Summary

In “The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar” by Edgar Allan Poe, a mesmerist describes one of his cases in which he mesmerized a dying patient, M. Valdemar. The patient suffers from phthisis and is sure that he is going to die soon. The mesmerist pays him constant visits, training the patient for his mesmerizing experiment.

One night, M. Valdemar sends the mesmerist a note announcing him that his two doctors estimate that he is going to die by the next day in the evening. When the mesmerist arrives there, the patient is in a deplorable condition and the two doctors, D and F, confirm his upcoming death. The doctors leave and are to return the next evening at the request of the mesmerist.

The next day, a medicine student arrives at M. Valdemar’s house to help the mesmerist. The mesmerizing session starts at about eight in the night. At ten o’clo...