character sketch of hercule poirot
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Poirot's name was derived from two other fictional detectives of the time: Marie Belloc Lowndes' Hercule Popeau and Frank Howel Evans' Monsieur Poiret, a retired Belgian police officer living in London.[2]
A more obvious influence on the early Poirot stories is that of Arthur Conan Doyle. In An Autobiography, Christie states, "I was still writing in the Sherlock Holmes tradition – eccentric detective, stooge assistant, with a Lestrade-type Scotland Yard detective, Inspector Japp".[3] For his part, Conan Doyle acknowledged basing his detective stories on the model of Edgar Allan Poe's C. Auguste Dupin and his anonymous narrator, and basing his character Sherlock Holmes on Joseph Bell, who in his use of "ratiocination" prefigured Poirot's reliance on his "little grey cells".
Poirot also bears a striking resemblance to A. E. W. Mason's fictional detective, Inspector Hanaud of the French Sûreté, who first appeared in the 1910 novel At the Villa Rose and predates the first Poirot novel by ten years.
Unlike the models mentioned above, Christie's Poirot was clearly the result of her early development of the detective in her first book, written in 1916 and published in 1920. His Belgian nationality was interesting because of Belgium's occupation by Germany, which also provided a plausible explanation of why such a skilled detective would be out of work and available to solve mysteries at an English country house.[4] At the time of Christie's writing, it was considered patriotic to express sympathy towards the Belgians,[5] since the invasion of their country had constituted Britain's casus belli for entering World War I, and British wartime propaganda emphasised the "Rape of Belgium".
Popularity[edit]Poirot first appeared in The Mysterious Affair at Styles (published in 1920) and exited in Curtain (published in 1975). Following the latter, Poirot was the only fictional character to receive an obituary on the front page of The New York Times.[6][7]
By 1930, Agatha Christie found Poirot "insufferable", and by 1960 she felt that he was a "detestable, bombastic, tiresome, ego-centric little creep". Yet the public loved him and Christie refused to kill him off, claiming that it was her duty to produce what the public liked.[8]
Appearance and proclivities[edit]Captain Arthur Hastings' first description of Poirot:
He was hardly more than five feet four inches but carried himself with great dignity. His head was exactly the shape of an egg, and he always perched it a little on one side. His moustache was very stiff and military. Even if everything on his face was covered, the tips of moustache and the pink-tipped nose would be visible.
The neatness of his attire was almost incredible; I believe a speck of dust would have caused him more pain than a bullet wound. Yet this quaint dandified little man who, I was sorry to see, now limped badly, had been in his time one of the most celebrated members of the Belgian police.[4]
Agatha Christie's initial description of Poirot in The Murder on the Orient Express:
By the step leading up into the sleeping-car stood a young French lieutenant, resplendent in uniform, conversing with a small man [Hercule Poirot] muffled up to the ears of whom nothing was visible but a pink-tipped nose and the two points of an upward-curled moustache.[9]
In the later books, his limp is not mentioned, suggesting it may have been a temporary wartime injury. Poirot has green eyes that are repeatedly described as shining "like a cat's" when he is struck by a clever idea,[10] and dark hair, which he dyes later in life.[11] However, in many of his screen incarnations, he is bald or balding.
Frequent mention is made of his patent leather shoes, damage to which is frequently a source of misery for him, but comical for the reader.[12] Poirot's appearance, regarded as fastidious during his early career, later falls hopelessly out of fashion.[13] He employs pince-nez reading glasses.
Among Poirot's most significant personal attributes is the sensitivity of his stomach:
The plane dropped slightly. "Mon estomac," thought Hercule Poirot, and closed his eyes determinedly.[14]
He suffers from sea sickness,[15] and in Death in the Clouds he states that his air sickness prevents him from being more alert at the time of the murder. Later in his life, we are told:
Always a man who had taken his stomach seriously, he was reaping his reward in old age. Eating was not only a physical pleasure, it was also an intellectual research.[14]
Poirot is extremely punctual and carries a turnip pocket watch almost to the end of his career.[16] He is also pernickety about his personal finances, preferring to keep a bank balance of 444 pounds, 4 shillings, and 4 pence.[17]
As mentioned in Curtain and The Clocks, he is fond of classical music, particularly Mozart and Bach.
Hercule Poirot is a well known character in many of the books written by the author Agatha Christie who is called the Queen of Crime Novels. He plays the role of a famous detective in the books.
Hercule Poirot is short in height. He has a moustache and keeps touching it. He likes to keep everything perfectly. If any thing or substance is not placed straight or properly, he tends to make them proper even if he is doing a really important work at the time.
He is known to have solved many cases of crimes and murders. His secretary is Ms.Lemon. He solves all cases easily and is really popular among the people.
I would like to recommend all to read Agatha Christie's books as they are the best detective novels you can ever find. Also many of the stories have been made into movies.
Hope this helps you....
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