Eureka : A Prose Poem

Eureka describes Poe's intuitive conception of the nature of the universe with no antecedent scientific work done to reach his conclusions. He also describe man's relationship with God whom he compares to an author. Though it is generally considered a literary work some of Poe's ideas anticipate 20th century scientific discoveries and theories. Indeed a critical analysis of the scientific content of Eureka reveals a non-causal correspondence with modern cosmology due to the assumption of an evolving universe but excludes the anachronistic anticipation of relativistic concepts such as black holes. Eureka was received poorly in Poe's day and generally described as absurd even by friends. Modern critics continue to debate the significance of Eureka and some doubt its seriousness. It is written in a progressive manner that anticipates its audience. The author uses more metaphors further into the work in the belief that the reader becomes more interested.