Setting

In what follows, we will discuss the setting of “The Red-Headed League” by Arthur Conan Doyle.

Time setting

The time setting of the short story has been the subject of critics’ analysis for quite some time, as the story is filled with inconsistencies.

First, the story is clear that Wilson and Holmes meet “one day in the autumn”.

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Physical setting

The physical setting of the story introduces readers to many places in London, which are either real or fictional. Baker Street is the place where Holmes has his office; this location is real. Fleet Street is also a real place; there, Wilson goes to apply for the position in the Red-Headed League: “Fleet Street was choked with red-headed folk, and Pope’s Court looked like a coster’s orange barrow.”

Coburg Square is, however, a fictional place name where Jabez Wilson has his shop: “I have a small pawnbroker’s business at Coburg Square, near the...

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Social setting

The social setting of the story presents two important aspects. First, London is depicted as a place in which all kinds of businesses develop, as the above extract indicates: there are newspaper shops, tobacco shops, banks, restaurants and carriage depots. This shows that London in 1890 develops and has room for people of all social classes, from detectives like Holmes, lawyers like Watson,...

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