It is a characteristic of the detective genre that the protagonist is an outcast, not removed from the mainstream merely by way of superior intellect but also through his very position as a private investigator, a man who solves crime but remains separate of the established law enforcement system. In fact, his attitude towards the official police force is often condescending, emphasizing the distinction between the two. It is questionable, then, what precisely motivates such sleuths as Sherlock Holmes and C. Auguste Dupin who are not propelled by a strict judicial duty. Texts featuring these two notorious characters – in particular, “The Purloined Letter” by Edgar Allen Poe and The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle – suggests that their actions are not merely whimsical as they might first appear. The choices Dupin and Holmes make, as well as their distinct detachment from the established law force, are reflective of the era in which they were conceived – that is, the mid- to late-19th century – and the literary trends by which their stories were influenced. Furthermore, their separation from the police force is useful both as a plot and a thematic device, as it relates to a contemporary understanding of the criminal and the means by which to apprehend him.
To begin, most basically, the detective is an outcast because the criminal is an outcast. For instance, consider “the woman” (Doyle), Irene Adler, who appears in “A Scandal in Bohemia.” She is exceptional, but not only because she is one of only four criminals who outwits Holmes. She is financially successful and independent, having enjoyed a lucrative career as an operatic performer; she is described, further, as an “adventuress” (Doyle), indicating her ambition and desire for autonomy; she has no children and isn’t rooted to a domestic life – in short, in many ways, she doesn’t adhere to the conventions of her sex as perceived during the Victorian era. Thus the criminal is depicted as an outcast. He or she is differentiated from the mainstream because they work outside of the law; however they also seem to fall outside of social law, displaying nonconventional behaviours and thoughts.
The detective genre suggests that established law enforcement systems cannot apprehend such criminals precisely because they are established. Because police forces are institutionalized, they are limited by the standards they set for themselves. For instance, in “The Purloined Letter,” Monsieur G— is unable to find the stolen letter despite applying every method and instrument available to him through his position as Prefect of the Parisian Police. Dupin clearly states the reason for this failure: “A certain set of highly ingenious resources are...a sort of Procrustean bed, to which [the Prefect] forcibly adapts his designs” (Poe). Thus, police forces, as standardized systems within a conventional society are simply incapable of understanding the criminal mastermind which is so far removed from the norm.
The detective, on the other hand, is a double of the criminal – markedly similar. Irene Adler and Holmes, for example, both make use of disguises in “A Scandal in Bohemia.” In “The Purloined Letter,” the relationship between Dupin and the Minister D— as doubles is demonstrated in the fact that both Dupin and the Minister use the same method to steal the letter – that is, switching it for an identical one. In each of these cases, furthermore, the detective and the criminal share a similar process of thinking whereby he or she invokes “an identification...with [the intellect] of his [or her] opponent” (Poe) which allows the “reasoner” (Poe) to anticipate, and plan against, the opponent’s actions.
The fact that the detective works outside of the law is important, then, as it enhances the relationship between him and the criminal as doubles and thereby further develops the theme that it takes similar individuals to comprehend one another. “The Purloined Letter” especially suggests that established police forces can not apprehend criminals because police forces are conventional, their mode of thought and method of action standard; detectives, as distinct from such law enforcement systems, are able to comprehend criminals because they themselves are similar to criminals, most particularly in their non-conformity to standards.
Evidently, then, Conan Doyle and Poe seem to express dissatisfaction with systems of policing. Poe writes Dupin as quite explicit with his acknowledgement of the shortcomings of the Parisian Police; he says they are capable only “in their way...so far as [their labours] extend” (Poe). On the other hand, Holmes is not quite as explicit, but throughout The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes he is time and again consulted by, or otherwise aiding, various police – in “The Red-Headed League,” “The Boscombe Valley Mystery,” and “The Beryl Coronet,” to name a few – indicating a fairly consistent incompetency within law enforcement systems. This apparent lack of faith in the established forces of good perhaps reflects a sense of uneasiness which was rising alongside crime rates during a time of urbanization. It is noteworthy that many of the crimes committed in The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes are related to money, greed, blackmailing, robbery, financial inheritances, and so forth; these were the concerns of a growing middle class of men and women who were increasingly aware and protective of their possessions. The centralization of these crimes within The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, coupled with the apparent incompetency of the police in detective stories by Conan Doyle and Poe, are indicative of the general feeling of fear and insecurity at the time of urbanization.
In addition to the effects of urbanization, however, Poe, who was writing his Dupin-stories during a time of Romanticism and transcendentalism, were likely influenced by these trends as well in his depiction of the police as incompetent. Among the central tenets of transcendentalism are included an exaltation of the individual and an aversion to structures or institutions of authority or convention (Hewson, “Emerson”). Dupin is essentially a champion of transcendentalism in his non-conformity. As the narrator says, Dupin’s opinions “[contradict]...the voice of the world” (Poe). Thus Dupin’s superiority, especially in relation to the Prefect, can be attributed to the influence of transcendentalism which belittled the effectiveness of authority and praised the power of the individual, unique mind.
Transcendentalism and romanticism can also help explain Dupin’s motivation. At the end of “The Purloined Letter” it is revealed that Dupin is responding, in solving the crime and planning to humiliate the Minister D—, to an “evil turn” (Poe) done him by the criminal a while ago – that is to say, his motivation is, plainly, revenge. While it seems odd that justice should be upheld by a man seeking revenge, it attests to Poe’s understanding of human nature. In general, transcendentalists, who put an emphasis on nature, perceived human nature positively (Hewson, “Hawthorne”). Other writers – such as Nathaniel Hawthorne, who lived and wrote around the time of Poe – though sharing the transcendentalist interest in human nature, were not optimistic (Hewson, “Hawthorne”). Poe fits into this latter category. Many of his most famous works – among them “The Tell-Tale Heart” and “The Raven,”– focus on points of murder, insanity, repression, guilt – the darker aspects of human nature. “The Purloined Letter” is not entirely different. The plot is driven by crime, and although “The Purloined Letter” itself is perhaps not as dark as Poe’s other works, still it suggests a pessimistic view of human nature in the fact that its hero, Dupin, is motivated by selfish interests.
That being said, not all classic detective stories promote a pessimistic view of human nature. Sherlock Holmes is fundamentally different from Dupin in regards to the motivation of his actions. Through and through, he exhibits a sense of morality. There are instances when he breaks the law or deliberately withholds information. For example, at the end of “The Valley Boscombe Mystery,” Holmes decides not to go to the police directly with the identity of the murderer because Mr. Turner “will soon have to answer for [his] deed at a higher court than the Assizes” (Doyle). At the end of “The Speckled Band,” for another instance, Holmes states that his indirect murder of Dr. Roylott (a deliberate murderer himself) will not “weigh very heavily upon [his] conscience” (Doyle). Thus, there is a consistent impression that Sherlock Holmes is guided by ethical principles. Furthermore, he often uses religious language. For example, at the end of “The Adventure of the Beryl Coronet,” when Holmes lets a thief walk free out of his office, he states, “I suppose that I am commuting a felony, but it is just possible that I am saving a soul” (Doyle). Moreover, his detective work often puts him in the position of a priest – or even God – in that he hears confession and passes judgment – and his judgment is always morally sound. Sherlock Holmes is, in a sense then, the unification of moral conscience and scientific or intellectual reasoning.
To conclude, the fact that detectives in early mysteries are characteristically separate from society, and more particularly, from the established police force, is related to a number of things. On the one hand, it serves a literary purpose; as a double of the criminal, the detective can do what the police can not – namely, apprehend the criminal. The notion that the police are inadequate in affairs of crime can be linked to growing concerns during urbanization, but its influences can also be found in the movement of transcendentalism and romanticism, which exalted the individual over authority and convention. Finally, as they are not part of the police force, detectives typically are not motivated by a judicial sense of duty; however, precisely what their motivation is varies from selfishness to ethical values.
SOURCES
Conan Doyle, Arthur. The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes. Project Gutenberg. 29 Nov 2001.
Hewson, Marc. “Emerson: ‘Nature,’ ‘Self-Reliance’.” ENG2450A. University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON. 25 May 2011.
Hewson, Marc. “Hawthorne: The Scarlet Letter.” ENG2450A. University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON. 30 May 2011.
Poe, Edgar Allen. "The Purloined Letter." The Works of Edgar Allen Poe, Volume 2. Project Gutenberg. 19 May 2008. Project Gutenberg.
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