"The Adventure of the Speckled Band"

       Sir Arthur Conan Doyle uses plot devices in his short story "The Adventure of the Speckled Band" to create suspense. The plot devices that were used in the story include: foreshadowing, flashback, frame story and chekhov's gun. Foreshadowing is used when Holmes inquires about the death of Helen Stoner's twin sister, Julia. Holmes asks Helen is poison could be a possible cause for her death, and although they don't accept this as a possibility, they later find the cause to be venom from a poisonous snake. Flashback is another plot device used in the story. When Holmes is discussing how he solved th mystery with Dr. Watson, he reflects back to previous events. In this flashback, the reader learns that Holmes knew about the snake before he ever saw it. The paragraph in the beginning of the story is an example of a frame story. In this way, Doyle is able to give additional information to the reader. Chekhov's gun is also found early in the story. Helen tells the detective and his assistant that before her sister died, she shouted "It was the band! The speckled band!" It is not until later, however, that the reader finds out what she meant or the signaficance of what she was refering to.