The Adaptation of Enola Holmes: The Case of The Missing Marquess Novel by Nancy Springer Into Film by Harry Bradbeer

Abstract

This study aims to analyze the adaptation of Nancy Springer’s novel Enola Holmes: The Case of the Missing Marquess (2006) into Harry Bradbeer’s film Enola Holmes (2020) by applying Linda Hutcheon’s adaptation theory, with particular emphasis on the concepts of framing and intentionality. This research employs a qualitative approach using a comparative analysis method to examine the novel and its film adaptation. Data were collected through close reading of the novel, repeated viewing of the film, and supported by relevant scholarly literature on adaptation studies. The analysis compares characterization, narrative structure, and mise-en-scene to identify the transformations introduced during the adaptation process and the intentions underlying those changes. The findings reveal that the adaptation is not merely a transfer of the story from one medium to another but a creative reinterpretation that reconstructs characterization, narrative structure, point of view, genre, and ideological representation. Enola, who is portrayed in the novel as an intellectually independent character relying on internal reflection and deductive reasoning, is transformed in the film into a more active, expressive, and visually dynamic heroine through fourth wall breaking, action sequences, and cinematic storytelling. Furthermore, the film expands the roles of Sherlock Holmes, Tewkesbury, and Eudoria Holmes to strengthen dramatic conflict, emotional relationships, and explicit feminist messages. The study also demonstrates that these adaptive changes are driven by ideological, aesthetic, cultural, and commercial motivations to make the story more relevant to contemporary values and appealing to global audiences. Therefore, Enola Holmes illustrates that adaptation is a creative process of reinterpretation that generates new meanings while preserving the core identity of the original work.