Physics in Carnacki’s Investigations: the Role of New Scientific Discoveries in Literature

In the stories of Carnacki, a fictional supernatural detective created by the English writer William H. Hodgson, and written between 1910 and 1913, we can find an interesting mixture of science and fantasy. Carnacki is a ghost finder, who investigates in an environment where supernatural is occurring. However, we find that he is using scientific discoveries and technologies of the beginning of the 20th century to reveal the hidden clues leading to the solution of the mysteries. Therefore, bringing the modern science into the fiction, Carnacki’s investigations are mirroring some of the popular knowledge of physics and technology of that time.