Publisher's Synopsis
The Diamond Lens is a short story written by Fitz-James O'Brien. The story is about a young scientist named Linley who becomes obsessed with creating a powerful microscope that will allow him to see the smallest particles of matter. After years of work, he finally succeeds in creating the lens, which is made from a diamond. When he looks through the lens, he sees a beautiful woman living in a tiny world inside a drop of water. He becomes infatuated with her and tries to find a way to enter her world. Eventually, he discovers that the woman is actually a fairy and that his attempts to enter her world have caused her to die. The story ends with Linley realizing the folly of his obsession and the tragic consequences of his actions. The Diamond Lens is a classic example of a cautionary tale about the dangers of scientific obsession and the consequences of playing God.This casual mention of the spiritualist, Madame Vulpes, set me on a new track. What if this spiritualism should be really a great fact? What if, through communication with subtiler organisms than my own, I could reach at a single bound the goal, which perhaps a life of agonizing mental toil would never enable me to attain?This scarce antiquarian book is a facsimile reprint of the old original and may contain some imperfections such as library marks and notations. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment for protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature in affordable, high quality, modern editions, that are true to their original work.
