The Decadent Aesthetic Movement
The term “decadence” had been in cultural use throughout Europe since at least the Middle Ages and generally refers to a prolonged state of societal moral decline. Its aesthetic uses, however, emerged in 19th century France. In its aesthetic connotation, decadence described a set of anti-Romantic approaches that denigrated the natural and moral in favour of the unnatural, the grotesque, and the taboo. Though often used a critique against artists, decadence was first used in a positive light by Gaultier in describing Baudelaire’s book of poems Les Fleurs du mal in 1868.
Blog Post #6 || Oct 22nd || Module 6
The discussion seminars really helped in understanding the context in which Sherlock Holmes has been written and its implications in modern society. It’s interesting but also disappointing to see that the racial ideologies really impact an illustrator (and author’s) writing, but it makes sense. The fact that England had the whole desire of wanting exotic Eastern cultures but to keep them (and constantly remind them) of their “savagery” and “inferiority” to England really is something to research into.
Blog #6 || Oct. 22
Something that occurred to me as we discussed Doyle’s Adventures of Sherlock Holmes is that these detective stories are functionally conservative texts. That is, the texts are concerned with maintaining a white, middle-class hegemony in Victorian England amidst a time of rapid cultural upheaval as they approach the turn of the century.
Week Six Blog Post
I enjoyed listening to the different perspectives of my peers during today's presentations. I often do not gravitate to mystery stories, therefore it was interesting to read the story and look at the images associated with it. One interesting thing I noticed was how Sidney Paget often used his images to express ideologies within their society at the time.