Eureka: A Prose Poem — Edgar A. Poe, 1848 — reading text

my deductive pro cess, so thoroughly corroborated by induction, commences. My particle proper is but absolute Irrelation. To sum up THE UNIVERSE. 67 what has been here advanced : — As a starting point I have taken it for granted, simply, that the Beginning had nothing behind it or before it — that it was a Beginning in fact — that it was a beginning and nothing different from a beginning — in short that this Beginning was that which it was. If this be a " mere assumption " then a " mere assumption " let it be. To conclude this branch of the subject : — I am fully warranted in announcing that the Law which we have been in the habit of calling Gravity exists on account of Matter s having been irradiated, at its origin, atomically, into a limited* sphere of Space, from one, individual, uncondi tional, irrelative, and absolute Particle Proper, by the sole process in which it was possible to satisfy, at the same time, the two conditions, irradiation, and generally -equable dis tribution throughout the sphere — that is to say, by a force varying in direct proportion with the squares of the dis tances between the irradiated atoms, respectively, and the Particular centre of Irradiation. I have already given my reasons for presuming Matter to have been diffused by a determinate rather than by a continuous or infinitely continued force. Supposing a con tinuous force, we should be unable, in the first place, to comprehend a reaction at all ; and we should be required, in the second place, to entertain the impossible concep tion of an infinite extension of Matter. Not to dwell upon the impossibility of the conception, the infinite exten sion of Matter is an idea which, if not positively disproved, * Limited sphere" — A sphere is necessarily limited. I prefer tautology to a chance of misconception. 68 EUREKA. is at least not in any respect warranted by telescopic observation of the stars — a point to be explained more fully hereafter ; and this empirical reason for believing in the original finity of Matter is unempirically confirmed. For example : — Admitting, for the moment, the possibility of understanding Space filled with the irradiated atoms — that is to say, admitting, as well as we can, for argument's sake, that the succession of the irradiated atoms had absolutely ?io end — then it is abundantly clear that, even when the Volition of God had been withdrawn from them, and thus the tendency to return into Unity permitted (abstractly) to be satisfied, this permission would have been nugatory and invalid — practically valueless and of no effect whatever. No Reaction could have taken place ; no movement toward Unity could have been made ; no Law of Gravity could have obtained. To explain : — Grant the abstract tendency of any one atom to any one other as the inevitable result of diffusion from the normal Unity : — or, what is the same thing, admit any given atom as proposing to move in any given direc tion — it is clear that, since there is an infinity of atoms on all sides of the atom proposing to move, it never can actually move toward the satisfaction of its tendency in the direc tion given, on account of a precisely equal and counter balancing tendency in the direction diametrically opposite. In other words, exactly as many tendencies to Unity are behind the hesitating atom as before it ; for it is a mere sotticism to say that one infinite line is longer or shorter than another infinite line, or that one infinite number is greater or less than another number that is infinite. Thus THE UNIVERSE. 69 the atom in question must remain stationary forever. Under the impossible circumstances which we have been merely endeavoring to conceive for argument's sake, there could have been no aggregation of Matter — no stars — no worlds — nothing but a perpetually atomic and inconsequential Universe. In fact, view it as we will, the whole idea of unlimited Matter is not only untenable, but impossible and preposterous. With the understanding of a sphere of atoms, however, we perceive, at once, a satisfiable tendency to union. The general result of the tendency each to each, being a tend ency of all to the centre, the general process of condensa tion, or approximation, commences immediately, by a com mon and simultaneous movement, on withdrawal of the Divine Volition ; the individual approximations, or coales cences — not coalitions — of atom with atom, being subject to almost infinite variations of time, degree, and condition, on account of the excessive multiplicity of relation, arising from the differences of form assumed as characterizing the atoms at the moment of their quitting the Particle Proper ; as well as from the subsequent particular inequidistance, each from each. • What I wish to impress upon the reader is the certainty of there arising, at once, (on withdrawal of the diffusive force, or Divine Volition,) out of the condition of the atoms as described, at innumerable points throughout the Uni versal sphere, innumerable agglomerations, characterized by innumerable specific differences of form, size, essential nature, and distance each from each. The development of Repulsion (Electricity) must have commenced, of course, 70 EUREKA. with the very earliest particular efforts at Unity, and must have proceeded constantly in the ratio of Coalescence — that is to say, in that of Condensation, or, again, of Hetero geneity. Thus the two Principles Proper, Attraction and Repul sion — the Material and the Spiritual — accompany each other, in the strictest fellowship, forever. Thus The Body and The Soul walk hand in hand. If now, in fancy, we select any one of the agglomera tions considered as in their primary stages throughout the Universal sphere, ami suppose this incipient agglomeration to be taking place at that point where the centre of our Sun exists — or rather where it did exist originally ; for the Sun is perpetually shifting his position — we shall find ourselves met, and borne onward for a time at least, by the most magnificent of theories — by the Nebular Cosmogony of Laplace : — although " Cosmogony " is far too comprehen sive a term for what he really discusses — which is the con stitution of our solar system alone — of one among the my riad of similar systems which make up the Universe Proper — that Universal sphere — that all-inclusive and absolute Kosmos which forms the subject of my present Discourse. Confining himself to an obviously limited region — that of our solar system with its comparatively immediate vici nity — and merely assuming — that is to say, assuming with out any basis whatever, either deductive or inductive — much of what I have been just endeavoring to place upon a more stable basis than assumption ; assuming, for exam ple, matter as diffused (without pretending to account for the diffusion) throughout, and somewhat beyond, the space THE UNIVERSE. 71 occupied by our system — diffused in a state of heterogeneous nebulosity and obedient to that omniprevalent law of Gra vity at whose principle he ventured to make no guess ; — assuming all this (which is quite true, although he had no logical right to its assumption) Laplace has shown, dyna mically and mathematically, that the results in such case necessarily ensuing, are those and those alone which we find manifested in the actually existing condition of the system itself. To explain : — Let us conceive that particular agglome ration of which we have just spoken — the one at the point designated by our Sun's centre — to have so far proceeded that a vast quantity of nebulous matter has here assumed a roughly globular form ; its centre being, of course, coinci dent with what is now, or rather was originally, the centre of our Sun ; and its periphery extending out beyond the orbit of Neptune, the most remote of our planets : — in other words, let us suppose the diameter of this rough sphere to be some 6000 millions of miles. For ages, this mass of matter has been undergoing condensation, until at length it has become reduced into the bulk we imagine ; having proceeded gradually, of course, from its atomic and imper ceptible state, into what we understand of visible, palpable, or otherwise appreciable nebulosity. Now, the condition of this mass implies a rotation about an imaginary axis — a rotation which, commencing with the absolute incipiency of the aggregation, has been ever since acquiring velocity. The very first two atoms which met, approaching each other from points not diametrically oppo site, would, in rushing partially past each other, form a 72 EUREKA. nucleus for the rotary movement described. How this would increase in velocity, is readily seen. The two atoms are joined by others : — an. aggregation is formed. The mass continues to rotate while condensing. But any atom at the circumference has, of course, a more rapid motion than one nearer the centre. The outer atom, however, with its superior velocity, approaches the centre ; carrying this su perior velocity with it as it goes. Thus every atom, pro ceeding inwardly, and finally attaching itself to the con densed centre, adds something to the original velocity of that centre — that is to say, increases the rotary movement of the mass. Let us now suppose this mass so far condensed that it occupies precisely the space circumscribed by the orbit of Neptune, and that the velocity with which the surface of the mass moves, in the general rotation, is precisely that velocity with which Neptune now revolves about the Sun. At this epoch, then, we are to understand that the con stantly increasing centrifugal force, having gotten the better of the non-increasing centripetal, loosened and separated the exterior and least condensed stratum, or a few of the exterior and least condensed strata, at the equator of the sphere, where the tangential velocity predominated ; so that these strata formed about the main body an inde pendent ring encircling the equatorial regions :— just as the exterior portion thrown off, by excessive velocity of rota tion, from a grindstone, would form a ring about the grind stone, but for the solidity of the superficial material : were this caoutchouc, or anything similar in consistency, pre cisely the phenomenon I describe would be presented. THE