William+of+Baskerville

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This novel is mostly about the adventures that Adso has with the well known detective of the time, William of Baskerville. It therefore has the major themes of the Celebration of the Genius, and the effects of others (companionship), because as Adso hangs out with William more and and more often, he learns more about the world and becomes more observant. It has the theme of the Celebration of the genius because William is often lauded for his efforts and his achievements. William ends up being the reason behind the story; Adso is creating this story as he accounts the details of his travels with William.=====

William is consistently challenged with murder cases to try to figure out who the murderer is. Adso, his partner is always following closely behind and writing down all of the details, not only about the cases, but also about William's behaviour through the cases. Although Adso could write about anything else, his stories usually center around the actions and deductions of William. Every couple of chapters is a different story because every couple of chapters is usually a different case and because Adso's opinions both about William and the cases have usually changed, even if minutely. Although William is not the most dynamic character, as he usually sticks to his own mindset of deducing numerous cases, it is Adso who makes William seem different throughout the story, which is why William is pretty much the reason for the story. The reader is getting Adso's outlook on William just as the readers of the Sherlock Holmes stories are getting John Watson's opinions on Sherlock and the cases.

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The protagonist of //The Name of the Rose//, William of Baskerville supports the archetype of a detective. He largely represents the precursor to //The Sherlock Holmes Mysteries// by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle as is represented by this character’s behavior throughout the story. From the beginning until the end of //The Name of the Rose// by Umberto Eco, William is called upon to solve numerous mysteries involving the murders of numerous individuals. In most of the cases that he solves, William is consistently seen as someone both admirable and meddling and arrogant (but this is more clear by the insight of his partner Adso), and observant. He is not however, seen much without his partner Adso, who appears to be the narrator of this novel.=====

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In //The Name of the Rose//, the Author, Umberto Eco, describes William as an ideal detective, and this function of William’s is seen through the admiration which others have for his ability to deduce. On page thirty-three of the story, even the abbot (for whom William is solving the case of the murder of one of the monks) remarks that “They had not told me enough about your talents”. This astonishment at the protagonist’s deductive ability consistent, as is seen on the page just before thirty-three in which the abbot questions “Who told you?” and William answers “You told me”. This behavior of William is also consistent, not only in this case, but also in other cases, and it concurs largely with the behavior of Sherlock Holmes who is often asked who told him about the details of the case, and Sherlock merely replies that it was a matter of his observations.=====

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In a similar manner, when explaining to Adso, William explains to his partner why he has calculated what he has about the matters at hand. On page twenty-one, when Adso questions William “how did you manage to know?” not only about the incident of the lost horse, but also about the details of the lost horse, William replies “during our whole journey I have been teaching you to recognize the evidence through which the world speaks to us like a great book… But the universe is even more talkative than Alanus thought, and it speaks not only of the ultimate things… but also of closer things, and then is speaks quite clearly” (23-24, Eco). The author, through the observant response and slightly arrogant conduct of William toward the questions of Adso indicates the detective archetype he has input into his story. William’s familiar behavior with Adso and Adso possibly being the person recounting the story for the readers also indicates the possible importance of Adso as William’s travelling partner. Again, this archetype is seen through many other detective novels one of the most famous of them being //The Sherlock Holmes Mysteries// by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.=====

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William’s meddlesome behavior, though not shown to be large throughout the story, is rather direct as to whom it is for, and it also indicates a sort of downfall of this personality. William’s meddling is clearly shown in page thirty-five, when William, who wants to visit the library to a great degree, uses his detective skills for his own purposes. This meddling behavior is also shown in the first scene, when William comes across the cellarer and tells him about the horse, “The horse came this way and took the path to the right. He will not get far because he will have to stop…” (23, Eco). Even though William was not asked to partake in the search for Brunellus the horse, he still gave the cellarer information, which slightly supports the idea that William might be meddlesome in order to see how much he can deduce and actually get right. This is supported by William’s own remark on page 28, “And my intellect’s hunger was sated only when I saw the single horse that the monks were leading by the halter”.=====

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William is consistently described through his behavior and conduct throughout the story and this consistency is present not only in his behavior, but also in the behavior of similar detectives such as Sherlock Holmes. Therefore, it would be safe to presume that William also fits the character archetype of a detective.=====

How to Speak Like William of Baskerville:

1) You should always speak in a sophisticated and intelligent manner almost like a know-it-all: "'I thank you Brother Cellarer,' my master replied politely, and I apprecieate your courtesy all the more since, in order to greet us you have interrupted your search. But don't worry. The horse came this way..." (22-23, Eco) This detail of William shows his character as somewhat meddlesome and this can be either good or bad news for the persons who is the subject of his meddling. This endeavor was beneficial in proving to others what William is capable of, and not underestimatig him; it prevents them from thinking he's an idiot and keeps his clients close.

2) You should be arrogant in your speech, but you should do it so that few people may notice this arrogant behavior of yours: "I had already realized that my master, in every respect a man of the highest virtue, succumed to the vice of vanity when it was a matter of demonstrating his acumen..." (23, Eco) This shows that William is also human, and like any other protagonist, has his own flaws that could lead to his possible downfall. This arrogance, however, is beneficial to William as it boosts his confidence in himself while he is solving the numerous mysteries that bring him his reputation.

3)You should always be observant and this observant behavior must always be seen in your conversations with others: "Neatly spaced, those marks said that the hoof was small and round, and the gallop quite regular-and so I deduced the nature of the horse, and the fact that it was not running wildly like a crazed animal. At the point where the pines formed a natural roof, some twigs had been freshly broken off at a height of five feet. One of the blackberry bushes..." (24, Eco) William's observance in his everyday speech shows his dedication to his work and his love for the science of deduction. This endeavor proves useful when William is uncovering the cause of the murders, because as he is using his deductive skills in his common speech his thoughts are quite clearly expressed to his clients.

4) You should speak so that it makes everyone else feel like an idiot: "'May the Holy Ghost sharpen your mind, son!' my masper exclaimed. 'What other name could he possibly have?... His explanation, moreover, seemed to me at that point so obvious that my humiliation at not having discovered it myself was surpassed only by my pride at now being a sharer in it..." (24-25, Eco) This behavior of William's also shows that he can be arrogant, but it keeps him from being looked down upon by others who don't trust his abilities too much, since William is confident in himself. This behavior would be beneficial when William is trying to make other people trust his abilities because, although they will feel stupid at first, they will also feel pride for understanding the information better.

5) You should speak politely when you feel disturbed: "'I see your point,' William said. I had already had the occasion to observe that when he expressed himself so promtly and politely he was usually concealing, in an honest way, his dissent or puzzlement" (29-30, Eco). This example shows William as someone polite and agreeable on the outside and not someone to want to cause an argument. This behaviour is beneficial when William is trying to move the topic forward; if he was someone argumentative, then he would be stuck on one topic. It shows him as an efficient character.

[] Although this video is not of William of Baskerville, it is of someone of the same archetype (Sherlock Holmes from //Sherlock//) who although has a few eccentricities, he mirrors the same detective behavior and skills as William.