Friends of Merrill-Cazier Library Offers Spring Lecture
Attorney Michael W. Homer will present the spring 2015 Friends of Merrill-Cazier Library lecture at Utah State University Thursday, March 5, 7 p.m., Merrill-Cazier Library, Room 101.
Friends of Merrill-Cazier Library, a support group for University Libraries at Utah State University, presents a spring lecture Thursday, March 5, featuring guest speaker Michael W. Homer, an attorney practicing law in Salt Lake City, Utah. He is also an author who has written about Mormonism.
The title of Homer’s lecture is “‘The Greatest Man Who Never Lived’: Sherlock Holmes and the Utah Connection” and begins at 7 p.m. in Merrill-Cazier Library, Room 101.
“Arthur Conan Doyle’s most famous creation — who is much more famous than his creator — is Sherlock Holmes,” Homer said.
Sherlock, now known as “the greatest man who never lived and will never die,” first appeared in “A Study in Scarlet” in 1887 and, according to Homer, the story was more about Mormonism than Sherlock and was really a classic “shilling shocker.”
“It is doubtful that Doyle would have written another story about Sherlock if Lippincott’s editor had not lunched with Doyle and Oscar Wilde at the Langham Hotel,” Homer said.
During the lunch he convinced Wilde to write his only novel — The Picture of Dorian Gray — and Doyle to write his second Sherlock Holmes story — “Sign of Four.”
During his lecture, Homer will discuss Doyle’s own motivation for writing “A Study in Scarlet,” including his brief flirtation with Mormonism, the public and LDS reaction to the story. He will also discuss Doyle’s observations about Utah and the Mormons and his 1923 visit to Salt Lake City and his eventual comparison of Mormonism and Spiritualism — something Doyle subsequently embraced.
“I will conclude by noting that ‘A Study in Scarlet’ remains controversial even in the 21st century,” Homer said. “Some members [of the LDS faith] even petitioned their local school district to remove the book from a class curriculum, a move that led to much public commentary.”
Among Homer’s recent books is On the Way to Somewhere Else published by the Arthur H. Clark Company and republished by the University of Utah Press and Joseph’s Temples: The Dynamic Relationship Between Freemasonry and Mormonism published by the University of Utah Press.
In addition to the Friends Lecture, the winners of the 2014 Arrington Lecture Writing Awards will be announced.
Friends of Merrill-Cazier Library is a community-based support group that promotes awareness of the library’s resources, facilities and personnel. Its mission is to enrich library resources and sponsor outreach activities throughout the year, including fall and spring lectures.
Those interested in supporting University Libraries at Utah State University by joining Friends of Merrill-Cazier Library, may contact Trina Shelton, (435) 797-2631, at the library. Members receive a card that allows circulation privileges for one year at Merrill-Cazier Library.
Related links:
Friends of Merrill-Cazier Library
Contact: Trina Shelton, (435) 797-2685, trina.shelton@usu.edu
Writer: Patrick Williams, (435) 797-1354, patrick.williams@usu.edu
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