Sherlock Holmes has Anti-Social Personality Disorder: an essay
disclaimers: im not professionally diagnosed with aspd, but have a high chance of having it, and have talked to people who are diagnosed. also, this is a headcanon, not saying that holmes has aspd canonically
what is aspd?: anti-social personality disorder, or aspd, is a personality disorder defined by impulsiveness, apathy, aversionto social norms and a cynical view of the world. symptoms and their severity vary greatly from person to person, however
1)Holmes’ chronic boredom:
people with aspd are very often extremely bored, and have to seek ways to stimulate their brain, often in a way that’s unhealthy.
when Holmes isn’t working on a case, he has no idea on what to do, and ends up either doing science experiments, which he usually involves himself in, or resorts to the use of substances.
not only is this a symptom of aspd, but the way he deals with it is also how most people with the disorder act.
2)Holmes’ self-esteem is in his work:
a common trait of aspd is that your self-esteem is maintained almost solely by your goals, power or achievements, and you often define yourself by these things. Holmes’ self worth is entirely based on how well he can solve a case, or if he can solve it at all.
when he fails even slightly, he begins to doubt his abilities and slips into a nearly depressive state. this also explains why he’s as bored as he is when he isn’t working; not only is it his stimulus, it’s where he gets his self-esteem from.
when a character,Dr. Mortimer,says he’s the second best in his field of work in one case, Sherlock seems immediately upset, which also tracks. when you have aspd, you’re constantly trying to be the best, as to feel worthy, so having your skills be questioned or dismissed even slightly is very damaging.
this happens, also, in red headed league, in which he gets upset and angry when a client says his methods seem simple when he explains how he deducted something.
3)Holmes is an impulsive mess:
impulsiveness, lack of regard for safety, inconsequential behaviour. this describes both Holmes and some of the main symptoms of aspd.
he immediately jumps to action, even though we’re told he thinks carefully before doing so, and is quick to accept cases or go investigate, even when it’s one tied to dangerous individuals. he could really care less about who he’s dealing with, most of the time.
he seems to only care for the safety of his clients and Watson. he even jumps in a room full and dangerous chemicals tp save a client, but, even so, there are many moments where the danger he puts himself in could very well hurt one or both of them.
Holmes would risk all sorts of injuries or harm if it’s to get to the bottom of a case or get some thrill from it, which ties in to the boredom aspect as well.
4)Watson is the exception:
people with aspd can have what’s called an “exception”, someone who they feel some empathy for or that their brain registers as a person, as someonethey can care about. most often, people with aspd will see others as below them in some way, like as pets, or an object of study, while exceptions will be, well, the exception. they may also socialize easier with these people and mask less. this doesn’t mean they dislike those who aren’t exceptions, but they are very different dynamics.
that being said, Watson is clearly Holmes’ exception. not only is he the one person he seems to have a genuine close relationship with, Holmes threatens anyone who harms him, even risking his life to protect him, without much reason other than their relationship. though he also risks himself for his clients, you could argue it’s due to them being part of his work. as mentioned previously on how people with aspd tend to view other people, Holmes might see the clients as a piece of the puzzle, while he sees Watson as a partner in his duties.
he also seems to listen more to Watson’s advice, even though he tends to disregard them at times, specially when concerning physical well-being.
5)Holmes lies, a lot:
you can say it’s part of his job, but Holmes lies. and a lot. he also tends to manipulate situations in his favour, which is also common in aspd.
in the hound of the baskervilles, Watson spends most of his time with Henry Baskerville believing that Holmes is back home, when in reality, he’s following them, and only reveals the truth by the end of the story, as they’re about to confront Stapleton. he also disguises himself after coming back from the “hiatus”, before, once again, revealing the truth, and there are other instances where a similar thing happens. you can argue that lying was necessary in these situations, but Holmes went a bit too far with that, in my opinion.
still, there’s more. he’s manipulated Watson after he tells him to clean his room, which is a mess, in order for him to forget about it. his intentions with his manipulations aren’t malicious, but it’s clear he does them to get away with something or benefit himself otherwise. also, I’d say it’s more realistic for him to do these small lies and manipulations rather than be a big, dishonest, evil mastermind, in a way.
6)Holmes’ relationships:
aside from Watson, Holmes isn’t close to that many people.
he seems to be somewhat close to Mycroft, Lestrade, and Hopkins, but it seems that it’s only because either he has an upper hand, in a way, in this relationship, as seen with the Scotland Yard men, or because it’s his brother, in Mycroft’s case. even so, he doesn’t seem to ever visit them if not for work reasons, or spend time with them in general, for that matter. he’s more playful with them, often reminding them of his superior skills in the detective field, and doesn’t seem as annoyed by their presence as with other people, however, they appear to be the only ones.
he’s also neutral towards Mrs. Hudson in the canon. he clearly doesn’t hate her or find her a nuisance, but i wouldn’t say he considers her anything more than a part of living in the house. he’s nice to her, though, but they clearly aren’t friends.
if you have aspd, it’s hard to form close bonds with other people, or even make relationships at all, due to many things; apathy makes socialising much harder, the hatred or cynical view of society or people, the need to feel superior at times and a sense that the world is in a strict hierarchy all affect this. it’s no wonder that, if Holmes has aspd, he’d have very few friends.
this need to feel superior is present in his relationships, too. with aspd, you tend to try and be better than others in relationships, in multiple ways, which appears in Holmes’ contacts as well. everyone, except his brother, that he’s close to or acquainted with seems to be below him in some way, or at least, he feels that he’s superior to them. he doesn’t mistreat people due to this, however, and is actually kind to those who are curious of his methods and whose company he enjoys.
7)Holmes is easily angered:
be it because Watson has been injured, something has gone wrong or he just doesn’t have a case, Sherlock gets angry a lot, and easily, another symptom of aspd.
Mrs. Hudson and Watson both describe his mlst frequent mood as “don’t disturb him, he’s angry”. when a man injures Watson, Holmes immediately pulls a gun on him, without second thought, and says that if he had injured him more severely, he would have done worse on him. these are just a few examples of his short temper in the books.
8)Holmes fails to conform to social norms:
this is also quite obvious, and an often overlooked trait of aspd. social norms vary with time period, region and culture, however, so this is a tricky subject to discuss.
Sherlock often doesn’t react negatively to his cases, even when it involves murder. he finds joy in examining a crime scene, performing a necropsy or speaking of related subjects, while other people seem amused at such reaction. this is a way of not following whats expected by society.
he’s often regarded by people as an odd or eccentric man because of this, we’re even told this from the start, before we even meet him. Stamford tells Watson that he’s an odd man, difficult to deal with, which could be either because of his symptoms, which neurotypical people often consider “difficult”, or because of his mannerisms and personality.
9)Holmes is apathetic:
it’s almost a fact, at this point, that Sherlock struggles with empathy and emotions, a symptom of aspd as well. with aspd, not only is it likely that you have apathy or hypoempathy, but it’s hard to understand how your words or actions may affect others. both are things our friend Holmes shows.
he talks about Watson’s brother until he gets mad and lashes out at him, as he doesn’t see how the topic could make him have such a reaction. he also fails to notice a client’s loss is still a sensitive subject to her, he only sees the evidence he needs to solve the case.
Sherlock also tends to look at emotion and motivations in a more logical way, as if he understands their existence, but can’t relate to it. this is specially true when he talks with clients or discusses a criminal’s motive. once again, this isn’t a lack of care, rather, just how his mind functions in his day-to-day life. Sherlock is still a very compassionate man, and does seem to care for his clients and acquaintances, as discussed before.
as said before as well, he doesn’t seem to react negatively to situations that are generally considered horrific or bad, which could mean he’s somewhat out of touch with his own emotions, which is also apathy.
Conclusions:
there’s much more to say here, but I’ll wrap it up here, as aome of the canon proof is scarce and this is already a very big post.
Sherlock Holmes having aspd would be an incredibly interesting thing to explore, specially since he’s a man who works to bring justice to people, and has great love for those he manages to get close too. More adaptions would benefit from exploring this in a respectful manner, perhaps letting people with aspd write him as well.
I’m making this post not only to share this headcanon, but hoping that this brings more awareness to this disorder, which is already so stigmatised in media and real life.
Sherlock Holmes slice of life, but there are instances where he is just staring at Watson from accross the room without blinking because he’s head empty. Watson gets used to it but everyone else is creeped out everytime it happens
can’t believe one of the most stressful things to ever happen in a sherlock holmes story is when watson gets pop quizzed by a murderer on chinese pottery facts that he only had like a day to study for.
We don’t talk about Jack Stapleton enough on here so here is a not-exactly-appreciation post (obviously he wasn’t a good person) for him.
-He was the main villain of The Hound of the Baskervilles, otherwise known as the most famous Sherlock Holmes book, so technically (technically) he out ranks Moriarty
-ACD decided to make him an entomologist just because he could. I mean villains do need hobbies other than killing
-I take that back he probably killed a load of insects as well
-Pretty much every time we see him he’s chasing bugs with his little net in the fields like what?????
-He makes his wife pretend to be his sister so Baskerville will fall in love with her, then he gets upset when it works???? Like, you asked for it???
-Plan failed successfully or whatever the opposite of that is
-Out of everything he could have done to scare Baskerville, he chose to set a dog on fire and let it loose in a field. It worked though, so it obviously wasn’t a bad idea
-His backstory is a lot better than most in the stories (if you’re not familiar with it, Stapleton was a secret relative of the Baskervilles) considering most characters just come to existence then are forgotten (*Coughs* Mary Morstan)
-He dies by running in a muddy field and sinking. That is an extremely simplified version of it but it is gist
*This isn’t to glorify Stapleton because he did some messed up stuff to his wife*
What I love most about acd H&W romantic relationship interpretation of the canon is that you always, and I say always without exception, can change the canon and confidently use the excuse: “gay relationships were illegal and Watson could’ve altered everything to be able to publish the story at that time, canonically being the unreliable narrator that he is.”
Anyone can make a story based on any case in canon and just say “Boom, this is how it really happened and Dr. Watson had to change it” and that would be not only right but also very plausible.
I’m just imagining early canon watson and russian watson discussing holmes
russian watson: what’s up with our new roommate canon watson: let’s write down everything we know about him, everything he is good at russian watson: well, he knows chemistry well canon watson: true canon watson: he also knows a lot about poisons russian watson: and explosives russian watson: and guns canon watson: good at martial arts russian watson: i could take him canon watson: and he has a lot of knowledge about the law canon watson: and horrific crimes! russian watson: … russian watson: the strangest people come to visit him… russian watson: some of them leave crying… russian watson: some of them are never seen leaving… canon watson: oh and he can play the violin beautifully :) canon watson: sherlock holmes is a fascinating man :) russian watson, at the same time: a criminal mastermind russian watson: russian watson: what canon watson: what
canon watson is like “man of my dreams” and russian watson is like “man of my nightmares”
I think that loving someone and being loved back is one of the deepest and most valuable feelings. Regardless of what kind of love it is, that’s not important because love encompasses so many things, and it develops in so many different ways that to think of them all would be impossible.
Sometimes I feel that the Holmes/Watson relationship makes me so happy because they really represent the concept of love in a different way than the conventional one. You can think of them as friends or lovers, or both. But you will always know that they adore each other with the utmost love and care, that through the years they built a relationship based on respect and patience, and that you can always find genuine comfort in them, if you need it.
