Example Of Essay On Prendick Life Before And After He Discovers The Truth About Dr. Moreau Experiments

Introduction

“The Island of Doctor Moreau” is a captivating science fiction novel authored by H.G Wells in the late 19th Century. Science fiction was a literary genre that was gaining prominence throughout the late 19th Century in the writing world, and Well’s novel is considered to be one of the greatest in this category. The novel tells the story of a shipwrecked Englishman, who is rescued by a Good Samaritan and left a mysterious island owned by Doctor Moreau. Doctor Moreau turns out to be a disgraced scientist from London, who has been experimenting on animals trying to create humanoid creatures from them through the process of vivisection. However, Prendick does not realize the real truth about Doctor’ Moreau’s experiments until later on. When he realizes the true nature of Dr. Moreau’s experiments, his psychological state is changed significantly even after he leaves the island and goes back home.
Initially, Prendick comes across as a naive human being. He seems like a person who does not care much and who does not ask a lot of questions, and, therefore, his first few days on the island are relatively quiet. In fact, he depends primarily on Montgomery, his rescuer and Dr. Moreaue assistant to explain some of the basic things and happenings on the island. Although there are some mysterious things that he witnesses, he accepts simple explanations from Montgomery and Doctor Moreau. His naivety is further proven when Montgomery first introduces him to Doctor Moreau, a name that he recalls, but he does not think much more about it. In fact, Prendick is primarily in the dark in the first few days that he is on the island. This is in spite of him witnessing some weird happenings that he fails to find out the real truth behind them.
However, cries from an animal that Dr. Moreaue is supposedly experimenting on one night prompt him to leave his enclosure. According to Prendick “The emotional appeal of those yells grew upon me steadily, grew at last to such an exquisite expression of suffering that I could stand it in that confined room no longer” (Wells 24). He runs into the jungle where for the first time, he comes face to face with some of Doctor Moreau experimental products; deformed beasts that have half human and half man features. He goes back to the enclosure to inquire for the truth Montgomery, who is however not straightforward with him. However, the next day he stumbles into Dr. Moreau’s operating room where he finds a humanoid figure wrapped in bandages lying on a table. At this point, Prendrik assumes that Dr. Moreaue actuals transform men into animals. He states, “Could it be possible.that such a thing as the vivisection of men was carried out here?”(Wells 33). He immediately becomes fearful that he is next in line to be transformed into an animal. He attempts to drown himself rather than be vivisected, but Dr. Moreau explains just in time that what he thinks of the experiments is actually vice versa; that it is animals who are transformed into men. As Prendick puts it “The creatures I had seen were not men, had never been men. They were animals, humanized animals,—triumphs of vivisection” (Wells 38).
After learning the truth, Prendick is absolutely disgusted and terrified by Dr. Moreau’s experimental creatures. Although he is forced to continue living on the island, he tries to keep away from the humanoid creatures completely. However, he slowly starts to become accustomed to them. He evens starts feeling pity on them, for example, he kills a leopard beast folk that had eaten a rabbit so that he can save from it from the pain of Dr. Moreau’s experiments. However, it appears that by becoming friendlier and accustomed to the beast folk created by Dr. Moreau, he is just attempting to survive. He realizes that he has no option but to try to become used to this kind of life.
However, his insight again adjusted when both Moreau and Montgomery are killed by the beast folk. He resolves to go home but realizes that he ultimately cannot because the only rafts that can be used to escape the island have been destroyed. He, therefore, has little choice but to stay. As time progresses, the creatures created by Dr. Morreaue slowly abandon all their human characteristics and slowly start becoming more animal in nature and this only raises the fear in Prendick who realizes that one of these days, he will engage in a conflict with one of the beast folk which will ultimately end up with him dying. Fortunately for him, one day, a raft washes up on the shore with two dead bodies and he, therefore, uses the raft to get out of the island.
However, the real difference between the Prendick, who does not know of Dr. Moreau experiments and then who has discovered these experiments and seen their consequences exhibits itself after he returns home. After being on the island so long where he has been deprived of shelter, society and good food, he has a completely new outlook on the society. First, he is no longer comfortable with humans who he postulates will revert to their animal life sooner or later. Prendick states “I could not persuade myself that the men and women I met were not also another Beast People, animals half wrought into the outward image of human souls, and that they would presently begin to revert to show first this bestial mark and then that” (Wells, 86).
There is therefore a huge difference between the Prendick who left his homeland for the Pacific and who had not known about the nature of Dr. Moreau experiments and The Prendick who comes home after having discovered the nature of Dr. Morreau experiments and seen their consequences himself. The second Prendick is not at peace living among humans because after his experiences on the island, he looks at the humans and sees like they might revert to an animal state or form.

Works Cited

Wells, H.G. The Island of Dr. Moreau. New York: Signet, 1988.