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Definition of Motif
A motif is an element or idea that recurs throughout a work of literature. Motifs, which are often collections of related symbols, help develop the central themes of a book... read full definition
A motif is an element or idea that recurs throughout a work of literature. Motifs, which are often collections of related symbols, help develop the... read full definition
A motif is an element or idea that recurs throughout a work of literature. Motifs, which are often collections of... read full definition
Part 1, Chapter 4: What John Rance Had to Tell
Explanation and Analysis—The Scarlet Thread:
Throughout the novel, the recurrence of scarlet thread forms a motif representing Sherlock Holmes’s fascination with solving Enoch Drebber’s murder. The motif is introduced in Part 1, Chapter 4, when Holmes and Watson are discussing the case together:
I shall have him, Doctor—I’ll lay you two to one that I have him. I must thank you for it all. I might not have gone but for you, and missed the finest study I ever came across: a study in scarlet, eh? Why shouldn’t we use a little art jargon. There’s the scarlet thread of murder running through the colorless skein of life, and our duty is to unravel it, and isolate it, and expose every inch of it.
Related Themes:
Part 1, Chapter 7: Light in the Darkness
Explanation and Analysis—The Scarlet Thread:
Throughout the novel, the recurrence of scarlet thread forms a motif representing Sherlock Holmes’s fascination with solving Enoch Drebber’s murder. The motif is introduced in Part 1, Chapter 4, when Holmes and Watson are discussing the case together:
Unlock with LitCharts A+I shall have him, Doctor—I’ll lay you two to one that I have him. I must thank you for it all. I might not have gone but for you, and missed the finest study I ever came across: a study in scarlet, eh? Why shouldn’t we use a little art jargon. There’s the scarlet thread of murder running through the colorless skein of life, and our duty is to unravel it, and isolate it, and expose every inch of it.
Related Themes:
