H. G. Wells

The Island of Dr. Moreau (Bantam Classics)

The island of Dr. Moreau

Sarah Sammis

I did a really fun multimedia mashup project at UCLA that re-imagined The Island of Dr. Moreau as played by Ludwig von Drake.

“There it must be, I think, in the vast and eternal laws of matter, and not in the daily cares and sins and troubles of men, that whatever is more than animal within us must find its solace and its hope.”
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19th century science fiction just hits different. It is almost always simultaneously horrific and dull; it always has some uncomfortable vein of racism running through it; the explanation of science is just all wacky. I can literally picture a 1980s style low budget shabby SFX movie version of it playing in my head while reading the stories in this genre. It is just exhausting and entertaining at the same time.

This strange little tale is an intoxicating cocktail of Robinson Crusoe meets Frankenstein meets Well’s other classic, the Time Machine, with a generous sprinkle of Darwin’s evolution theories. Proceed at your own risk.

lauratrebilcock

Colleen

3.5 Stars
 
H.G. Wells did a lot for the genre of Science Fiction. The Island of Dr. Moreau may not be as widely known today, but it is easy to see how many modern stories had roots in this book.
 
The Island of Dr. Moreau is the story of Edward Prendick who ends up shipwrecked on an island inhabited by a mad scientist, Dr. Moreau. Prendick quickly realizes that there is more happening on the island than simple scientific experiments. He finds out that Dr. Moreau was banned from reputable science forums for his extreme scientific experiments which revolve around vivisection and splicing animals together to create humanoid creatures. It was gruesome and chilling even if the science was a bit sketchy.
 
Wells really was ahead of his time. The Island of Dr. Moreau was published in 1896, not too long after DNA was first discovered, but it would be decades more before its role in determining genetic inheritance would be demonstrated. Yet Wells was toying with ideas about genetic manipulation as well as controversial ideas of evolution versus divine creation. The moral themes were reminiscent of Frankenstein. Although the science in this story definitely does not hold up to modern knowledge, it was a creative idea given the information available at the time it was written. Nevertheless, some aspects of Moreau’s humanoid creatures didn’t entirely make sense like how splicing together two random animals would create a humanoid creature capable of limited speech and reasoning or why the creatures reverted back to their animal instincts if maintenance vivisections were not regularly preformed. But it did explore themes of humanity and bestial natures as well as consequences and responsibility of scientific experimentation.
 
The story itself is told in narrative form by Prendick. He is retelling his experiences as a warning; parts of that reminded me of Heart of Darkness (but The Island of Dr. Moreau was published first). The narrative is fast-paced but seems locked into one speed only. It doesn’t have the varying pace needed to really rack up the tension. It was also lacking in character development since the story focused on events and the ideas behind them, but there is not much focus on the characters themselves. At least it is a short book; if this had been longer, it definitely would have gotten monotonous. One of the most annoying things about this book was the dialogue which has an annoying parroty structure. The creatures tend to repeat the same things over and over, either repeating their mantras or repeating the things the human characters say. It was tedious to read the dialogue, and that was the weakest part of the story even if it perhaps was done intentionally to emphasis the creatures’ mental capacity.
 
I would recommend The Island of Dr. Moreau to big SciFi fans who like to know the roots of popular SciFi ideas. But I don’t see this book appealing to most modern-day audiences. It is short and easy to read though. And though the science may seem corny at times, it is true that over a hundred years later topics of genetic experimentation are still relevant and controversial. It shows how far we’ve come yet also stayed the same. Does art reflect life, or does life reflect art?


RATING FACTORS:
Ease of Reading: 4 Stars 
Writing Style: 3 Stars
Characters and Character Development: 3 Stars
Plot Structure and Development: 3 Stars
Level of Captivation: 4 Stars
Originality: 5 Stars

Deyana

Did not like this one as much as Wells's The Time Machine, but it was still striking in its prose drenched in decadence.

Barbara Williford

As an Anatomy and Biology teacher I was especially intrigued by this book. It was filled with adventure, thrills, mystery, murder and intrigue. It also gets you thinking about morality, especially scientific morality and ethics. Where is the line in the sand drawn and do we dare cross it?

The Island of Dr Moreau (Penguin Classics)

Karim Nas

H.G. Wells

""ARE WE NOT MEN?"" Edward Prendick survives a shipwreck and winds up on a remote Pacific island, where a mad scientist is vivisecting animals to create hybrid beast people. Will Prendick survive and recover from the horrors he has seen? Will anyone believe him? In this classic early science-fiction novel, H.G. Wells exposes the anxieties of the Victorian Age: fearing the implications of evolutionary theory, disturbed by the godlike power of science over nature, & doubtful about the inevitability of human progress. Might humans be capable of degeneration? The Island of Dr. Moreau raises vital questions about bioethics, animal rights, & the nature of humanity. Published by Spruce Alley Press

The Island of Dr. Moreau

Mirjana Prodan

Loredana

Kiki Kawai

Dark subjects. Important thoughts. Witty writing. 

Kerri McDonald

Another classic H.G. Wells novel. It has all the taste of him: bizarre circumstances and a smattering of science to make it on the edge of possibility. I enjoy his books, but I always feel like I've been left wanting. They just seem so short and like so much more detail could have been put in. Still, it was an enjoyable, short read.

Jana Pashovska

Weird and gruesome - exactly how I like it.

DIVMad surgeon-turned-vivisectionist performs ghoulish experiments that transform animals into men. Early Wells personification of the scientific quest to control the natural world and, ultimately, human nature. /div

Jacob Reader

Kiersten Hepditch

Adrift in a dinghy, Edward Prendick, the single survivor from the good ship Lady Vain, is rescued by a vessel carrying a profoundly unusual cargo - a menagerie of savage animals.

The Island of Dr. Moreau (Bantam Classics)

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