A Scandal in Bohemia

“A Scandal in Bohemia” takes place at a time when the political landscape of Europe was in a state of relative flux. Monarchies that had previously ruled Europe were now supplanted by constitutional monarchies and representative governments. Watson alludes to this political instability when he mentions that Holmes recently solved a royal crisis in Holland. “A Scandal in Bohemia” centers on another impending royal scandal, this time in Bohemia, which threatens the entire monarchy of Europe. The King of Bohemia describes his case as one that “may have an influence upon European history” (65). If the King does not intercept the photograph of himself with Adler, his former lover will expose it to his fiancée’s family, thus wreaking havoc on his marriage and on the future lineage of the Bohemian kingdom. The quandary the King of Bohemia presents to Holmes is predicated on several norms and values that characterized Victorian society. As a fiancé to the Princess of Scandinavia, the King committed a transgression in allowing himself to be photographed with Adler. This lapse in discretion is what leads to his entanglement in Adler’s extortion plot. At its core, “A Scandal in Bohemia” is about resolving an impending public relations crisis.