Carnacki, the Ghost Finder: (Annotated Edition)

ISBN-10
ISBN-13: 9798678077707
Series: Carnacki, the Ghost Finder
Pages: 125
Language: English
Published: 2020-08-23
Author: William Hope William Hope Hodgson

Description

Hodgson's combination of classic detection with occult investigations was not without precedent. Hodgson's Carnacki is a younger version of J. Sheridan Le Fanu's Martin Hesselius (introduced in "Green Tea," 1869), a doctor of "metaphysical medicine," and Algernon Blackwood's title character of the story collection John Silence, Physician Extraordinary (1908). Unlike them, Carnacki has no medical training, but he does have a strong scientific bent, illustrated by his invention of an ingenious "Electric Pentacle," a variation of the cabalistic five-pointed star enclosed within a circle and intended to act as a barrier against malevolent occult forces. Carnacki refers to his use of formulae from ancient magic rituals as a "curious thing for a Twentieth Century man" that might provoke "cheap laughter" from some. Carnacki, however, will not allow himself to be "blinded" by ridicule: "I ask questions and keep my eyes open."