A Study In Red (Strings)

When I started this blog over a decade ago, the purpose was to try and tie the canon, Holmes, Watson, and any other players and events into actual late-Victorian history. And even though I sometimes step away from that goal to report on something else that is happening in my life or in the Sherlockian world, it is still the thing I want to do. The question I face all these years on is how serious I want to be in doing so. Please allow me to explain.

To me history is like the blood flowing through my veins - I need it to survive. It never lets me down in a way that causes me to want to turn my back on it. I don't think I would've enjoyed teaching history to students, but if a course had been developed called Weird and Offbeat History, I might've signed up. Still, standard historical facts and figures have their place. The only time I get discouraged with it is when a new find challenges something that was thought complete. I get discouraged because it means having to re-structure thoughts and beliefs about a subject. It makes me wonder how much we actually know, and whether or not we should actually have history teachers because they are likely wrong about so much without knowing it. Regardless, I'll continue to find history delicious.

I stepped away from the basic Sherlockian meeting because it no longer challenged me. Yes, they are an important part of the hobby, but I tired of toasts and songs and quizzes and such. That may seem cold, but it's true. I simply lost all desire to do those things. They just didn't fulfill me anymore. Now, I know that Sherlockians really enjoy this part of it all, and I'm not going to downplay it, but I know that (for me) it came down to preferring the scholarship side of The Game. I need to learn. I need for my brain to be titillated. It's what attracts me to chronology - something that doesn't get enough airplay at a regular meeting.

So, I oft wonder if it is necessary to go deeper with our beloved Sherlockian chronology. Many timelines play off of themselves with their dates. They can place a case based on a statement by Watson about what happened in a particular year, or if he mentions a situation in one that has to mean only one thing with dating. True, we still find a lot of disparity with dates because some chronologists simply think the canon is wrong and just go their own way. I'm good with that. I love seeing the date of March 4, 1881, attached to A Study In Scarlet, and that's probably because it feels right to have the partnership start as close to the beginning of the decade as possible. But, the more I look at the evidence, the more I have trouble tolerating that date. 1882 makes a heck of a lot more sense, but who wants the kick-off year to be 1882?

What started me thinking about all of this was looking at the bookshelves I have full of books on Victorian history. If it's about that time period, I will grab a title even if I never read it in full. Around that same time I started watching the fantastic James Burke series Connections for the umpteenth time, and my appetite for how things effect each other in the past was re-wetted. I started pondering the proverbial red strings on the wall of Sherlockian chronology, and getting that old familiar feeling about just how serious this side of the hobby needs to be. It will always be fun, but would making it a deeper dive take away that enjoyment? Would we once again be looking at a subject in the our Holmes-filled world that was once unattractive and dry? I don't know. For me, no. But I am not the majority. It has served me well for over twelve years, but do I want to erase the whole chalkboard and start over again? That I will have to look at a little harder.

If nothing else, this aspect of the hobby has always given me plenty to think about. I can turn to it when I need to stir my brain tanks. It offers so much just in the actual recording of all of the timelines I've collected, but then there's the actual case-dating part that keeps the members of our Guild busy wearing out keyboards. I may find other things that steal my attention from time-to-time, but deep down this is something I will always do. And be. And I love the fact that you justify my struggle every month. I silently thank you often, and look forward to doing to so in this font each month. So, I'll do it again. I'll see you all in February, and as always...thanks for reading.