Two passages that struck me were:
- “The light beat upon him where he stood, but long shadows trailed down the walls and hung like a black canopy above him (Chapter 6 pg 110).
- “I guess it is ourselves and not the house that we have to blame!” said the baronet (Chapter 7 pg 115).
The first passage occurs when Sir Henry is seeing his new estate for the first time. He stared at the walls admirably but darkness hung over him. I interpreted this as the curse of his family was hanging over him. Almost as if he was doomed because his ancestors were doomed. The word “long” indicates many eras of tragedy in his family. The image I get is the headshots of the past heirs being covered with darkness to indict their ill fates. The simile saying the shadow “hung like a black canopy above him,” indicates that he hasn’t been succumbing to darkness yet, but it’s coming! It feels like the darkness is waiting above Sir Henry waiting for the right moment for the Hound of Baskerville to pounce. After reading the second passage, I changed my opinion. Sir Henry makes the claim that the problem is with him and not the house. This is important because maybe the “curse” that is haunting his family isn’t actually a curse at all. It seems to me that it might be the Baskerville men causing their own fate. Their own actions are causing them to die. I see the self-fulfilling prophecy in this novel. The family thinks they are cursed, so they unconsciously make bad things happen to themselves. Holmes doesn’t usually believe in supernatural events and it is noted that he is rarely wrong. Therefore I think Sir Henry’s statement above is foreshadowing that the Baskerville Curse does not exist. The servants said the Sir Charles was so stressed and focused on the fear of dying that his weak heart could have caused his death. If I were a detective on the case, I would be inclined to argue that Sir Charles had a heart attack and died because he was afraid of the darkness.
I think you’re absolutely right in terms of color and foreshadowing. When Sir Henry arrived at Baskerville Hall, an ominous shadow was casted over him, which seems to indicate that something ill-fated will happen. Along with this, I think it’s important to note the significance of setting in London vs. in Baskerville Hall. Conan Doyle presents London as an active place, while his use of “grey” and other adjectives presents Baskerville Hall as dismal. This depiction of a murder site as gloom is also apparent in Braddon’s chilling presentation of Audley Court. In this way, description is critical to setting up an environment where terrible actions can happen.
In terms of there being a curse, I agree that there likely isn’t. I think there’s something else going on. A hound in search of blood is certainly possible, but I don’t think it’s a superstitious one. Instead, I think there must be someone who has been directing this dog to the Baskervilles when they wonder to the moor. While it seems likely that it could be the Barrymores, especially since Sir Henry’s death would result in them gaining Baskerville Hall, I don’t think that’s the case. That’d be too easy and predictable. The hound’s owner is likely someone close to the hall, who wants the Baskervilles out of the area. Maybe it’s Stapleton? Who knows. In any case, it’s certainly not superstition.
The theory of the curse being implemented onto the Baskerville could be possible. Sir Hugo does bring his death upon himself through his bad actions. “…he would that very night render his body and soul to the Power of Evil if he might but overtake the wench,” (Page 14). He gives himself to evil to get what he wants. He offered his body and soul to evil, through is evil actions of attempting to rape the young maiden.
These passages remind of Robert Barrett Browning’s poem “My Last Duchess” in regard to the narrator’s emphasis on the importance of the family’s name. I would think that your claim that Sir Charles likely had a heart attack is probably very true. He most definitely accumulated a number of stress-caused health issues like high blood pressure and heart issues. I additionally wouldn’t be surprised if he threw a blood clot and had a stroke. I think the mentality of a something like a family “curse” influences all of us. When we constantly think “don’t do this, don’t do this,” “don’t let this happen,” or “I hope this doesn’t happen,” that one thing we have been so focused on NOT happening HAPPENS because we’re subconsciously so focused on it. It seems that the best way to avoid this situation is to not think about it at all, that is, it happening and it not happening