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3.39 AVERAGE
3.39 AVERAGE
More accurately three and a half stars. H. G. Wells’ classic is a classic and founding father of science fiction and horror fiction for good reason. As ridiculous as a lot of the plot is, the format of this now over 100 year old novel told through third person accounts is very affective. I spent the first third of the novel wondering where the horror would be, while the Invisible Man keeps trying to be left alone and the nosy townsfolk won’t let him be. The ending is surprisingly affective, and has birthed countless horror novels, films and other stories since.
A number of years ago, I subscribed to the Easton Press Masterpieces of Science Fiction series, whereby a subscriber would received a new leatherbound book each month for as long as they are subscribed. I don't remember how many months I did this for but I did end up with three books by H.G. Wells, one of which was The Invisible Man published in 1897. These three books have sat on my shelf ever since until yesterday when I decided to give one a go.
For a book that is now nearly ~125 years old, The Invisible Man was a surprisingly fun little read that doesn't read overly outdated. Overall a bit farcical but that was probably the intent. It is the story of a man who discovers a means of making himself invisible. Rather than sharing his discovery with the scientific world, he proceeds to plot only how he can use his new discovery to empower himself and take advantage of others. Ultimately, his "reign of terror" is ended but not until several people have been robbed, physically assaulted, houses burned, and some killed. Tame by today's standards but engaging nevertheless.
For a book that is now nearly ~125 years old, The Invisible Man was a surprisingly fun little read that doesn't read overly outdated. Overall a bit farcical but that was probably the intent. It is the story of a man who discovers a means of making himself invisible. Rather than sharing his discovery with the scientific world, he proceeds to plot only how he can use his new discovery to empower himself and take advantage of others. Ultimately, his "reign of terror" is ended but not until several people have been robbed, physically assaulted, houses burned, and some killed. Tame by today's standards but engaging nevertheless.
Misanthropic and bereft of philosophy, it begins as farce and concludes in a homicidal froth. Pity.
The story behind the invisible man is quite intriguing, and the science being plausible enough, but the execution was not for me. The invisible man was so full of hatred and anger, coming out of nowhere in his backstory, and with no redeeming qualities for me to empathize with his plight. This could have been ana amazing story about loss and despair, how being invisible made him isolated and the true importance of being seen in this life. Instead, it was a an angry white man willing to take anything and everything because his life wasn't turning out the way he wanted. This would have been a better short story, or simply completely rewritten.
Blijft wel grappig als je bedenkt dat The Invisible Man dit hele boek lang in zijnen bloten moest rondlopen om invisible te zijn.
adventurous
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
It's interesting to line up the similarities in the kinds of scientists Wells writes about.
La fine dell'ottocento vedeva evidentemente la società guardare con attenzione, ammirazione e un po' di timore alla scienza, e ai progressi inimmaginabili che questa compiva.
E così dopo che Stevenson aveva immaginato gli estremi cui si sarebbe potuti arrivare separando la parte buona di una persona da quella cattiva, e dopo che lo stesso Wells aveva ipotizzato la creazione di una macchina per viaggiare nel tempo mostrandoci il futuro della Terra... eccoci ora alle prese con un altro dei grandi sogni dell'uomo, l'invisibilità.
Chi non ha mai sognato di poter diventare invisibile? Chi non si è mai fermato a pensare a cosa avrebbe potuto ottenere se solo avesse avuto questo potere?
Wells ci accontenta, presentandoci il grande scenziato Griffin, che è riuscito a scoprire il segreto dell'invisibilità.
Ma come già aveva fatto Stevenson con lo sdoppiamento tra Jekyll e Hyde, anche in questo caso il successo dell'esperimento non porta a niente di buono.
Infatti oltre ai lati negativi dell'invisibilità, scopriamo che i lati positivi si limitano a efferatezze, e anche quando ancora Griffin non era scivolato nella follia criminale, gli usi che ne ipotizzava erano egoistici e malvagi, forte del fatto che, semplicemente, non sarebbe potuto venire incolpato di quanto fatto da un uomo invisibile.
Un bel libro, ben scritto, interessante nella tematica, realistico nelle reazioni e nello svolgimento.
E così dopo che Stevenson aveva immaginato gli estremi cui si sarebbe potuti arrivare separando la parte buona di una persona da quella cattiva, e dopo che lo stesso Wells aveva ipotizzato la creazione di una macchina per viaggiare nel tempo mostrandoci il futuro della Terra... eccoci ora alle prese con un altro dei grandi sogni dell'uomo, l'invisibilità.
Chi non ha mai sognato di poter diventare invisibile? Chi non si è mai fermato a pensare a cosa avrebbe potuto ottenere se solo avesse avuto questo potere?
Wells ci accontenta, presentandoci il grande scenziato Griffin, che è riuscito a scoprire il segreto dell'invisibilità.
Ma come già aveva fatto Stevenson con lo sdoppiamento tra Jekyll e Hyde, anche in questo caso il successo dell'esperimento non porta a niente di buono.
Infatti oltre ai lati negativi dell'invisibilità, scopriamo che i lati positivi si limitano a efferatezze, e anche quando ancora Griffin non era scivolato nella follia criminale, gli usi che ne ipotizzava erano egoistici e malvagi, forte del fatto che, semplicemente, non sarebbe potuto venire incolpato di quanto fatto da un uomo invisibile.
Un bel libro, ben scritto, interessante nella tematica, realistico nelle reazioni e nello svolgimento.
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Old books like this one was probably innovative and creative for its time but it does not hold up much. This book doesn't really surprise you with anything. Some scenes are great and provoke extremely vivid imagery:
("But for a second it seemed to her that the man she looked at had an enormous mouth wide open—a vast and incredible mouth that swallowed the whole of the lower portion of his face. It was the sensation of a moment: the white-bound head, the monstrous goggle eyes, and this huge yawn below it.")
But it is not worth the time with such cast of characters. If they were an unnamed hordes of civilians it would have made no difference. With a few exceptions of the protagonist and the antagonist. There was one interesting side character that could've made for a dramatic revenge plotline, but said character was only ever name dropped and never appeared again in the second part of the book.
There is probably some sort of metaphor you can dig out of a story about an easily irritated Invisible Man ravaging the random townspeople. Maybe it's about the cold war, the spy of the enemy state, the invisible threat, the savagery and uncare for civilized acts that stemmed from anonymity. Maybe it's not that deep, and it's just about a psychotic bloke from England throwing hands invisibly until someone had enough of him.
("But for a second it seemed to her that the man she looked at had an enormous mouth wide open—a vast and incredible mouth that swallowed the whole of the lower portion of his face. It was the sensation of a moment: the white-bound head, the monstrous goggle eyes, and this huge yawn below it.")
But it is not worth the time with such cast of characters. If they were an unnamed hordes of civilians it would have made no difference. With a few exceptions of the protagonist and the antagonist. There was one interesting side character that could've made for a dramatic revenge plotline, but said character was only ever name dropped and never appeared again in the second part of the book.
There is probably some sort of metaphor you can dig out of a story about an easily irritated Invisible Man ravaging the random townspeople. Maybe it's about the cold war, the spy of the enemy state, the invisible threat, the savagery and uncare for civilized acts that stemmed from anonymity. Maybe it's not that deep, and it's just about a psychotic bloke from England throwing hands invisibly until someone had enough of him.
I love me some nineteenth century horror. Have you seen the recent movie with Elizabeth Moss? I love that this story keeps being retold, even though the new movie is a completely new take on the story.