2. About the author - Arthur Conan Doyle

Sir Arthur Ignatius Conan Doyle was born on \(22\) May \(1859\) in Edinburgh, Scotland. He was a British writer and physician. He used to write fantasy and science fiction. But he gained popularity with his detective collection, where he introduced one of the best detectives of literary history 'Sherlock Holmes'.

 

 

Doyle initially had a messed-up childhood due to his father's alcoholism and his parents splitting up. He grew up with the aunt of a friend and hence had to stay in Edinburgh for a while in spite of being British. He was later sent to a boarding school in Lancashire, where they practised corporal punishment and strict classes. Doyle did not enjoy schooling as it focussed more on geometry, algebra and other logical areas. He developed his habit of writing not from school, rather from sending letters to his mother. He practised medicine at the University of Edinburgh Medical school from \(1876\) to \(1881\). He started writing short stories while studying. He wrote "The Haunted Grange of Goresthorpe", which was not published initially.

 

Initially, Doyle could not find any publisher for any of his stories. Most of his short stories were centred around science and fantasy but were highly unrecognised. When he was \(27\), he wrote 'A Study in Scarlet' in which he introduced Sherlock Holmes, the most famous detective. Sherlock Holmes also had a doctor friend called Mr. Watson, a close confidant and accomplice to the brainy detective. Sherlock can sense and solve any crime or murder mystery as he is a keen observer. This story was a huge hit, and Doyle continued to write forty-six short stories featuring the same detective. The stories are narrated from Doctor Watson's perspective.

 

Sherlock Holmes was based on Doyle's favourite University professor Joseph Bell. 'The Hound of Baskervilles' is the most famous of the novels featuring Sherlock and Watson. But the more Sherlock gained popularity, and the more Doyle felt aloof. He felt that he was struck with the same concept and that it stopped him from using more creativity and thinking new. He even decided to kill the character off. But he created an equally stronger villain character called Professor Moriarty so that it does not feel weird for the readers when the character is destroyed. He is also known for creating a famous scientist character named Professor Challenger. Doyle was one of the famous writers of his time because of his long-lasting characters.

 

Major writings of Arthur Conan Doyle: