A Duet with an Occasional Chorus (ACD Journal vol. 5)
A Duet with an Occasional Chorus [Vol. 5] is an article written by Barbara Roden published in the A.C.D. - The Journal of The Arthur Conan Doyle Society (Vol. 5, 1994).
This closing editorial reflects on the unusually rich contents of the issue and argues that what is missing is an active letters column with real reader debate. It invites readers to respond critically to the journal's articles and reviews, presenting correspondence as an important part of Conan Doyle studies and of the journal's future life.
Article
Closing Editorial
Congratulations! If you have reached this editorial after having read through everything which preceded it, then you have just worked your way through the better part of 100,000 words, or the equivalent of a fairly good-sized novel. However, I think it more likely that the majority of ACD readers will have browsed their way to this point, reading the articles in which they are especially interested, paying special attention to any reviews of books which they've read, and saving the rest until time or inclination dictates. It could well be that one or two people will have flipped immediately to this editorial; but I have my doubts.
No matter which route you have chosen to get here, you have gone past more than two dozen articles and reviews all dealing with Arthur Conan Doyle. There are discussions of several of his works of fiction, in-depth looks at his devotion to the cause of Spiritualism, an examination of his correspondence on the subject of the sinking of the Titanic, a guide to collecting first and early editions, a contemplation of his knowledge of Japan, a full complement of cricketing pieces, and several book reviews. There is something for just about everyone interested in Conan Doyle, I would suggest; but one thing is missing.
That one thing is a Letters column, and more than one person has asked us plaintively why there isn't one. Well, the simple answer is that we don't have anything to put in a Letters column. Oh, we get quite a few letters here, to be sure: enough that our postman makes us his first stop most mornings, to lighten the load in his van (or so he tells us). However, most of the letters which comment on ACD or The Parish Magazine are along the general lines of 'I really enjoyed it', which is gratifying to hear but lacking in the content needed to make an interesting or informative Letters column.
Sometimes, in fact, we're tempted to yell, 'Is anybody out there?' We know there are people out there: 92 of you were in Toronto. But do the readers of ACD blithely accept without question everything that we publish? We cannot believe that to be the case. So what we'd like you to do is write to us, telling us what you thought about something in this issue of ACD. After all, there has to be something here for you to comment on, or discuss, or ask questions about, or disagree with. Did Tom Tietze's comment that 'We have not even cared enough to prove him wrong' in regard to ACD's views on Spiritualism give you pause for thought? Had
Conan Doyle ever struck you as an early feminist before you read Dixon Smith's article about Beyond the City and A Duet? Do you agree with Owen Dudley Edwards' thesis that the play 'Angels of Darkness' came before, and not after, A Study in Scarlet? And does it strike you as likely that Michael Crichton's Jurassic Park owes more to The Lost World than has been acknowledged thus far?
Doug Elliott's paper on the Conan Doyle and Shaw correspondence regarding the sinking of the Titanic is based on a study of a series of letters. Conan Doyle was a frequent contributor to the Letters columns of many publications, and these letters are as deserving of study as any other aspect of his fascinating life. A frank exchange of viewpoints and ideas can lead to interesting things, as Doug's article proves. Take the lead from Conan Doyle: write us a letter about an article or review appearing in this issue of ACD. If ACD were alive today, I'm sure he'd have something to say about a few of the 100,000 words we have assembled here!
Barbara Roden
- Article courtesy Christopher Roden, founder of The Arthur Conan Doyle Society (1989-2003).
