The Sign of Four
ISBN: 9780140439076(ISBN-10: 0140439072)
12 segments(12 chapters)
Characters (7)
| Name | Aliases | Role |
|---|---|---|
 Dr John H. Watson Army surgeon invalided home from Afghanistan who becomes Sherlock Holmes's companion, lodger, and chronicler. Steady, decent, and possessed of considerable courage, he serves as both the practical counterweight to Holmes's eccentricity and the reader's point of entry into a world that would otherwise be entirely alien. Narrator of the overwhelming majority of the canonical stories. | John Watson, Dr Watson, John H. Watson | Protagonist |
 Sherlock Holmes The world's only consulting detective, operating from 221B Baker Street, London. Possessed of extraordinary powers of observation and deductive reasoning, he applies a rigorous scientific method to criminal investigation while remaining largely indifferent to conventional social expectations. Capable of brilliant warmth and profound coldness in equal measure, his partnership with Dr Watson is the central relationship of the canon. | Mr Sherlock Holmes, Sigerson, Captain Basil | Protagonist |
Jonathan Small A one-legged former soldier whose history in India and subsequent years of imprisonment connect him to the mystery at the heart of The Sign of Four. His full story, told in the novel's final chapter, reframes much of what has preceded it. Appears in The Sign of Four only. | Antagonist | |
Tonga An Andaman Islander who became the devoted companion of Jonathan Small, accompanying him to England. His presence aboard the Aurora during the Thames chase is one of the more startling moments in the novel. Appears in The Sign of Four only. | Antagonist | |
 Inspector Lestrade Scotland Yard's most prominent inspector in the canon and Holmes's most frequent professional contact within the official police. Tenacious and not without competence, but habitually out of his depth on the cases that matter most, he represents the institutional approach to detection that Holmes consistently outpaces. His relationship with Holmes evolves from grudging tolerance to genuine respect across the canon. | G. Lestrade, Inspector G. Lestrade | Supporting |
 Mary Morstan Introduced in The Sign of Four as a client of Holmes and Watson. Quietly courageous and clear-headed in difficult circumstances, she is described as small, fair, and refined. | Miss Morstan | Supporting |
 Mrs Hudson Landlady of 221B Baker Street and the domestic anchor of Holmes's unconventional household. Tolerates her tenant's erratic hours, dangerous visitors, and destructive experiments with remarkable equanimity. More resilient and resourceful than her role suggests, she is a constant presence across the canon without ever being its focus. | Supporting |
History
| Date | Event | Details |
|---|---|---|
February 1890 | Publication | Reception was warmer than A Study in Scarlet, benefiting from the more prestigious Lippincott's Monthly Magazine platform and from Doyle's growing confidence with the character. Contemporary reviewers noted the pace and invention of the Thames chase sequence. The novel is now generally considered the weakest of the four in critical terms, its plotting less elegant than Hound and its thematic ambitions less developed than the later work, though Watson's characterisation and the central relationship are widely praised. |
PublicationFebruary 1890
Reception was warmer than A Study in Scarlet, benefiting from the more prestigious Lippincott's Monthly Magazine platform and from Doyle's growing confidence with the character. Contemporary reviewers noted the pace and invention of the Thames chase sequence. The novel is now generally considered the weakest of the four in critical terms, its plotting less elegant than Hound and its thematic ambitions less developed than the later work, though Watson's characterisation and the central relationship are widely praised.