Inspirations and redemptions

My grandfather loved books. Actually, both enjoyed reading immensely, though I remember seeing my father's father reading Reader's Digest more than anything else. He did spend a lot of time at the library as well (fit right in there with his frugality). My mother's father, though, owned a number of books, and though I don't remember seeing him read much (I wasn't around him as often, and he died when I was much younger), I have a fair number of his books, and have been told how much he enjoyed them. I have been reading them. I love reading old books - especially those owned by my relatives. I feel connected to them when I do.

One of the books I read through recently was Tales of Sherlock Holmes (containing A Study in Scarlet, The Sign of the Four, A Scandal in Bohemia, and A Case of Identity. I had heard before the mention of Holmes's drug addiction, but hadn't anticipated it being mentioned so heavily in one of the stories - A Scandal in Bohemia, where Watson and Holmes discuss it. In fact, I really hadn't expected the overall picture of Holmes that appears through all of the stories that I've read (admittedly, not many). It is definitely not a flattering portrayal.

It dawned on me that it reminded me of House. Neither title character is all that likable, both have addictive (or perhaps compulsive) personalities, and let's face it, both are arrogant because they're brilliant and they know it. In both cases, too, any liking I have for the characters comes from their friends. They're redeemed, I suppose, because I expect that there must be something that their friends see in them, even if it isn't often portrayed in the stories/shows (Okay, so it helps in the case of Dr. House that Hugh Laurie is not exactly unattractive. Hugh is far more appealing now than he was in Blackadder. Too bad the same can't be said for Rowan Atkinson. He should really go back to wearing a beard. Seriously).

Granted, I think House plays this up more than Sherlock Holmes, because the depictions are products of different times. Holmes was not as flawed as House in his arrogance for the time the characters are set in.

Now watch this - someone's gonna say that there was an interview done with (insert cast member/director/producer/writer from House here) in which he/she said that Holmes was an (or the) inspiration for House...