Sherlock Holmes:
The Immortal Detective of Edinburgh
Why are we still reading Sherlock Holmes in 2025? I have been thinking about this question repeatedly.
He is cold, rarely emotional, except when investigating cases; he never cries, struggles with socializing, is full of superiority, and can sometimes be a little mean. For modern readers, he seems to be an old-fashioned character.
But why are so many readers like me today still obsessed with this detective who can be our great-grandfather?
When I approached Edinburgh, I discovered the source of Sherlock Holmes’s rational yet charming temperament, and the answer to why he can attract readers for so long — his soul coexists with a strong city.
Without Conan Doyle’s life and study experience in Edinburgh, Edinburgh’s urban culture, and the temperament of the Scottish people, Holmes might still be created in another corner of the world. Still, perhaps he would not be the extremely rational, rigorous, indifferent, strong, and complex person he is.
From “Being Dr.Watson” to Sherlock Holmes
Aurther Conan Doyle was born in Picardy Place, Edinburgh, in 1859.
As a rebellious child who disliked Catholicism and was enthusiastic about adventure, Conan Doyle grew up in a classic Scottish family.
In 1877, Edinburgh was a renowned global center for medical learning.
For this reason, the young Conan Doyle returned to Edinburgh from the Jesuit school in Germany and entered the University of Edinburgh’s medical school.
However, the family’s financial difficulties, failed scholarship applications, and the twists and turns of the education system made his college career far from sufficient to achieve his desired goals.
“At the University of Edinburgh, there is no friendship between professors and students, not even acquaintance,” said Conan Doyle in his autobiography, Memories and Adventures.
The savior-like character appeared at this time: Joseph Bell, one of Conan Doyle’s professors in medical school, an energetic and skilled surgeon.
In the second year of university, Conan Doyle was selected from many students to become Dr. Bell’s outpatient clerk and learned from him the core reasoning skills of Sherlock Holmes – “Observe with your eyes.”
He not only diagnoses the condition but also diagnoses the visitor’s occupation and personality from observing their walkway, tattoos, subtle differences in accents, calluses on their hands, and other characteristics.
For example, he once judged that a burly civilian patient was a Scottish soldier who had recently retired from the army by his habit of being polite but not taking off his hat.
In Dr. Bell’s opinion, teachers must first show students how to accurately identify cases, teach them to observe, stimulate their interest in this process, and skillfully utilize their observational skills.
These are obviously advantageous for diagnosing illnesses and also show great applicability in the field of criminal investigation.
He has often relied on his excellent observational skills to assist the police in investigating cases, such as the Ardlamont mystery of 1893 and the Jack the Ripper case in Scotland.
Conan Doyle has repeatedly said that “Dr. Bell’s eagle face, his curious ways, and his eerie trick of spotting details” inspired him in the creation of Sherlock Holmes, and incorporated Bell’s observation skills into Holmes’ reasoning
“From a drop of water, a logician could infer the possibility of an Atlantic or a Niagara without having seen or heard of one or the other.”
— Sherlock Holmes in A Study in Scarlet
Although there is still controversy over who exactly Sherlock Holmes was based on, it is obvious that when Conan Doyle shadowed Dr. Bell as “Watson” at Edinburgh University, he amassed many experiences that would later be used to portray Sherlock Holmes.
How did Edinburgh shape Holmes’ soul?
Edinburgh is a city that prioritizes logic and rationality.
At the end of the 18th century, international trade and banking in Scotland experienced significant growth, resulting in substantial economic benefits, the emergence of a new middle and upper class, and an expansion of educational opportunities.
In 1750, the Scots were the most educated citizens in Europe at the time, with a literacy rate of 75%.
Edinburgh’s law, education, medicine, chemistry, and other fields developed rapidly, and the worship of knowledge became mainstream.
Intellectuals, represented by the Edinburgh philosopher David Hume, liberated the city from the shackles of religious theocracy and pushed it towards thorough empiricism and pragmatism, setting off a wave of the Enlightenment.
This way of thinking struck directly at the core of Holmes’s logic, causing him to attach importance to observing the crime scene and employing deductive reasoning.
In A Scandal in Bohemia, Holmes said: “It is a capital mistake to theorize before one has data. Insensibly, one begins to twist facts to suit theories, instead of theories to suit facts.” This is not only a principle for solving cases, but also a continuation of the spirit of enlightenment.
I cannot imagine that Holmes was born in Paris or Naples, because detectives in those cities may be romantic, or pay more attention to emotional analysis. However, Holmes only believes in practice, clues, and data.
In terms of urban structure, the Scots Baronial architecture style emerged in Edinburgh in the 19th century, represented by Edinburgh’s New Town (not “new” in the literal sense, as it has a history of more than 250 years).
Most of the houses and streets are strictly symmetrical in design. Although they are exquisite and complex, they are solemn, symbolizing the importance of order to the citizens of Edinburgh.
In a sense, Sherlock Holmes’ thought palace is complicated but orderly, refusing to collapse, cry, or pray, and is obsessed with analysing every clue with a microscope to find logic.
This historical background and the atmosphere of the city influenced why Holmes “prefers to be a reasoning machine rather than a sentimental and considerate detective.”
He is not here to save victims, but he defends justice with logic.
Some people may think that Holmes is too harsh and cold, but this is “very Scottish.”
Some people may think that Holmes is too harsh and cold, but this is “very Scottish.”
Unlike England, Scotland is in a marginal area with a cold and humid climate. It has a highly autonomous education and legal system, influenced by the Enlightenment culture. This rational and repressed tendency is reflected in Holmes as a belief in factual evidence and a seemingly cold self-confidence.
He is obsessed with fingerprints, handwriting, footprints, and cigarette butts; he only believes in observation and reasoning.
Such persistence and rationality may only be literary settings in different places, but it is natural and reasonable to appear in Scotland.
In my opinion, Holmes is a typical Edinburgh detective. His character is closely related to the history and urban atmosphere of Edinburgh, crystallising Edinburgh’s urban consciousness in the 18th and 19th centuries.
Why do we still need Holmes?
Returning to the question of why we still love Holmes, it seems that he is no longer relevant today.
After all, we live in an age where case-solving tools are abundant. Surveillance cameras and networked analysis tools are everywhere, and people pay more attention to the emotional atmosphere. The detective who coldly observes cigarette butts seems out of place.
But perhaps this is precisely the reason why Holmes is more critical than ever.
In a world where information and lies coexist, we need Holmes’s ability to maintain rational judgment and consistently pursue justice and truth.
And this is precisely the proposition that Edinburgh in the 19th century took the lead in facing. In global detective literature, he consistently reminds readers that observation and logic must prevail, while ruthlessness and morality can coexist.
If Holmes were still alive, He would interpret false information, verify the facts of deep forgery, or question the ethics of artificial intelligence. His tools might be changed, but his way of critical, skeptical, and rational thinking will still be crucial.
This is precisely the quality I need in the 21st century. And I believe that many young people like me are eager to seek guidance from a friend like Sherlock Holmes in times of confusion, or to aspire to be like Sherlock Holmes.
So, I want to share Holmes’ classic line, “Elementary, my dear Watson.”
I hope that we can keep rationality in our unstable lives, just as Holmes did when he was investigating on a rainy night in Edinburgh.
“Elementary, my dear friends.”