The Island of Doctor Moreau

The Island of Dr. Moreau is a science fiction novel written by HG Wells, published in 1896. Through a story narrated by a narrator overwhelmed by events, the novel engages a reflection on Such as the relationship between man and animal, and the question of identity. Summary Unique survivor of a shipwreck, Edward Prendick is rescued by Montgomery and his team, passenger of a ship heading for a tropical island with a cargo of animals. Montgomery is the assistant to Dr. Moreau, a scientist obsessed with vivisection and blood transfusion. Prendick discovers with dismay that for the past ten years the two men have been experimenting with animals, performing grafts and multiple surgical procedures to make men capable of thinking and speaking. Man-beasts live in a village and obey "The Law", a set of rules forbidding primitive behavior and advocating the veneration of Moreau, which they call "Master." "Do not go on all fours. It's the law. Are we not Men? " "Do not lap to drink. It's the law. Are we not Men? " "Do not eat meat or fish. It's the law. Are we not Men? " "Do not scratch the bark of trees. It's the law. Are we not Men? " "Do not chase the other Men. It's the law. Are we not Men? But Prendick discovers that some creatures break the law by devouring rabbits. The assassination of Dr. Moreau by one of his "experiments", the Man-Puma, challenges the fragile balance of the island. Montgomery is killed in turn and Prendick, now alone with the creatures, will succeed in getting respect and calm ... He finally manages to escape aboard a raft and return to England. But traumatized by the experience he has just lived, he continues to see the reflection of Moreau's monsters among men. (...) I see harsh and animated faces, other dull and dangerous, others fleeing and lying, without any one having the calm authority of a reasonable soul. I have the impression that the animal will reappear suddenly under these faces, that soon the degradation of the monsters of the island will again manifest on a larger scale. I know that this is an illusion, that these appearances of men and women who surround me are in fact real humans, that they remain until the end of perfectly reasonable creatures, full of benevolent desires and tenderness Solicitude, emancipated from the tyranny of instinct and not at all subject to some fantastic Law-in a word, beings absolutely different from humanized monsters. And yet I can not help but run away from them, flee their curious glances, their questions and their help, and I long to find myself far from them and alone. "