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A review by beaconatnight
Von Kempelen and His Discovery by Edgar Allan Poe
3.0
"Von Kempelen and his Discovery" takes up another science once held in serious regard, but which since has fallen from grace. As befitting to Poe's imaginary world of the macabre and horror, alchemy is clad in the arcane aura of maddening intrigue. If you came across the all-powerful formula, the Philosopher's stone so to speak, would it be immoral to keep your discovery hidden and reap its harvest?
The account is written in a highly characteristic tone that mixes astonishment and doubt. The text is rich in allusion and emphasis. The fictional commentary on a fictional work held to be fabricated it strongly reminded me of Jorge Luis Borges, an outspoken admirer of Poe's work. It's given the veneer of authenticity by remarks to the real-world Wolfgang von Kempelen whose automaton Chess Turk was a hoax chess computer (both topics appeared here earlier).
To some extent the story is as much about the discoverer as it is about his discovery. Initially, it seems as if the main purpose is to deprive Von Kempelen of all credibility before the addressed public. The narrator tells us about how he met the man and recites some anecdote that is to illustrate his personality, namely that he had before been accused of being a fraud.
What I love about the story (within the story) is the description of the apparatus whose purpose escapes the policemen. Modern technology set in older days (Poe's own days, in this case) always have these steampunk vibes I find quite delightful. The turn of events in his residence are narrated so vividly that they unfold before your mental eyes. Still, the real surprise only comes at the end when it is revealed what he had hidden there – immense amounts of gold apparently created with formulae found by the lawful intruders throughout the premise.
As the final piece of intrigue, the enigma remains unsolved. Von Kepelen was not willing (or able) to explain the nature of his discovery and all attempts to analyze the findings have failed. I don't know whether the publication fell into the heights of the American Gold Rush, but with its amazing prose and science practical enough to engage the layman, I'm sure it was able to thrill audiences under any circumstances. In fact, they might have been disillusioned about the prospects the endeavor.
The account is written in a highly characteristic tone that mixes astonishment and doubt. The text is rich in allusion and emphasis. The fictional commentary on a fictional work held to be fabricated it strongly reminded me of Jorge Luis Borges, an outspoken admirer of Poe's work. It's given the veneer of authenticity by remarks to the real-world Wolfgang von Kempelen whose automaton Chess Turk was a hoax chess computer (both topics appeared here earlier).
To some extent the story is as much about the discoverer as it is about his discovery. Initially, it seems as if the main purpose is to deprive Von Kempelen of all credibility before the addressed public. The narrator tells us about how he met the man and recites some anecdote that is to illustrate his personality, namely that he had before been accused of being a fraud.
What I love about the story (within the story) is the description of the apparatus whose purpose escapes the policemen. Modern technology set in older days (Poe's own days, in this case) always have these steampunk vibes I find quite delightful. The turn of events in his residence are narrated so vividly that they unfold before your mental eyes. Still, the real surprise only comes at the end when it is revealed what he had hidden there – immense amounts of gold apparently created with formulae found by the lawful intruders throughout the premise.
As the final piece of intrigue, the enigma remains unsolved. Von Kepelen was not willing (or able) to explain the nature of his discovery and all attempts to analyze the findings have failed. I don't know whether the publication fell into the heights of the American Gold Rush, but with its amazing prose and science practical enough to engage the layman, I'm sure it was able to thrill audiences under any circumstances. In fact, they might have been disillusioned about the prospects the endeavor.