In our civilized world, we may not realize our world or the humanity has been civilized through hundred years of development. However, H.G Wells and Jean Rousseau are aware of the consequences due to the civilization. They believe civilization means a lot to the changes of humanity, creatures. They raise all sorts of questions on what is nature and what is artificial. Therefore, it is interesting to compare Jean Rousseau’s A Discourse on Inequality and H.G Wells’ The Island of Doctor Moreau in a sense of showing some distinctions. In this essay, I will discuss the views on both works in a sense of the distinction between “natural and artificial” and “emotion and religion” and “human and animal”. I will first encounter the distinction of natural
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Especially in The Island of Doctor Moreau, a story about a doctor transforming an animal into human, which gives us a reflection on what is humanity, is this natural or artificial? In chapter 14 Doctor Moreau explains, Prendick disagrees on how Doctor Moreau conducts his experiment, Prendick argues that “So long as visible or audible pain turn you sick so long as your own pains drive you; so long as pain underlines your propositions about sin – so long, I tell you, you are an animal, thinking a little less obscurely what an animal feels. This pain ––” (Wells, The Island of Doctor Moreau 126) He sees Doctor Moreau as an animal of savagery, conduct the experiment regardless of pain suffering on animals. He criticizes his experiment: “The thing before you is no longer an animal, a fellow-creature, but a problem!” (Wells, The Island of Doctor Moreau 127) The ideas of human and animal is very clear to Prendick. He always believes the origin of “Beast People” is an animal. When Prendick refers to Montgomery, he uses “it” to categorizes him: “It was Montogomery’s strange attendant. It looked over its shoulder quickly with my movement, then looked away again” (Wells, The Island of Doctor Moreau 84) Prendick also refers to the term “Monsters manufactured” (Wells, The Island of Doctor Moreau 123) when we know Doctor Moreau is experimenting animal into a human shape. When Wells is determining whether a creature is human or animal, he refers to Dr. George Hoggan’s letter in the appendix in The Island of Doctor Moreau: “The idea of good humanity was simply out of the question, and would have been laughed at, the great aim being to keep up with, or get ahead of…and iniquitously inflicted on the poor animals.” (Hoggan 258) He has addressed the experiment of humanization on animals. He even states when he considers such immoral experiment, he could not consider the issue of
Especially in The Island of Doctor Moreau, a story about a doctor transforming an animal into human, which gives us a reflection on what is humanity, is this natural or artificial? In chapter 14 Doctor Moreau explains, Prendick disagrees on how Doctor Moreau conducts his experiment, Prendick argues that “So long as visible or audible pain turn you sick so long as your own pains drive you; so long as pain underlines your propositions about sin – so long, I tell you, you are an animal, thinking a little less obscurely what an animal feels. This pain ––” (Wells, The Island of Doctor Moreau 126) He sees Doctor Moreau as an animal of savagery, conduct the experiment regardless of pain suffering on animals. He criticizes his experiment: “The thing before you is no longer an animal, a fellow-creature, but a problem!” (Wells, The Island of Doctor Moreau 127) The ideas of human and animal is very clear to Prendick. He always believes the origin of “Beast People” is an animal. When Prendick refers to Montgomery, he uses “it” to categorizes him: “It was Montogomery’s strange attendant. It looked over its shoulder quickly with my movement, then looked away again” (Wells, The Island of Doctor Moreau 84) Prendick also refers to the term “Monsters manufactured” (Wells, The Island of Doctor Moreau 123) when we know Doctor Moreau is experimenting animal into a human shape. When Wells is determining whether a creature is human or animal, he refers to Dr. George Hoggan’s letter in the appendix in The Island of Doctor Moreau: “The idea of good humanity was simply out of the question, and would have been laughed at, the great aim being to keep up with, or get ahead of…and iniquitously inflicted on the poor animals.” (Hoggan 258) He has addressed the experiment of humanization on animals. He even states when he considers such immoral experiment, he could not consider the issue of