The Murders in the Rue Morgue:
The “The Murders in the Rue Morgue” has been claimed to be the first detective story. In “The Murders in the Rue Morgue” Dupin,
the detective, uses his mind scientifically and analytically and solves
the mystery with success. Dupin visited the place where the murders took
place. At the scene of the murder, Dupin found an unusual strand of
hair. The hair seemed very different from that of a normal human’s hair.
Besides, the neighbors had claimed that they did not understand that
language of the murderer. Hence, Dupin identified and analyzed six
points as essential to the killer’s identity. These points were- the
killer had an inarticulate, shrilled voice with no words, he was agile
enough to get into the house through the window, he had superhuman
strength, the act involved inhuman cruelty, the killer seemed to have no
motive altogether, the strand of hair at the site of the murder was
unusual. Besides these, the giant fingerprints on Madame L’Espanaye’s
neck were consistent with those of an orangutan. In this way, Dupin
analyzed various evidences and worked with a scientific mind to conclude
that the murders were at the hand of an orangutan.
In this way, we realize that the story has a scientific theme, involving analytical thinking by one of its characters. Although the police officers considered the case of this double murder impossible to solve, Dupin’s positive scientific attitude made possible the impossible. Dupin’s interpretation of the murderer being an orangutan, just from examining the nature of a strand of hair was astonishing indeed. Furthermore, his close examination of the window at the site of murder and interpretation of the agility that the murderer might need to have also contribute to the story’s scientific basis. His examination of the fingerprints on the neck of the deceased finally led him to his conclusion. We can safely interpret this story to be a piece of fiction related to life sciences, due to strong evidence relating to the physical differences between humans and animals. In other words, the analysis of the murder was based on intuition and physical features like hair and physical strength. Thus, this work of Poe is one of fiction, with a scientific background. The scientific background is closely related to the branch of life sciences.
In this way, we realize that the story has a scientific theme, involving analytical thinking by one of its characters. Although the police officers considered the case of this double murder impossible to solve, Dupin’s positive scientific attitude made possible the impossible. Dupin’s interpretation of the murderer being an orangutan, just from examining the nature of a strand of hair was astonishing indeed. Furthermore, his close examination of the window at the site of murder and interpretation of the agility that the murderer might need to have also contribute to the story’s scientific basis. His examination of the fingerprints on the neck of the deceased finally led him to his conclusion. We can safely interpret this story to be a piece of fiction related to life sciences, due to strong evidence relating to the physical differences between humans and animals. In other words, the analysis of the murder was based on intuition and physical features like hair and physical strength. Thus, this work of Poe is one of fiction, with a scientific background. The scientific background is closely related to the branch of life sciences.
Some Words With a Mummy:
“Some Words With a Mummy”, penned by Poe,
is inclined towards science in many implicit as well as explicit ways, indicating that
science is the ultimate basis of this story. The story is based on the
branch of life sciences and can be classified as a piece of science
fiction due to the absurdity of incidents involving the narrator’s
interactions with a mummy, which comes alive from the dead. This story
is a compilation of impractical humor and science in general. The
narrator refers to the scientific manner in which the mummy was given
electric shocks after incisions were made to its temple, toe and nose.
The process of giving electric shocks, carried out scientifically,
sprouted from a rather random and spontaneous thought which was
contributed by one of the characters in the story, and which had no
logical basis. Hence we can say that Poe induces a reader's interest by giving a scientific background to a work of impractical humor.
In “Some Words With a Mummy”, Poe also compares the difference in the scientific knowledge of the ancient Egyptians and that of a man in the modern world. The men asked the mummy about the Egyptians’ astronomical knowledge, beliefs, use of metals, science, transport, and so on. Then, they ridiculed the mummy over the answers that it gave them. For example, when the men asked the mummy if he knew anything about how the universe was created, he not only answered that it always existed, but also said that the Egyptians believed that man was created naturally by spontaneous generation. They criticized the mummy on hearing his unscientific answer.
Thus, we understand that the story has a definite and explicit scientific background. The mummy was brought to life by a scientific process and then the conversation between the characters in the story and the mummy was also based on science, focusing on scientific inventions and differences in the ancient Egyptian and modern American approach towards science in daily life. The men in the story also seem to have a scientific and inquiring attitude. An evidence of this is that they asked the mummy about the Egyptian process of embalming the dead before burying their bodies and its scientific basis.
In “Some Words With a Mummy”, Poe also compares the difference in the scientific knowledge of the ancient Egyptians and that of a man in the modern world. The men asked the mummy about the Egyptians’ astronomical knowledge, beliefs, use of metals, science, transport, and so on. Then, they ridiculed the mummy over the answers that it gave them. For example, when the men asked the mummy if he knew anything about how the universe was created, he not only answered that it always existed, but also said that the Egyptians believed that man was created naturally by spontaneous generation. They criticized the mummy on hearing his unscientific answer.
Thus, we understand that the story has a definite and explicit scientific background. The mummy was brought to life by a scientific process and then the conversation between the characters in the story and the mummy was also based on science, focusing on scientific inventions and differences in the ancient Egyptian and modern American approach towards science in daily life. The men in the story also seem to have a scientific and inquiring attitude. An evidence of this is that they asked the mummy about the Egyptian process of embalming the dead before burying their bodies and its scientific basis.
Conclusion:
Poe's works were fictitious and at times beyond imagination. However, Poe made his stories interesting to read by giving most of his stories a scientific background and a logical basis. Hence we realize how Poe was a pioneer of the science fiction genre. We also realize that during Poe's time scientific inventions had gained impetus. Hence, we could relate the period of Poe's life to being a probable reason for his works having scientific background. Science fiction and its use in solving mysteries was a fantastic combination that worked in favor of Poe. Poe's name became synonymous with works of mystery and horror and belonging to the science fiction genre. Some of Poe's works were reproduced in the form of movies by modern art directors and producers. Thus we can say that Poe was not only successful in incorporating scientific thoughts in his works, but also successful in attracting a large number of readers who appreciated his works.
