AQA GCSE English Literature 19th Century Novel The Sign of Four
Historical and Social Context
Arthur Conan Doyle (1859-1930)
- born in Edinburgh, brought up mainly by his mother, Mary, Mary Morstan being ideal
- his father, Charles suffered from depression and alcoholism
- this influenced Watson’s understandable sensitivity about his brother’s alcoholism
- he led a street gang as a child, links to the Baker Street irregulars, loved adventure stories
- he was brought up to believe in the superiority of Englishmen & English Code of Honour
- he was born a catholic but rejected his faith
- he studied science at university but became bored of it, links to Holmes’ character
- he met Dr Joseph Bell who taught students the value of careful observation
- Bell also loved guessing someone’s occupation through logical deduction
- he was seen by his students as cold and unemotional, builds the character of Holmes
- Conan Doyle was trained as a doctor, then became a medicine doctor
- he also worked as a surgeon and medical officer, this links to Watson’s job as a war doctor
- he loved travelling and then became a ship for a while
- he travelled between Liverpool and West Africa, so he has witnessed slavery
- later on he settled in Portsmouth and divided his time between writing and medicine
- he was also married with 5 kids, this links to Watson’s ideal Victorian gentlemen beliefs
- the Sign of Four was written in 1890 and is the second book in the Holmes series
- he experienced great success with the characters but never took pride in them
- he became bored with his fictional detective and killed him off in 1893
- public outcry later made him resurrect him
- he ran twice for parliament but failed, links to Holmes’ refusal to work for the government
- at last he died of a heart attack in July
British Imperialism
- Britain has expanded its empire established new colonies
- they ruled the colonies and imposed authority on them
- Britain’s right to rule in India or Africa is justified in terms of their beliefs
- such that the natives were in desperate need of civilisation and conversion to Christianity
- the people’s culture and beliefs were devalued and rebellions were brutally supressed
- foreigners were seen as less evolved and alien, they believed they were superior
- foreigners are often associated with criminal behaviour, seen as violent, amoral, animalistic
(Tonga from the Andaman Islands is shown to be murderous, wild and barbaric)
- the Victorians also feared that the foreigners would defile and corrupt British culture
- however they were also fascinated by Indian culture, an attraction to the exotic
(Thadeus Sholto’s home and khitmutgar as well as Mary’s small turban)
The Victorian Society
- the story was published in 1890 which was after the industrial revolution
- people were fascinated by industry, science, technology and logic, developing machinery
- a change of view from religious to scientific
- this resulted in London filled with air pollution and smog although it was expanded
- this links to Watson getting lost going to T.Sholto’s house and the “damp fog”, “steamy air”
- the police division was majorly criticised as the crime rates in London were very high
, - the police force were laughed at and underlined their excessiveness humorously
- this links to how Holmes and Watson can solve crimes better than the police
- even with the newfound technology of using forensic science, they still can’t solve crimes
- this links to Holmes and Watson’s knowledge on effects of poison and analysing footprints
- there were also major class divisions in Victorian Britain, upper & middle lived comfortably
- the working class struggled to survive and looked down upon, often associated with crime
- the classes won’t mix as well, links to Watson won’t be able to marry Mary if she’s rich
Attitudes to Men and Women
- Victorin attitudes to woman are very restrictive, they are to be devoted to their families
- despite the Queen on the throne, women are not allowed to vote or own property only men
- they were expected to remain home, look after their children and obey their husbands
- the ideal Victorian woman was known as “The Angel in the House”, they were gentle, passive
“after the angelic fashion of women … someone weaker than herself to support”
- their rights were also very curtailed, if married they would lose property and money to men
- a wife is a men’s property, physically and materialistically, wives must remain pure & chaste
(Mary would lose her fortune and the treasure to Watson if she were to have gotten it)
- they would be severely censured for any infidelity unlike men who can have affairs
- men were expected to provide for their families, women should depend on them financially
- men had to prove that they could support their families before marriage
- men were also expected to be involved in politics and have an opinion about it
- some men were fortune hunters who try to improve their financial status by marrying rich
(Watson afraid he would be seen as a fortune seeker asking for Mary’s hand in marriage)
Key Themes in The Sign of Four
Inequality
- this is shown through four major aspects throughout the story
- the first aspect is the treatment of Tonga, the dehumanising portrayal of the character
Constant lexis and repetition of “savage”
“by my exhibiting poor Tonga at fairs and other such places as the black cannibal”
- the second is wealth disparities, the treasure highlights the corrupting influence of avarice
"It is a treasure that has cost me dear, and may cost more before it is over."
- the third is gender inequality, how Mary Morstan has social constraints as a woman
“There is a young lady, too. She cannot wait on the public road at this hour”
- the last is social inequality, the story shows the opulent and squalid depictions of London
“Dirty looking rascals, but I suppose … little immortal spark concealed about him”
- colonisation also highlights the inequality between the coloniser and the colonised
Victorian fear
- fear is a major feature in the whole novel as Victorians live their life in fear
- the fear of the otherness and foreignness, presented through Tonga
- Tonga is depicted as savage and inherently evil, demonic and murderous, unhuman
“naturally hideous, large, misshapen heads, small fierce eyes, and distorted features”
“braining the survivors … stone-headed clubs or shooting them … poisoned arrows”
