Okay, so what's the deal here?
Mr. Holmes is angry at son Sherlock for spying on him, but why? What is his dad guilty of?
Is this extra-canonical stuff or did Doyle write about parental problems. I don't recall any of it being in the books. But I've not read all of them.
I took this scene to mean that Holmes' dad was carrying on an extra-marital affair, and that Holmes, being the natural detective, found out even though he was only a child. He then, presumably, told his mother out of loyalty to either her, or the Truth generally. I have no idea if this is Conancanon, but doubt it very much. Alternatively (but less likely), it is an attempt to explain why Holmes first became interested in detecting - he noticed his dad behaving secretively when the affair was happening, and taught himself to become an investigator.
The obvious message of this (leading to domestic unhappiness for all concerned) is that Holmes' higher calling / destiny will not make him personally very happy, reinforcing him as a tragic hero, and the depressive character of the Conan Doyle stories. It also foreshadows the fact that Elizabeth, his principal source of happiness, will be lost to him as an indirect result of his obsession with resolving mysteries.
Would Elizabeth had been kidnapped possibly, anyway? Holmes not getting involved would not had stopped the murdering of the girls. Though, it did make her stand out more.
http://www.cgonzales.net & http://www.drxcreatures.com
"To make things even weirder I found this bizarre article from ages ago."
Gimme SOME credit man!
P.S. YSH is on in the UK on Sky Movies on 29th January and 2nd February. Tell your friends!
The back-story is given in the novelisation of the film, where Watson questions Holmes on his obsessiveness and aloofness. He explains how he became suspicious of his father and using his detective skills tracked him down to his mistresses's home. If I remember rightly his father is very angry and his mother doesn't thank him for it either!
shareMaybe he caught his dad in an affair, if I remember correctly. Don't forget, Holmes never had a relationship with women either, but we see that here with Elizabeth.
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