Élémentaire, mon cher Watson - cours d'anglais

Découvrez le genre du roman policier à travers l'exemple du célèbre personnage imaginé par le britannique Arthur Conan Doyle : Sherlock Holmes. Let's go avec Sandrine, professeure d'anglais.

Téléchargez le support de cours en PDF.

Les objectifs du cours d'anglais

• Découvrir le genre du roman policier,
• Apprendre à déceler des indices et étudier un extrait d'un roman policier, The Hound of the Baskervilles (1902).
• Jouer au détective afin de résoudre une énigme.
• Parler, lire et comprendre en anglais.

Vocabulaire anglais autour de Sherlock Holmes

an incipit

a fellow

a practitioner

a house-surgeon

a house-physician

a presentation

absent-minded

amiable

to be likely

to quote

Qui est Sherlock Holmes ? (texte en anglais)

« Elementary, my dear ! » He's a famous detective in a fictional character who has appeared in 226 films. Sherlock Holmes is a British character but he was created by a Scottish writer : the novelist Arthur Conan Doyle (1859 -1930). His best friend was a doctor: Dr. Watson. Sherlock Holmes lived at 221b Baker Street, London. Arthur Conan Doyle actually wrote 60 detective novels just about Sherlock Holmes.

reader who doesn’t understand and makes errors whereas Sherlock Holmes is the know-it-all teacher who uses his sense of observation to reveal the truth.

A Whodunit (= who did it ) is a mystery story that keeps the criminal’s identity a secret until the very end.

Arthur Conan Doyle excelled in the art of Whodunits (aka detective fiction).

Exercice de compréhension (texte en anglais)

Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson use their detective skills to deduce the characteristics of the man whose walking stick is left in their possession. The owner of the stick, Dr. Mortimer arrives and tells them that he has discovered the body of Sir Charles Baskerville in the grounds of his Devon home with the footprint of a gigantic hound next to him

Read and act like a detective

1. Concentrate and Read the text ( out loud)
2. Look for the Clues (= transparent words / the words you know) to help you understand, write down the words that are new. Develop your sense of observation
3. Ask questions and examine the text.
4. Look at the evidence  and justify by quoting from the text.
5. Never be discouraged.

Grammaire : dialogue et place de l'adjectif (texte en anglais)

Direct Speech

What ? Direct speech (or reported speech) is a report of the exact words used by a speaker or a writer. It contrasts with indirect speech.

How ? Direct speech is usually placed inside quotation marks ( “) or (‘)  and accompanied by a reporting verb, that is preceded by a comma(,).

Ex : ‘I think,’ said I, (..) ‘that Dr. Mortimer is a successful elderly medical man.’

Order of adjectives

Remark : the adjectifs are not separated by a comma because they are not coordinated.

elderly  ➢An elderly man : adjectif  + noun

medical ➢An elderly medical man : age / purpose or role + noun

successful ➢A successful elderly medical man : opinion / age / purpose  + noun

Ressource complémentaire (texte en anglais)

• Read The Hound of the Baskervilles