The last of the three canonical Dupin tales is one where the great detective, or proto-detective, solves the case even before his “old acquaintance” Monsieur G – , Prefect of the Parisian police, can tell him about it. “Perhaps it is the very simplicity of the thing which puts you at fault,” he teases. “Perhaps the mystery is a little too plain . . . A little too self-evident.” Monsieur G – thinks this is all very funny, but Dupin has taken the measure of the man and knows exactly how a criminal will go about bamboozling him, and indeed fooling the entire Paris police department. The letter thief is, after all, a mathematician and a poet. Like the cunning schoolboy who wins all his classmates’ marbles, it will take someone gifted with both powers of observation and the ability to take “admeasurement of the astuteness of his opponent” to outfox Minister D –.
In my notes on “The Murders in the Rue Morgue” I listed a bunch of the now familiar detective-story tropes that Poe introduced. In “The Purloined Letter” he adds another in the face-off between the genius detective and the criminal mastermind. It seems Dupin and Minister D – have a history, and I like to think that if Poe had gone on to write more Dupin stories they would have become a bit like Holmes and Moriarty. But this was the end of the line. Poe’s favourite tale of ratiocination would go on to become popular with the reading public as well as a text for much trendy but worthless French criticism to puzzle over, but Dupin didn’t have the kind of franchise afterlife of Holmes or Poirot. What later writers picked up Dupin as they would those other detectives? None that I’m aware of. And that’s another mystery.
Alex Good 
Are there movies of the books?
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They’ve definitely made several movies out of Murders in the Rue Morgue. Don’t think they’ve filmed the others, but I’m not certain.
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Maybe that’s why they’re not so popular as Holmes.
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Any idea WHY these didn’t continue? From what you’ve written, they seem to be a sure thing in terms of writing more and more.
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It’s a good question. Poe was only going to live a few more years so there’s that. But he was always in need of money so you’d think he would have milked it for more. What I find interesting is that there have been a lot of “new” Sherlock Holmes and Hercule Poirot and even Miss Marple novels and stories written, but I don’t know of any new Dupin stories. You’d think he’d attract somebody.
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My guess is that he’s (Dupin, not Poe) not well known enough to generate attention by name alone.
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It may just be that. But he’s pretty well known among mystery lovers. I’m surprised nobody’s run with it.
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I’m assuming he’s in public domain too, so they could create original stories now with him….
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Yep, same as with Holmes. I think the Christie estate still has to authorize new Poirot stories.
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Does he take admeasurement of the ratiocination? I bet they love you at the local library. Probably have a table just for you.
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I don’t know if they love me. But everyone knows my name. Sometimes you want to go . . .
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