Significance and criticism R'lyeh is characterized by bizarre architecture likened to non-Euclidean geometry that hampers exploration and escape. At one point, a crew member "climbed interminably along the grotesque stone mouldingthat is, one would call it climbing if the thing was not after all horizontaland the men wondered how any door in the universe could be so vast" and at another, a sailor "was swallowed up by an angle of masonry which shouldn't have been there; an angle which was acute, but behaved as if it were obtuse". Mathematician Benjamin K.Tippett demonstrates that these observations are consistent with "exploring a bubble of curved spacetime". Non-Euclidean geometry and Einstein's theories feature in several of Lovecraft's stories as Weird elements. Critics Paul Halpern and Michael C. Labossiere note that Rather than having science expand its boundaries to include genuine supernatural phenomena through brand new theories, the alleged supernatural phenomena are instead accounted for in scientific terms through existing models of nature. Thus, science is not so much embracing the supernatural as reducing it to a manifestation of the natural. Lovecraft's fascinating approach to science and the supernatural is further illustrated by the fact that he reverses the usual technique for ghostly fright. Rather than breaking the laws of science with supernatural means and thus generating fear, he creates a feeling of horror by showing that the common sense views of physics and nature (that is, the old Newtonian views) are the comforting fantasy. In contrast, the counterintuitive "new physics", the true scientific reality, provides the source of horror.
Significance and criticism R'lyeh is characterized by bizarre architecture likened to non-Euclidean geometry that hampers exploration and escape At one point a crew member "climbed interminably along the grotesque stone mouldingthat is one would call it climbing if the thing was not after all horizontaland the men wondered how any door in the universe could be so vast" and at another a sailor "was swallowed up by an angle of masonry which shouldn't have been there; an angle which was acute but behaved as if it were obtuse" Mathematician Benjamin KTippett demonstrates that these observations are consistent with "exploring a bubble of curved spacetime" Non-Euclidean geometry and Einstein's theories feature in several of Lovecraft's stories as Weird elements Critics Paul Halpern and Michael C Labossiere note that Rather than having science expand its boundaries to include genuine supernatural phenomena through brand new theories the alleged supernatural phenomena are instead accounted for in scientific terms through existing models of nature Thus science is not so much embracing the supernatural as reducing it to a manifestation of the natural Lovecraft's fascinating approach to science and the supernatural is further illustrated by the fact that he reverses the usual technique for ghostly fright Rather than breaking the laws of science with supernatural means and thus generating fear he creates a feeling of horror by showing that the common sense views of physics and nature (that is the old Newtonian views) are the comforting fantasy In contrast the counterintuitive "new physics" the true scientific reality provides the source of horror