tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14489139.post2337049518183839514..comments2008-06-03T11:32:09.983-04:00Scott Montyhttps://profiles.google.com/118216759969087724610noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14489139.post-68468605545243476622008-06-03T11:32:00.000-04:002008-06-03T11:32:00.000-04:00It sounds more to be the boastful pride of youth - it is well documented throughout the stories that Holmes, for all his disdain about sensationalism, enjoys dramatic statements and shocking Watson. It also holds the slight edge of teasing, with the claim of doing his best to forget it, as both Holmes brothers are known for having minds like steel-traps.<BR/><BR/>The specific sentiment of focusing only on what seems important is more Holmes' speed, I should think - he is a very focused individual. All the things he learns and watches for as a young man tend to be in the pursuit of the single goal of being the foremost detective in existence. He learns languages, cryptograms, chemistry, and an endless variety of things, all of which are useful in their own right, but applicable to his line of work.<BR/><BR/>However, all people mature with age, and he certainly switches directions by deciding to study bees! No on truly has a cap on what they can learn, and a character created with the curiosity inherent to a Sherlock Holmes would doubtless end up fascinated by other subjects, and explore them to their full extent. He just had to master his initial pursuit before he would allow himself to recognize the urge.Meghannoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14489139.post-46704718527727322632008-05-30T10:25:00.000-04:002008-05-30T10:25:00.000-04:00I don't know, but as a young person with broad, unfocused interests I've always found Holmes's "empty attic" speech a bit disheartening. In this case I prefer the words of Nero Wolfe: "The more you put in a brain, the more it will hold--if you have one."Elizabethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13450780268138263191noreply@blogger.com