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The Problem of Thor Bridge
The Complete Sherlock Holmes
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The Complete Sherlock Holmes - The Problem of Thor Bridge
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The Problem of Thor Bridge (The Case-book of Sherlock Holmes)
Discussion Questions
1) How valuable is Mr. Bates to the case?
2) Why does Ms. Dunbar hide the facts of the case?
3) Do you think Mr. Gibson is helping Ms. Dunbar solely because he thinks that she is of good spirit?
4) What role does the chipped stonework play?
5) Do you think Mr. Gibson played a role in his own going mad?
I felt a little uneasy reading yet again about a volatile woman from Latin America. Yet another stereotype? Had Conan Doyle had one or two experiences with a woman (women) of this type?At the end of the story Holmes predicts that the governess and Gibson would get together, yet she had not shown an ounce of personal emotion towards the man except in the way she could get him to spend his money for good purposes. That sounds more like a partnership in business rather than a marriage.
The deduction of the suicide was clever, but the wife’s decision to kill herself in such a way seemed somewhat incredible.
https://gazetteer.sherlock-holmes.org...
I thought very modern of Doyle's to criticize the power dinamics that would be involved in their relationship. Even today, some people don't see it as problematic. But, there's also the stereotype pointed out by Trev.
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I had a little break from the Holmes stories while I went out of town for Easter, but catching up little by little.I feel similarly to the rest of you about the stereotyped hot-blooded latin woman, although I do think it plays pretty predictably in with similar colonial stereotypes throughout the Holmes stories and Victorian literature more generally... more than a shade of the first Mrs Rochester here!
Apart from that, this was a good story, all turning on the appearance of a chip in the stonework. Mr Gibson was, I thought, an interesting character... very entitled but also somewhat self aware. I'm not sure I share Holmes's optimism about his getting together with the governess later. Nor do I think he should. He should give her a payout for her trouble and she should go her own way.
The Problem of Thor Bridge (The Case-book of Sherlock Holmes)
Availability The Case-book of Sherlock Holmes: https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/69700
Background Information
"The Problem of Thor Bridge" is a Sherlock Holmes short story by Arthur Conan Doyle collected in The Case-Book of Sherlock Holmes. It was first published in 1922 in The Strand Magazine (UK) and Hearst's International (US).
Publication History
"The Problem of Thor Bridge" was published in the UK in The Strand Magazine in two parts in February and March 1922, and in the US in Hearst's International in the same months. The story was published with seven illustrations by A. Gilbert in the Strand, and with six illustrations by G. Patrick Nelson in Hearst's International. It was included in the short story collection The Case-Book of Sherlock Holmes, which was published in the UK and the US in June 1927.
A Short Summary
"The Problem of Thor Bridge," a Sherlock Holmes short story, is a classic example of a locked-room mystery where a murder occurs in seemingly impossible circumstances. A wealthy man, Mr. Gibson, hires Holmes to investigate the murder of his wife, Maria, on Thor Bridge, where the governess, Grace Dunbar, is initially accused. Holmes uncovers a web of deceit and manipulation, ultimately revealing that the murder was (view spoiler)[a carefully planned suicide by Mrs. Gibson, who framed her governess. (hide spoiler)] The story is known for its ingenious solution, which relies on a subtle clue and a re-creation of the scene to expose the truth.