Thread: MobileRead Discussion: The Island of Dr. Moreau by H. G. Wells (spoilers)
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Old 10-24-2011, 09:12 AM   #16
HomeInMyShoes
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Quote:
Originally Posted by sun surfer View Post
I began the book oblivious to the theme, then midway smiled at the clever reveal of it, then by the end rolled my eyes a bit at the heavy-handedness of it.

...

Was Wells an atheist? I know nothing about him and this is the first of his I've read. I didn't expect it all to be so...overly thematic. I thought I was getting myself into a 19th century sci-fi horror novel about the perils of men messing with nature, and not a treatise on religion!
Wells did write at least one book directly centered on religion God the Invisible King, but he's definitely more known for his social condition writing than religious. I don't know that Wells was an atheist, but he certainly didn't seem to follow any standard religion. I agree with your comment that there is a a bit of a microcosm of Christianity, and there's definitely the theme that it is belief and faith that keeps one on track over animalistic tendencies. Having read a bit more about Wells and a few other titles of his this year, it definitely brings out the themes of socialism and abuses of power we see in many of his other works.

I read a lot of Wells this year after having never read anything by him. He can get a bit preachy at times. I really liked the story in The Island of Dr. Moreau despite being a little grossed out by all the vivisection. Overall not so scary for horror, but quite disturbing at times. The horror would have been more effective if Wells hadn't used what is his usual schtick -- relate a person writing a memoir about an event. It would have been far creepier if we didn't know the protagonist survives when we start the story.

I'm left puzzling over Prendick and how he fits in with the usual themes in other of Wells' books. Prendick comes to the obvious conclusion that in order to keep himself safe he needs to be the alpha dog on the island after Dr. Moreau is gone. But does Prendick believe this? Does he believe in Christianity and one God? More generally, in a montheistic regime? A dictatorship over the collective?
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