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Definition of Imagery
Imagery, in any sort of writing, refers to descriptive language that engages the human senses. For instance, the following lines from Robert Frost's poem "After Apple-Picking" contain imagery that engages... read full definition
Imagery, in any sort of writing, refers to descriptive language that engages the human senses. For instance, the following lines from Robert Frost's poem "After... read full definition
Imagery, in any sort of writing, refers to descriptive language that engages the human senses. For instance, the following lines... read full definition
Part 1, Chapter 1: Mr Sherlock Holmes
Explanation and Analysis—A Lofty Chamber:
In Part 1, Chapter 1, Doyle uses visual imagery to describe the place where Dr. John Watson first encounters Sherlock Holmes: a chemical laboratory in a hospital he has visited many times before, where he finds Holmes busily experimenting with a chemical test he has invented for the police to identify blood at crime scenes. The imagery used to describe their first encounter foreshadows the profound effect that his friendship with Holmes will come to have on his life:
As [Stamford] spoke, we [entered] a wing of the great hospital. It was familiar ground to me, and I needed no guiding as we ascended the bleak stone staircase and made out way down the long corridor with its vista of whitewashed walls and dun-coloured doors. Near the further end a low arched passage branched away from it and led to the chemical laboratory.
This was a lofty chamber, lined and littered with countless bottles. Broad, low tables were scattered about, which bristled with retorts, test-tubes, and little Bunsen lamps, with their blue flickering flames.
Part 1, Chapter 2: The Science of Deduction
Explanation and Analysis—Sherlock's Appearance:
In Part 1, Chapter 2, when first describing what Sherlock Holmes looks like, Doyle uses visual imagery to emphasize Holmes’s striking and intelligent appearance:
Unlock with LitCharts A+His very person and appearance were such as to strike the attention of the most casual observer. In height he was rather over six feet, and so excessively lean he seemed to be considerably taller. His eyes were sharp and piercing [...] and his thin, hawk-like nose gave his whole expression an air of alertness and decision. His chin, too, had a prominence and squareness which mark the man of determination. His hands were invariably blotted with ink and stained with chemicals, yet he was possessed of extraordinary delicacy of touch[.]
Related Themes:
Part 1, Chapter 3: The Lauriston Garden Mystery
Explanation and Analysis—Sherlock's Appearance:
In Part 1, Chapter 2, when first describing what Sherlock Holmes looks like, Doyle uses visual imagery to emphasize Holmes’s striking and intelligent appearance:
Unlock with LitCharts A+His very person and appearance were such as to strike the attention of the most casual observer. In height he was rather over six feet, and so excessively lean he seemed to be considerably taller. His eyes were sharp and piercing [...] and his thin, hawk-like nose gave his whole expression an air of alertness and decision. His chin, too, had a prominence and squareness which mark the man of determination. His hands were invariably blotted with ink and stained with chemicals, yet he was possessed of extraordinary delicacy of touch[.]
Related Themes:
