O. Henry

The Detective Detector

12300120168 潘李媛

Content

1

• Brief Introduction2

3

• My Reading Experience

• Comparison 4

• Conclusion & Comments

About O. HenryBiograph

y• Pen name: O. Henry• William Sydney Porter • September 11, 1862 – June 5,

1910• American writerStyle• Short Stories• Simplicity of language and

characters• Wit• Twist endings

Porter in his 30s

“The Detective Detector”• Waifs and Strays• Came out posthumously

in1917

My Reading Experience

？

Shamrock Jolnes?

Sherlock Holmes

“The Detective Detector”

Comparison

Sherlock Holmes

“The Detective Detector”

• Shamrock Jolnes• I• Avery Knight

• Sherlock Holmes• John Watson• James Moriarty

Characters

Sherlock Holmes vs. Shamrock Jolnes

• Sherlock Holmes “… gazing with great reverence at the famous detective.”

—— The Hound of the Baskervilles• Shamrock Jolnes “… Shamrock Jolnes, the famous detective.”

(famous detective)

*Shamrock Jolnes: a fool

John Watson vs. I

• John Watson“‘My dear doctor,’ said he kindly…”

—— The Sign of Four • I“‘My dear doctor,’ said Knight…”

(Companion and listener of the main

character)

James Moriarty vs. Avery Knight

• James Moriarty“… the Napoleon of Crime…”“The man pervades London, and no one has heard of him.”

— Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes• Avery Knight“the great New York burglar, highwayman, and murderer”“… have killed and robbed with superb openness and absolute impunity”

(Criminal, genius, archenemy of the detective)

*Avery Knight: main character

Sherlock Holmes

“The Detective Detector”

• I (“Doctor”)• I (John Watson)

Point of View

Sherlock Holmes

“The Detective Detector”

Plot1 2 3

45

Investigation Setback

Success Reflection

Crime

Sherlock Holmes

“The Detective Detector”

Primary Detection Method

• Deduction • Induction• The Saltatorial

Theory

• Deduction （ reasoning from the general to the particular 演绎法）

‘Here is a gentleman of a medical type, but with the air of a military man. Clearly an army doctor, then. He has just come from the tropics, for his face is dark, and that is not the natural tint of his skin, for his wrists are fair. He has undergone hardship and sickness, as his haggard face says clearly. His left arm has been injured. He holds it in a stiff and unnatural manner. Where in the tropics could an English army doctor have seen much hardship and got his arm wounded? Clearly in Afghanistan.’

A Study in Scarlet, Chapter 2 The Science of Deduction

Deduction vs. Induction & The Saltatorial Theory

Deduction vs. Induction & The Saltatorial Theory

• “… I do not fear to match my cunning and powers of induction against his."

Induction （ reasoning from detailed facts to general principles 归纳法）• The Saltatorial Theory “My process is more modern. I call it the saltatorial theory. Without bothering with the tedious mental phenomena necessary to the solution of a mystery from slight clues, I jump at once to a conclusion. ”

*Both are the antithesis of Holmesian deduction.

Conclusion & Comments• ParodyImitation & Reversal of key elements• Sarcastic• Compared with typical O. Henry stories with twist

endings?

*The other two humorous parodies of Sherlock Holmes

by O. Henry:“The Sleuths”, “The Adventures of Shamrock Jolnes”

(Sixes and Sevens, 1911)

Thank You For Your Listening.

Thank you!

潘李媛