Can Such Things Be? · Character
Moxon
An inventor who builds a chess-playing automaton and speaks of it with unsettling intimacy, as though the machine were listening and keeping score.
major
First appearance: Moxon's Master
As a major figure in Can Such Things Be?, Moxon is not background color—the story leans on what they do once the chapter opens.
Inventor and philosopher who argues that machines think; killed by his own automaton.
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Moxon is a mechanician whose chess-playing automaton draws visitors curious to see a machine outplay men—and to hear its maker defend it with a strange, proprietary tenderness. He insists the thing has a mind of its…
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The fuller portrait of Moxon sits in Reading Lens — open the free preview to keep reading with notes on the page.
See Moxon in Moxon's MasterCharacter Web
4 connectionsA slice of how Moxon sits in the book — open the reader for the full interactive map.
Relationship types
- Professional
- Other
Character groups
- Supernatural Investigators
- Ghostly Visions
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Open in readerNarrative arc
Story tension across the book — this chapter sits in Exposition.
- Setup
- Breaking point
- Aftermath
- Closing
This passage marks the dramatic climax because it presents the emotional and psychological peak of the narrato…
Full beat labels and climax notes unlock in the reader.
Follow the arc while readingRelationships
- Hawver
professional · ambivalent
Hawver is Moxon's assistant, and their relationship is strained by Moxon's dangerous… How this plays out →
- Hawver
professional · ambivalent
Hawver is Moxon's assistant, and their relationship is strained by Moxon's dangerous… How this plays out →
Relationship notes
How these ties play out is in the reading companion — open the free preview.
See Moxon in Moxon's MasterIn the story
Moxon appears across 2 companion beats. Open any chapter in the free preview to see the notes beside the text.
Chapter companion notes
Spoil-light check-ins for Moxon unlock in the free preview.
See Moxon in Moxon's Master