It has always seemed to me that so long as you produce your dramatic effect, accuracy of detail matters little. I have never striven for it and I have made some bad mistakes in consequence. What matter if I hold my readers?
Arthur Conan DoyleRead
I had hardly expected so dolichocephalic a skull or such well-marked supra-orbital development. Would you have any objection to my running my finger along your parietal fissure? A cast of your skull, sir, until the original is available, would be an ornament to any anthropological museum. It is not my intention to be fulsome, but I confess that I covet your skull.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote reflects a fascination with the human skull, emphasizing both curiosity and admiration for physical characteristics.
In this quote, Arthur Conan Doyle expresses a blend of scientific curiosity and a whimsical admiration for the unique features of a human skull. The speaker's comments about the skull's structure, such as its 'dolichocephalic' shape and 'supra-orbital development', reveal an appreciation for human anatomy that extends beyond mere physical observation to a deeper fascination with what these features represent in terms of individuality and the study of humanity itself.
Themes
SkullAnthropologyHumanityCuriosityAdmiration
In practice
Example use cases
In a lecture on anthropology, one might quote this to illustrate the fascination with human evolution.
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I could not rest, Watson, I could not sit quiet in my chair, if I thought that such a man as Professor Moriarty were walking the streets of London unchallenged.
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