--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It is a mistake to confound strangeness…" description: "\"It is a mistake to confound strangeness with mystery. The most commonplace crime is often the most mysterious because it presents no new or special fea..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/187/arthur-conan-doyle-273_body_it-is-a-mistake-to-confound-strangeness_1498176.jpg" --- # It is a mistake to confound strangeness with mystery. The… ![“It is a mistake to confound strangeness with mystery. The most commonplace crime is often the most mysterious because it presents no new or special features from which deductions may be drawn. This murder would have been infinitely more difficult to unravel had the body of the victim been simply…” quote by Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/187/arthur-conan-doyle-273_body_it-is-a-mistake-to-confound-strangeness_1498176.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/187/arthur-conan-doyle-273_body_it-is-a-mistake-to-confound-strangeness_1498176.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/187/arthur-conan-doyle-273_body_it-is-a-mistake-to-confound-strangeness_1498176.jpg) > “It is a mistake to confound strangeness with mystery. The most commonplace crime is often the most mysterious because it presents no new or special features from which deductions may be drawn. This murder would have been infinitely more difficult to unravel had the body of the victim been simply found lying in the roadway without any of those outré and sensational accompaniments which have rendered it remarkable. These strange details, far from making the case more difficult, have really had the effect of making it less so.” [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Ordinary crimes can seem mysterious when they lack distinctive clues; unusual details actually simplify solving. **In simple terms:** Common crimes seem mysterious without clues; odd details help. Key Takeaway Look for the unusual to solve the ordinary. Themes investigation perception logic Mood curious analytical Type detective philosophical When to use this quote - crime analysis - forensic work - reading mysteries - critical thinking Key Concepts detective reasoning cognitive bias Questions to Reflect On - What details are you overlooking? - How does novelty affect your judgment? A Different Perspective Over‑emphasis on oddities can distract from core evidence. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Body](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/body/) [Cases](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cases/) [Commonplace Crime](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/commonplace-crime-3621062/) [Crime](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/crime/) [Crime Mysterious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/crime-mysterious-631712/) [Details](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/details/) [Detective](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/detective/) [Difficult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/difficult/) [Failure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failure/) [Found](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/found/) [Lying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lying/) [May](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/may/) [Mistake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mistake/) [Murder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/murder/) [Mysterious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mysterious/) [Mystery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mystery/) [Mystery Commonplace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mystery-commonplace-5486093/) [Remarkable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/remarkable/) [Sensational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sensational/) [Special](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/special/) [Strange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/strange/) [Strange Details](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/strange-details-5486094/) [Strangeness Mystery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/strangeness-mystery-3482775/) [Victim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/victim/) ## Related quotes > [The more featureless and commonplace a crime is, the more difficult it is to bring it home.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/the-more-featureless-and-commonplace-a-crime-is-the-more-difficult-it/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [It is a mistake to confound strangeness with mystery.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/it-is-a-mistake-to-confound-strangeness-with-mystery/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [“The most common place crime is often the most mysterious, because it presents no new or specific features from which deductions may be drawn”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sir-arthur-conan-doyle/the-most-common-place-crime-is-often-the-most-mysterious-because-it/) [Sir Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sir-arthur-conan-doyle/) > [Philosophy, astronomy, and politics were marked at zero, I remember. Botany variable, geology profound as regards the mud stains from any region within fifty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/philosophy-astronomy-and-politics-were-marked-at-zero-i-remember/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [I remember that I felt I had to avoid all these sensational photos, the hanged woman, the man who shot himself, and so forth.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerhard-richter/i-remember-that-i-felt-i-had-to-avoid-all-these-sensational-photos/) [Gerhard Richter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerhard-richter/) > [It doesn't seem to me strange that children should like the macabre, the sensational, and the forbidden.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-hecht/it-doesn-t-seem-to-me-strange-that-children-should-like-the-macabre/) [Anthony Hecht](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-hecht/) > [I think the career of President Mitterrand, which was rather sensational when it was revealed, is probably very typical.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-o-paxton/i-think-the-career-of-president-mitterrand-which-was-rather/) [Robert O. Paxton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-o-paxton/) > [It's sensational to be a part of a series that takes on a life of its own.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-wagner/it-s-sensational-to-be-a-part-of-a-series-that-takes-on-a-life-of-its/) [Robert Wagner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-wagner/) > [Modernity widened the distance between the sensational and the relevant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nassim-nicholas-taleb/modernity-widened-the-distance-between-the-sensational-and-the/) [Nassim Nicholas Taleb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nassim-nicholas-taleb/) > [The most fundamental in me is coming uppermost, and the transient, the sensational, is dispersing, because it can't adversely influence what is essential to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oskar-kokoschka/the-most-fundamental-in-me-is-coming-uppermost-and-the-transient-the/) [Oskar Kokoschka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oskar-kokoschka/) > [ Hitler ... lacked the \[inclination\] for anything more than the occasional sensational display of emotion, in particular the great set-piece speech which mesmerized the… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-keegan/hitler-lacked-the-inclination-for-anything-more-than-the-occasional/) [John Keegan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-keegan/) > [from one minute to the next the present is merely an honorary past. It must be filled unceasingly anew to dissemble the curse it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/from-one-minute-to-the-next-the-present-is-merely-an-honorary-past-it/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [I also like to use a sensational headline. Many people read blogs in aggregators, which generally show only the headline. So you have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-wilson/i-also-like-to-use-a-sensational-headline-many-people-read-blogs-in/) [Fred Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-wilson/) > [Neuer is simply sensational.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-schmeichel/neuer-is-simply-sensational/) [Peter Schmeichel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-schmeichel/) > [It doesnt seem to me strange that children should like the macabre, the sensational, and the forbidden.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-hecht/it-doesnt-seem-to-me-strange-that-children-should-like-the-macabre/) [Anthony Hecht](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-hecht/) ## More by Arthur Conan Doyle > [“shattered the bone and grazed the subclavian artery. I”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/shattered-the-bone-and-grazed-the-subclavian-artery-i/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [My mind rebels at stagnation. Give me problems, give me work, give me the most abstruse cryptogram, or the most intricate analysis, and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/my-mind-rebels-at-stagnation-give-me-problems-give-me-work-give-me/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [...it was a huge creature, luminous, ghastly, and spectral. I have cross-examined these men, one of them a hard-headed countryman, one a farrier, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/it-was-a-huge-creature-luminous-ghastly-and-spectral-i-have-cross/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [“A study in scarlet, eh? Why shouldn't we use a little art jargon. There's the scarlet thread of murder running through the colourless skein…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/a-study-in-scarlet-eh-why-shouldn-t-we-use-a-little-art-jargon-there/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [Mediocrity knows nothing higher than itself, but talent instantly recognizes genius.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/mediocrity-knows-nothing-higher-than-itself-but-talent-instantly/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [“Holy men? Holy cabbages! Holy bean-pods! What do they do but live and suck in sustenance and grow fat? If that be holiness, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/holy-men-holy-cabbages-holy-bean-pods-what-do-they-do-but-live-and/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [“Wonderful!" I ejaculated.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/wonderful-i-ejaculated/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [Amberley excelled at chess - a mark, Watson, of a scheming mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/amberley-excelled-at-chess-a-mark-watson-of-a-scheming-mind/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [Ex-Professor Moriarty of mathematical celebrity... is the Napoleon of crime, Watson.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/ex-professor-moriarty-of-mathematical-celebrity-is-the-napoleon-of/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [“When a doctor does go wrong, he is the first of criminals. He has the nerve and he has the knowledge.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/when-a-doctor-does-go-wrong-he-is-the-first-of-criminals-he-has-the/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [“How small we feel with our petty ambitions and strivings in the presence of the great elemental forces of Nature!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/how-small-we-feel-with-our-petty-ambitions-and-strivings-in-the/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [You wish to put me in the dark. I tell you that I will never be put in the dark. You wish to beat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/you-wish-to-put-me-in-the-dark-i-tell-you-that-i-will-never-be-put-in/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [“My mind," he said, "rebels at stagnation. Give me problems, give me work, give me the most abstruse cryptogram or the most intricate analysis,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/my-mind-he-said-rebels-at-stagnation-give-me-problems-give-me-work/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [“It is hard luck on a young fellow to have expensive tastes, great expectations, aristocratic connections but no actual money in his pocket, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/it-is-hard-luck-on-a-young-fellow-to-have-expensive-tastes-great/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [“In the year 1878 I took my degree of Doctor of Medicine of the University of London, and proceeded to Netley to go through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/in-the-year-1878-i-took-my-degree-of-doctor-of-medicine-of-the/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) [Explore all 740 Arthur Conan Doyle quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) ## More Body quotes > [Most of us are convinced that we are our egos, which is who we think we are. The ego is part of our incarnation.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ram-dass/most-of-us-are-convinced-that-we-are-our-egos-which-is-who-we-think/) [Ram Dass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ram-dass/) > [The very purpose for being in this body, for every one of us, is to live and rejoice in that virgin area, that untouched,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-sri-ravi-shankar/the-very-purpose-for-being-in-this-body-for-every-one-of-us-is-to/) [Sri Sri Ravi Shankar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-sri-ravi-shankar/) > [Because of the womb being a central phenomenon in the feminine body, the whole psychology of woman differs: she is non-aggressive, non-inquiring, non-questioning, non-doubting,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/because-of-the-womb-being-a-central-phenomenon-in-the-feminine-body/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [When you're scared - and I mean really scared, not just hearing a noise in the night, or standing toe to toe with someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-gordon-smith/when-you-re-scared-and-i-mean-really-scared-not-just-hearing-a-noise/) [Alexander Gordon Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-gordon-smith/) > [I've used the Phoenix Centrifuge to replicate what the body's going to go through on the flight up. I've also done some gravity tests…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-branson/i-ve-used-the-phoenix-centrifuge-to-replicate-what-the-body-s-going/) [Richard Branson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-branson/) > [Practically all animals which move fast in a homogeneous medium have found means of giving their body a streamlined shape, thereby reducing friction to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/konrad-lorenz/practically-all-animals-which-move-fast-in-a-homogeneous-medium-have/) [Konrad Lorenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/konrad-lorenz/) > [If the media is sending girls the message that their value lies in their bodies, this can only leave them feeling disempowered and distract…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-siebel-newsom/if-the-media-is-sending-girls-the-message-that-their-value-lies-in/) [Jennifer Siebel Newsom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-siebel-newsom/) > [Boys and boys' body image and clothes have become just as important an issue for boys as for girls.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rosalind-wiseman/boys-and-boys-body-image-and-clothes-have-become-just-as-important-an/) [Rosalind Wiseman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rosalind-wiseman/) > [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [Racism is a cancer. You cannot ignore it and it'll go away. If you ignore cancer, it simply metastasizes and consumes the whole body.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daryl-davis/racism-is-a-cancer-you-cannot-ignore-it-and-it-ll-go-away-if-you/) [Daryl Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daryl-davis/) > [America, you're sending girls a mixed message. On one hand, you're saying to have positive body image and love who we are; on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adora-svitak/america-you-re-sending-girls-a-mixed-message-on-one-hand-you-re/) [Adora Svitak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adora-svitak/) > [I read a couple of books about neuroscience and the relationship between the mind and the body.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-kinnaman/i-read-a-couple-of-books-about-neuroscience-and-the-relationship/) [Joel Kinnaman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-kinnaman/) > [If japa is maintained, no useless talk during work will be possible. The mind will always remain peaceful. Modern day diseases are mostly psychosomatic.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mata-amritanandamayi/if-japa-is-maintained-no-useless-talk-during-work-will-be-possible/) [Mata Amritanandamayi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mata-amritanandamayi/) > [It is the incongruous thing in my entire life, this isolation.. ... My work requires it - but I myself have no need or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marsden-hartley/it-is-the-incongruous-thing-in-my-entire-life-this-isolation-my-work/) [Marsden Hartley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marsden-hartley/) > [My friends, this body - perhaps more than any other gathering in human history - now faces that difficult task.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-dicaprio/my-friends-this-body-perhaps-more-than-any-other-gathering-in-human/) [Leonardo DiCaprio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-dicaprio/) [Browse all 20,814 Body quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/body/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It is a mistake to confound strangeness with mystery. The most commonplace crime is often the most mysterious because it presents no new or special features from which deductions may be drawn. 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