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archives_of_ayse 's review for:
L'isola del dottor Moreau
by H.G. Wells
"Not to go on all-Fours; that is the Law. Are we not Men?
Not to suck up Drink; that is the Law. Are we not Men?
Not to eat Flesh or Fish; that is the Law. Are we not Men?
Not to claw the Bark of Trees; that is the Law. Are we not Men?
Not to chase other Men; that is the Law. Are we not Men?" (Wells 61)
3.5 stars, rounded up.
In true gothic horror/sci-fi fashion, H.G. Wells spins a fascinating yet terrifyingly resonant tale of human hubris, the morality of innovation, and the very nature of what it means to be human. The Island of Dr. Moreau follows a castaway scientist as he finds himself on the hidden island of the titular Dr. Moreau, a scientist from London who was shunned by his peers due to his experiments with vivisection. Dr. Moreau has not stopped his experiments, however, and this whole island is inhabited by half-man/half-beast creatures. Wells, unfortunately, refers to these creatures almost exclusively in terms like "black" or "native" initially to fool us into believing these creations were merely normal people that our racist narrator Prendick so horribly disfigured with his descriptions. As the story progresses, however, so does Prendick's descriptions of these people. The language shifts from beasts/creatures to people. So, there's at least growth?
The attitude and subsequent experiments that Dr. Moreau had brought to mind the other "evil scientists" in our history and vernacular: WWII's Nazi Scientists experimenting on human bodies, Mary Shelley's Dr. Frankenstein, and Dr. Oppenheimer of the Manhattan Project. We've been obsessed with science and the power that science can provide us over our fellow man. Well's The Island of Dr. Moreau is another exploration of this innate fear.
All in all, this novella was short enough to finish in an afternoon and thought-provoking enough to stay with you until bedtime.
Not to suck up Drink; that is the Law. Are we not Men?
Not to eat Flesh or Fish; that is the Law. Are we not Men?
Not to claw the Bark of Trees; that is the Law. Are we not Men?
Not to chase other Men; that is the Law. Are we not Men?" (Wells 61)
3.5 stars, rounded up.
In true gothic horror/sci-fi fashion, H.G. Wells spins a fascinating yet terrifyingly resonant tale of human hubris, the morality of innovation, and the very nature of what it means to be human. The Island of Dr. Moreau follows a castaway scientist as he finds himself on the hidden island of the titular Dr. Moreau, a scientist from London who was shunned by his peers due to his experiments with vivisection. Dr. Moreau has not stopped his experiments, however, and this whole island is inhabited by half-man/half-beast creatures. Wells, unfortunately, refers to these creatures almost exclusively in terms like "black" or "native" initially to fool us into believing these creations were merely normal people that our racist narrator Prendick so horribly disfigured with his descriptions. As the story progresses, however, so does Prendick's descriptions of these people. The language shifts from beasts/creatures to people. So, there's at least growth?
The attitude and subsequent experiments that Dr. Moreau had brought to mind the other "evil scientists" in our history and vernacular: WWII's Nazi Scientists experimenting on human bodies, Mary Shelley's Dr. Frankenstein, and Dr. Oppenheimer of the Manhattan Project. We've been obsessed with science and the power that science can provide us over our fellow man. Well's The Island of Dr. Moreau is another exploration of this innate fear.
All in all, this novella was short enough to finish in an afternoon and thought-provoking enough to stay with you until bedtime.