Sherlock Holmes Card of the Day:The Fool

The Sherlock Holmes Card of the Day is:

INSPECTOR LESTRADE

(Trump 0 / The Fool)

In The Sherlock Holmes Tarot by John Matthews and Wil Kinghan (Sterling Ethos), The Fool card is portrayed by Inspector Lestrade, whose “enthusiasm is infectious, though not always matched by his skill.” Lestrade is shown “stepping out into the darkness, lantern in hand, full of enthusiasm for the task ahead, though uncertain where it will lead.”

The Holmesian Wisdom for The Fool is: “I take a short cut when I can get it…” from The Golden Pince-Nez. The words are spoken by Sherlock Holmes, not Lestrade, but they do seem appropriate for The Fool card.

Keys for this card, upright, are: “childlike trust, protection, carefree enthusiasm, the folly to be wise, optimism, adventure, spontaneity, youthful energy.” Reversed meanings: “overwhelming pride, making mistakes, negligence, apathy.”

The book that accompanies this deck also provides interpretations for each card under the headings “The Game” and “The Fog.” The former elaborates on the upright keys, while the latter expands on reversed meanings. An example from “The Game” for The Fool: “Take the chance to try out fresh approaches. Your sense of optimism and adventure will see you through. Ignorance and innocence protect you, but try not to push your luck too far.” Examples from “The Fog”: “To behave foolishly endangers both you and your colleagues, though your impulsive nature may lead to new lines of enquiry. Your trust is likely to be abused. Distrusting the wisdom of others or scorning direct options makes you feel stronger, but may lead you astray.”

Dennis Hoey in Sherlock Holmes
and the Secret Weapon
by film screenshot (Universal)
Licensed under Public Domain
via Wikimedia Commons

In one of my favorite movie versions of Sherlock Holmes (starring Basil Rathbone), actor Dennis Hoey played Lestrade. As I recall, initially he was patronizing toward Holmes and full of himself and his own importance, but before long, he realized how valuable Holmes could be. Instead of blundering on as an “eternal Fool,” Lestrade observed and learned as time went on.