41 pages • 1 hour read
H. G. WellsThe Island of Doctor Moreau
Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 1896A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Symbols & Motifs
The Whip
Montgomery and Moreau typically carry whips when they go outside of the compound; the Beast People even refer to them as the “ones with whips.” The whips serve a practical purpose as weapons in case the Beast People become unruly, and they are also symbolic of how tyrannical authorities maintain power using fear and pain. Moreau, and to a lesser extent Montgomery, maintain authority by instilling fear in the Beast People; the Beast People could easily overpower their masters since they are both physically stronger and more numerous. Moreau does inflict physical suffering on the Beast People in the House of Pain, but only because they accept him as an authority figure who has the right to punish them. The whip symbolizes how Moreau uses Violence and Fear as Strategies to Maintain Control rather than affection or respect, which is significant since there are counterexamples wherein a beast-person bonds with an individual and loyally serves him (for example, M’ling’s loyalty to Montgomery, and Prendick’s relationship with the Dog Man). By extension, the whip symbolizes a kind of authority that is always tenuous and unstable; Moreau only maintains his hold on power by ensuring that the Beast People are afraid of him. Because of this relationship, they rebel and harm him as soon as they get the opportunity to do so.
Boats
Because most of the action of the plot takes place on a remote island, boats are an important motif; Prendick arrives at, and escapes from, the island on some type of boat. The whole plot is set in motion when Prendick is stranded after his ship sinks. Boats represent the fragile connection between the island and what Prendick considers “civilization,” and they also help to develop themes of human ingenuity, the dangers of ambition, and vulnerability. Throughout history, humans have built various types of boats to travel by water, demonstrating creativity, curiosity, and problem-solving skills. These same impulses initially animate Moreau’s scientific quest to test the boundaries between humans and animals. The connection between boats and innovation is especially significant in a British novel since, when Wells was writing at the end of 19th century, Great Britain’s economic and military success was largely driven by its status as a naval power. However, anytime humans are onboard a ship, especially during lengthy ocean voyages, they are extremely vulnerable; this fragility is demonstrated by the tragic loss of life when Prendick’s original ship is lost. Similarly, Moreau’s experiments end up causing tragedy and suffering because he becomes reckless and cannot accept any limitations on his ambitions.
Alcohol
Alcohol is a significant motif in the novel; it serves to establish contrast between characters, as Montgomery drinks heavily while Prendick refuses to consume any alcohol at all. The motif of alcohol illustrates The Illusory Nature of Reason and Civilization, as Montgomery’s excessive consumption of alcohol causes him to shed many of the behavioral strictures that (in his mind) separate him from the Beast People. Prendick, Moreau, and Montgomery imagine themselves as very different from the Beast People, exemplifying ideals of integrity, reason, and self-discipline. However, Montgomery is unable to moderate or restrict his consumption of alcohol, and when he is inebriated, he reverts to a more instinctual and impulsive state of being.
By contrast, Prendick refuses to drink at all, which shows that he is fearful and mistrustful of what might happen if he becomes disinhibited under the influence of alcohol. While Prendick does not link his abstinence to religious or political motivation, by refusing to drink he operates according to a kind of “Law” similar to that which forbids the Beast People from walking on all fours or eating flesh. Just as these Laws are intended to keep the Beast People from recollecting their animal instincts, Prendick abstains from alcohol to foreclose the possibility of losing his reason and self-control. Prendick predicts early on that Montgomery’s heavy drinking will be his downfall, which ends up being true: Montgomery is drunk when he dies in a conflict with some of the Beast People. Prendick, while in many ways less savvy than Montgomery, does end up making his way off the island, perhaps because he exercises greater self-control.
The function of the alcohol motif is built on outdated ideas about substance abuse and addiction. In Wells’s time, addictions were viewed as a failure of willpower and a moral shortcoming on the individual’s part, instead of a complex interaction between biological, psychological, and sociological factors. This worldview that equates abstaining from addiction with moral fortitude and purity draws an inherently problematic parallel between addiction and less-than-human behavior and traits.
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By H. G. Wells
