by
Roger Bowon
B.A.
( ~ o n)s Cambridge University, 1965
A TICSIS Srn~E'l'Trn I N PttPTIAL
mmmn
THE R E Q U I R @ ~ I ~FOX
S TEE DEGREE OF
NASTER OF iL9TS
i n t h e Department
0f
%lish
0
Roger Sowen 1968
SIMON FRASER UITIVXRSITY
July 1968
OF
Senior Supervisor
& m i n i n g Connittee
W i n i n g Coimittoe
PARTTAL COPYRIGIIT LICENSE
I h e r e b y g r a n t t o Simon F r a s e r U n i v e r s i t y t h e r i g h t t o lend
my t h e s i s o r d i s s e r t a t i o n ( t h e t i t l e o f which i s shown b e l o w ) t o u s e r s
o f t h e Simon F r a s e r U n i v e r s i t y L i b r a r y , and t o make p a r t i a l o r s i n g l e
c o p i e s o n l y f o r s u c h u s e r s o r i n r e s p o n s e t o a r e q u e s t from t h e l i b r a r y
o f a n y o t h e r u n i v e r s i t y , o r o t h e r e d u c a t i o n a l i n s t i t u t i o n , on i t s own
b e h a l f o r f o r one of i t s u s e r s .
I f u r t h e r agree t h a t permission f o r
m u l t i p l e c o p y i n g of t h i s t h e s i s f o r s c h o l a r l y p u r p o s e s may be g r a n t e d
b y me o r t h e Dean of Graduate S t t l d i e s .
I t is u n d e r s t o o d t h a t c o p y i n g
o r p u b l i c a t i o n of t h i s t h e s i s f o r f i n a n c i a l g a i n s h a l l n o t b e a l l o w e d
w i t h o u t my w r i t t e n p e r m i s s i o n .
T i t l e of T h e s i s / ~ i s s e r t a t i o n:
Author:
(signature )
(name )
(date)
I n t h e General Introduction t o t h e Atlantic Edition Wells defines
h i s work a s %xperinents in statementtt.
This study works forward from a
consideration of W e l l s a s a tlphilosophe of t h e Darwinian &gelt (H.G.
Wells
and t h e World State, agar) and of his concept of t h e temporary texperimentt
of evolution t o a t e x t u a l analysis of his l i t e r a r y experiment, which he
assumed was doomed t o a similar impermanence.
The primary metaphysic which emerges from Wellsts s c i e n t i f i c
background, t h e
philosophical meat and drink" (Magar) derived from Darwin
and H d e y , i s a recognition of t h e vulnerability of human nature, composed
as it i s of an acquired %oral senseI1, and a recognition a l s o of an inbred
i n s t i n c t u a l l i f e , a kind of biological s t a i n with i t s source in mants
animal origins.
The a r t i f i c i a l nature of human evolution therefore makes
it imperative t o face squarely t h e dangers of atavism and t h e spectre of
devolution.
Nells never can f r e e himself from this r e a l i s a t i o n of a
biological original. sin, and his consequent pessimism and doubt in f a c t make
W e l l s more anti-Utopian than Utopian, as Van Myck Brooks suggested a s early
as 1915, and a s Anthony West s t a t e d more precisely i n a now seminal a r t i c l e
w r i t t e n in 1957.
'The Literary experiment which Wells i n i t i a t e d t o express t h i s
%rgency within* ranges from t h e e a r l y science-romances t o t h e more patent
a l l e g o r i e s of t h e l a t e Thirties.
The t h r e e main t e x t s chosen f o r discussion
cover t h e e n t i r e period, and therefore emphasise a continuity of theme:
The Island of Dr. Moreau (l896),
and The Croauet Player (1936).
&. Blettsworthy on Ramnole Island (1928),
They a l s o emphasize t h e general movement
from metaphor t o discourse, apparent as :Jells f e e l s a more urgent need t o
transmit h i s mesnap and t o educate.
This selection, however, also makos
c l e a r the constant q u a l i t i e s of ? l e l l s 8 sima,-inative w r i t i r y l ; , the r e l i a n c e
on myth, and the variation of a l l e g a r i c a l technique, and i n t h i s respect
the l a s t two t e x t s
- l a r g e l y iflored
by conmentators
- are deliberately
put before tho m a d ~ rf o r f r e s h consideration, as evidence t h a t I.lellsls
creative s p i r i t did not necessarily d i e on dates specified by normative
critics.
Certain concepts recur throughout these works, and i n r e l a t e d texts.
For example there i s the use of the island myth; of the psychic journey
which uncovers man's primitive origins; and of t h e r e a l i t y of a preh i s t o r i c a l t h r e a t i n the present world of w a r and i n j u s t i c e .
3rief concluding reinarks i n d i c a t e the f u r t h e r treatment of the
theme of man's i n s t i n c t u a l l i f e , aside from the fantasy and the allegory.
This treatment occurs i n t h e roman & tnkse, i n which contemporary man i n
r e a l i s t i c s i t u a t i o n s meets the same t h r e a t , unearthing the same damning
evidence of h i s dual nature.
P a , ~ ei:o
1.
Introduc'iion a
(b)
(c)
3.
' A?-inay Xotclphysic and L i t e r a r y
;Ix'~,criment.
:;ells s
Ilr. 3lctis1rorl;hg on Iimpole I s l a n d ;
Journo;r.
Ex Ckoauet
Player:
Trne Psychic
55
The Tlieme of Pre-History.
Conclusion.
Appendix:
1
116
"An m e d i t i o n i n t o tihe Realms
Tono-%:-a;
of Undisciplined Xature."
B i b l i ~ ~ a p l i y :L i s t of Vorks Consulted.
(a) F'rirnaxy Texts, C r i t i c a l Vorks, S i o t ~ a p h i e s ,Background
S o u x e s and A r t i c l e s .
131
(b)
Tneses and Dissertations.
143
(c )
Contemporary Reviews.
144
.
' h e only f u l l y a u t h o r i t a t i v e e d i t i o n of Wells's work i s t h e
Atlantic illition, published between 1924 and 1927 by Scribner i n New York
and by Umin i n London, and personally supervised i n a l l its s t a g e s by
Wells, who wrote a General Introduction and a Preface t o each volume.
This Edition is used here but where more a c c e s s i b l e e d i t i o n s of individual
t e x t s a r e a v a i l a b l e t h e s e a r e employed i n preference.
...
r r r i t c r confcr,r,cr, h i s profound d i s b e l i e f '
of art. A l l
a11 science, and s ' i i l l w r c c e z t a . n l ;r a l l
it a l i c g
fantasy,
f i c % i o n , ciiscunsion and s t a t c d case, a l l openly
an,?(Mi~ x r a t e l ye:cpe2ixcntnl, a l l i n easencc
d:c tchcs and I x i a l s . ?hi:: e d i t i o n i s a d i a r y of
i n a ~ i n a t i o n san2 i d e a s nuch norc than a s e t dis_nln;r, t h c rocord of a l i f e l i v c d i n a t i n c of
;;?.cat rcsd justmcnt r a t h c r t1::rn of c r e a t i v e
ackiovcnent .A
1.
L:C
i i 311;'
~
~ C T ~ Co rC pc~nancn'i
~
work
This i l l m i n a t i n ~p a s s a p f;no:,l V c l l s t s o:m r e v a l u a t i o n of h i s
c a r e e r , w r i t t e n f o r t h c c o l l e c t e d e d i t i o n of 1924-7, zoes a long way t o
explain t h e litsraq phencnenon of a n a j o r twentieth c e n t u r y f i b w e .
It
may be immediately r e c o ~ n i z c das one of nany such i n p a t i e n t s t a t e n e n t s ,
about t h e r o l e o? t h c w r i t e r as artist, expressed throuch c a r i c a t u r e ,
banter and disciission i n many of h i s f i c t i o n a l w r i t i n g s , 2 and with nore
p r e c i s i o n and e l a b o r a t i o n i n an a r t i c l e l i k e "The Contemporary Xovelft,3
but perhaps no r o r o s u c c i n c t l y than i n h i s f i n a l l e t t e r t o Henry Janest
"I had r a t h e r be c a l l e d a j o u r n a l i s t t h a n a n artist, t h a t i s t h e essence
of i t
....
114
Zeaders and c r i t i c s nay w e l l beg t o d i f f e r on t e r n s 5:ells uses t o
d e s c r i j e h i s corpus, %ketches and trials", " d i a r y f f , as t h e y may seem t o
b e l i t t l e i n d i v i d u a l works and groups w i t h i n h i s very considerable l i t e r a r y
remains.
Despi5e Y e l l s ' s confidence i n i h c d e f i n i t i o n of h i s epitaph, h e r e
and on o t h e r occasions, the j u d ~ e n e n tcannot s u f f i c e .
and unconcerncd t o s e g a r a i e t h e t'coldtl f r o 3 t h e "base
He seems unprepared
a t a s k which
has been e a c e r l y undertaken by a number of c r i t i c s , with i n c r e a s i x r w e
and scholarship, ainco h i s death i n 1946.
!hat which 11~311shimself valued'
most i n h i s own work, t h e novel of i d e a s
- "must t h e c h a r a c t e r s i n our
B r i t i s h and American novels be forevermore cleaned of thought as a r a b b i t
is of i t s bowels, before they can be served up f o r consumption?"
6
- grew
i n c r e a s i n g l y o'osolete as t h e s t y l e of Joyce, Lawrence, and Virginia Noolf
began t o demand a t t e n t i o n , and h i s own work of t h a t kind i s today g e n e r a l l y
regazded as o f l i t e r a r y h i s t o r i c a l i n t e r e s t only. 7
Howevor u n s a t i s f a c t o r y and unacceptable Wells's general statements about art and h i s p a r t i c u l a r comments on his w r i t i q may seem t o be,
both at t h i s t i n e of survey (1925), and subsequently t o t h e end of h i s
career, t h e r e s t i l l ramains one accurate and p r e d i c t a b l e d e f i n i t i o n of h i s
own composition:
I1eqeriments i n statement".
The "fantasy, f i c t i o n ,
discussion and stated case, a l l openly and d e l i b e r a t e l y experimental1' i s
adequately d e s c r i p t i v e of h i s work t o t h i s date, and beyond.
What he i n
f a c t produced, i n t o t o , w a s a m e l t i n p p o t of genres, an amazing range o f
prose n a r r a t i v e s and expositions, each item i n t h i s range,
i n some
p a r t i c u l a r , lfexperimentallf. And many, but by no means a l l , of these
'Isketches and trials" were doomed t o t h e impermanence t h e t e r n s suggest,
and t h e impermanence Wells seemed t o t a k e f o r granted.
The reasons f o r
t h i s a t t i t u d e t o h i s w r i t i n g c r a f t a r e bound up with h i s own s c i e n t i f i c
t r a i n i n g and his own cosmic
He w a s a c h i l d of t h e age o f Damin,
and a student of Darwin's most prominent i n t e r p r e t e r , T.H.
hxley.
8
His
view o f h i s o m existence and t h a t of h i s fellow man w a s p r i m a r i l y an
acceptance of t h e accident of h i s being, and a Ifprofound scepticism about
man's knowledge of f i n a l r e a l i t y l f ?
15s t r a i n i n g and philosophical grounding
were deeply embedded and remained a primary influence throughout his l i f e ,
as t h i s examination w i l l show with more a p p l i c a t i o n at a l a t e r point.
S u f f i c e i t t o say t h a t t h e Wells who
It...
...
believed himself
device of skin, bones, a r t e r i e s and g a n c l i a
...
10
a temporary
involving consciousness
and with c e r t a i n thini;s t o do which no one e l s e could do, but when they
were done, he would d i s s o l v e i n t o dust, f i n i s h e d beyond any hope of
resurrection",ll
could f i n d no use f o r "the s e t and d e l i b e r a t e and
d i g n i f i e d work of art
....
t h e processional d i p i t y of such a c o l l e c t i o n
as t h a t o f t h e works of Henry James".
The experimental n a t u r e of l i f e
as he saw i t , and of h i s own existence, w a s r e f l e c t e d i n h i s a t t i t u d e t o
writing.
ological
It w a s , too, t h e q u a l i t y of l i f e , i n t h e b i o l o g i c a l and anthrop-
sense, and i n t h e context o f human s o c i a l systems
- a concern
with evolution, with t h e p o s s i b i l i t y of devolution, and with the process of
change i n general13-
which cons t i t u t e d t h e broad content o f h i s "statement I t
.
Professor I s a a c s , i n h i s evaluation of l t ~ l l s ~
place
s
i n twentieth century
thought and l i t e r a t u r e , r e f e r s s p e c i f i c a l l y t o Experiment i n Autobiof~raphg
as "the a u t o b i o ~ a p h y ,not merely of an individual, but of a process".
This can apply t o h i s work as a whole:
14
a record of process,. viewed as
such by t h e 'experimentert.
The turning p o i n t i n Wells's l i t e r a r y output i s g e n e r a l l y
r e w d e d as 1910, t h e year of The 'History of 1.k. Polly and t h e year before
~ preceding f i f t e e n years gave us t h e e a r l y
The New X a c h i a ~ e l l i . ~The
science-romances, t h e s h o r t s t o r i e s , and t h e s o c i a l comedies
surviving, t h e accepted Wells.
Thereafter came t h e roman
k
- the
thkse, and t h e
increasing commitment t o a universal education programme, both i n t h e
pedagogical sense with The Outline of !Tistory ( l g ~ ) ) ,The Science of L i f e
(1931), and The ltork, llealth and Happiness of Nankind (1932), and i n the
.
a r e a of p o l i t i c a l and s o c i a l commentary, with an ever-watchful eye over
t h e progress an2 t h e f a t e of man.
Tho l a t t e r i s b e s t represented i n
Warren ifagar's excellent anthology, H.G.
189.3
- 1946.
Yellsr
Journalism and Prophecy,
Yet t h e f a c t t h a t t h i s c o l l e c t i o n draws upon m a t e r i a l fYom
h i s very f i r s t p u b l i c a t i o n t o h i s very last, should remind us of something
which i s too e a s i l y ignored.
As we must accept t h a t l J e l l s l s c r e a t i v e and
imaginative s p i r i t d i d by no means e n t i r e l y atrophy a f t e r 1910, so too must
we reco,.nize
t h e p e r s i s t e n t q u a l i t y of loCical %tatement" and t h e s i s from
S e l e c t Conversations with a n Uncle (1a95)16 and t h e f i r s t two f i l l - l e n g t h
works of fantasy, The Time Xachine and The Tlonderful V i s i t , of t h e same
year.
P r a c t i c a l l y a l l h i s work involves t h e p r e s e n t a t i o n of theses
l l q e r i m e n t s i n statement".
-
There i s considerable v a r i a t i o n i n t h e degree
of 'experiment1 and 'statement',
and t h e s u b j e c t i v e element, suggested i n
t h e opening quotation by "diary of imaginations and ideas" and %ecord of
a l i f e " , i s apparent t'nroughout, shaping i t s e l f around t h e questions8
"'What i s t h e d r i v e i n me?
What has i t got t o do with o t h e r d r i v e s ? What
has i t got t o do with t h e s p e c t a c l e without?11117
The f i n a l p h r a s e o f t h i s passage from t h e General Introduction
synthesises t h e various concepts of 'experiment' and impermanence i n a
broad view of his age, i n t h e h i s t o r i c a l and t h e l i t e r a r y sense, a s "a time
of g r e a t readjustment r a t h e r than c r e a t i v e achievement".
;?ells i s now
categorized as a n o v e l i s t Itin t r a n s i t i o n l 1 , l 8 and he c l e a r l y saw himself as
a w r i t e r and a world c i t i z e n i n a n o f t e n confusing and p e r i l o u s r a c e
"between education and catastrophe" i n whioh t h e r e w a s no time t o achieve,
only t o p l a n and attempt construction. 19
This planning and attempted construction belong wholly t o l l e l l s
t h e Utopist, t h e p o l i t i c a l and s o c i a l dreamer.
IIowover, t h e f o l l o w i w
discussion i s t o concern i t s e l f i n terms of theme with t h e 'bad dreams' of
Wells t h e anti-Utopist and t h o reasons f o r them.
The dichotomy of Utopist
dream and anti-Utopist nightmaze provides a convenient base f o r an understanding of Wells's thought .20
Eugen Beber, i n his a r t i c l e , V h e Anti-
Utopias of t h e 'Rrentieth ~ e n t u r y l ' , ~ 'though s u r p r i s i n g l y omitting Wells
from h i s survey, passes u s e f u l comment on t h e Utopia and i t s converse, as
'I...
t h e strophe and anti-strophe of a chorus c o n s t a n t l y cornmentine on t h e
doings of man.
'They continue t h e long debate between s o c i e t y and t h e
individual, order and anarchy, a f f i r m a t i o n and denial, every one of t h e s e
dangerous i f pressed too far and needing an a n t i t h e s i s j u s t as p o t e n t i a l l y
violent.1122 l e l l s may be seen as t h e c h o r i c commentator who s h i f t s i n
sentiment between t h e s e poles, but t h e r e i s a point reached i n our exposure
t o Wells at which we must i d e n t i f y t h e more c h a r a c t e r i s t i c stand.
The most s i g n i f i c a n t a s s e r t i o n i n t h i s context has come from t h e
now seminal a r t i c l e by h i s son Anthony Vest i n Encounter which defined his
f a t h e r ' s world as one of d e s p a i r and nightmare:
"He w a s by nature a
pessimist, and he w a s doing violence t o h i s i n t u i t i o n s and h i s r a t i o n a l
perceptions a l i k e when he a s s e r t e d i n his middle period t h a t mankind could
make a b e t t e r world f o r i t s e l f by a n e f f o r t of w i l l . " 2 3
This view of
Wells's philosophy as a continuum of b a s i c scepticism s c a r c e l y a l t e r i n g from
t h e grim romances of t h e l a t e nineteenth century t o t h e f i n a l despairing
document, Xind at t h e End o f I t s Tether, h a s s i n c e Vest been v a r i o u s l y
espoused by a l l t h e major commentators, Bernard Bergonzi, Warren IIagar,
David Lodge, iClchnrd Costa, and i h r k 2. ~ l l e ~ r nl J e. s~t l s~i n i t i a l
r e a c t i o n against t h e v i e w t h a t only near death did Wells abandon a f a c i l e
optimism i n science rtnd human progress, i s now a widely accepted t h e s i s
and needs l i t t l e a m p l i f i c a t i o n here, but w i l l s t i l l s e r v e as a source of
basic i l l u s t r a t i o n throudlout t h i s introduction.
Sernrtrd Borgonzi, reviewin2 iJarren TJagarts anthology, concludes,
i n h i s estimation of t h e import of Wagarts demonstration of t h e public
Wells:
"In f a c t , as Anthony West has shown, i f e l l s had returned t o t h e
haunted scepticism of h i s youth which had produced The Time Ihchine and
The I s l a n d of Dr. ::oreau.
On t h i s view, T1ellsls a c t i v e l i f e as a
p u b l i c i s t , educator, and designator of Utopias, which I&.
?lagarts book s o
amply i l l u s t r a t e s , was l i t t l e more than a prolonged parenthesis.
25
The term I1prolonged parenthesis" and its a p p l i c a t i o n c o n s t i t u t e
perhaps t h e most a s s e r t i v e r e d e f i n i t i o n y e t of Yells t h e Utopist and p u b l i c
educator, o r at l e a s t of t h e once popular view of t h a t f i g u r e .
Leaving
a s i d e t h e a c t u a l journalism and pamphleteering, t h e b r i e f e s t of surveys o f
h i s f i c t i o n a l writin$
w i l l r e v e a l l i t t l e c l e a r expression o f optimism with
regard t o man and h i s f u t u r e .
From The Tine %chine with i t s d e v a s t a t i w
v i s i o n s of degeneration t o t h e despicable meanness and t r i v i a l i t y of 3ono
Tewler i n You Can't ne Too Careful, t h e r e i s only t h e s h o r t l i v e d #jump t h e
counter1 s p i r i t of t h e p r e w a r s o c i a l
f e e b l y revived i n iicalbr
(1915), and t h e painf'ul attempt t o d e i f y t h e Ifind of t h e Eace i n t h e f i n a l
chapter of 3. B i t l i n r ; : Sees It Throwh (1316), and i n God t h e I n v i s i b l e
(1917) and The Soul of a Bishop (1917).
I n The Und.yinc f i r e (1919)
Job Hussls c 1 i x - i ~ on t o hope i s t o such a degree desperate t h a t t h e s t o r y
i n a f i n a l a n a l y s i s sce~nst o chronicle Xan's p i t i f u l s t a t e and e f f e c t i v e l y
GO
no f u r t h e r .
As Geoffrey West ranarks of t h i s period;
"Wells had t o make
an affirmation of p o s i t i v e b e l i e f i n purpose l e s t he should f a l l i n t o an
abyss of despair. tt27 Desperation i s indeed the key note of t h i s and o t h e r
attempts t o provont a more i n s t i n c t i v e judgment from h o l d i w sway.
A group of novols w r i t t e n botwcen 1911 and 1915,28
Tho I?%
ilacliiavell& ( l 9 l l ) , ::arria.ye ( l g l z ) , Tho Passionate friends ( l 9 l 3 ) , and
Die 2esearch :h,nnificent (1915), represent an attempt t o define t h e
p o s s i b i l i t y of tho education of man as an individual, and l a y t h e b a s i s f o r
a new community of man, t o educate him away from waste and disorder.
However, t h e s t o r i e s of Remiwton,
of s t r u g g l e and passion.
Trafford, S t r a t t o n and Benham a r e s t o r i e s
The heroes a r e dogged by d e f i c i e n c i e s i n t h e i r o m
nature, and by t h e s t r e n g t h of i r r a t i o n a l impulses.
These novels a l l have
a s i n g u l a r atmosphere, o r half-known i n t e r n a l s t r i f e and feared t r u t h s , and
i n my f i n a l comparison, i n t h e conclusion, I have found i t useful t o s e t
The W a r Xachiavelli and The Research K a m i f i c e n t s i d e by s i d e i n t h e i r
essence w i t h t h e t h r e e t e x t s on which my study i s based.
The Twenties i s very much t h e decade of The Outline of Xistory
(1920) and of Wells as a kind of world teacher.
of f i c t i o n froin t h i s period
- which
His most remembered p i e c e
i s not t o s a y h i s most memorable29
-
i s Iien Like Gods (1923)~ t h e s t o r y of a f u t u r e Utopia, tumbled upon
a c c i d e n t a l l y by a r e p r e s e n t a t i v e band of contemporaries.
Nuch parodied
--
i t i n s p i r e d H a l e ~ t o r e p l y with a short-story version of Srave N ~ 'Jorld
J
t h e f a n t a s y came t o represent t h e a l l e ~ e ds t r i v i n g optimism of i t s author,
undeterred by t h e c o n s i s t e n t l y d e s t r u c t i v e and a t a v i s t i o p a t h of h i s t o r y
-
which he had so r c c c n t l y recounted i n s c Outline.
Anthony :Jest reads i t
o t h e n i i s o , wid 'ihir, ir,c?icatcs f u r t h e r ko:r misapplied and meanin&css
p e j o r a t i v e , l : ; ' c l l s i m l , s t i l l u t t e r e d b y ricll-meaning s c e p t i c s ;
fit
i s the
i
g ..tI
an essentin1l;r s t c r i l c c l a s h between r o s l i t y and an u n a t t a i n a b l e i d e a l .
At
bost i t i s a c r y of C i s t r c s s , n p l e a f o r t h i n p t o bo o t h e r than they a r e .
IIen Like Gods i s i n y e s l i t y an a l t o g e t h e r p e s s i m i s t i c book."
February,
(xncounter,
1957, p. 58).
IJells s tone becane more r e a d i l y appreciated wit'n K r . Blettsworth;:
on 9 a ~ p o l eI s l a n d (1328), a savage s a t i r e on human n a t u r e and hunan i n s t i t u t i o n s , t o be discussed i n d e t a i l l a t e r .
Thereafter, i n t h e decade of p o l i t i c a l
c o m i t n e n t , and d ~ u ' i n gt h e Second 'iiorld Var, B e l l s turned again t o t h e f'ranework of a l l e g o r i c a l aethod, and t h e device of fantasy.
Ee analysed t h e
phenomenon of d i c t a t o r s h i p i n such works as Yne Autocracy of 3.Par11a.x
and Tile Iiolg
','error
(1930)
(1939), while t h e p a t e n t a l l e g o r i e s , Tie Croquet Player
(1936), The &others (1937) and Star-%cotten
(1938), looked again a t t'ne
a p p a r e n t l y i n s o l u b l e problem of "IIanls n a t u r e , t h r u s t i n t o close-up by t h e
growin2 t h r e a t of rrorld c o n f l i c t , and by t h e Spanish r e h e a r s a l f o r i t .
I n l o o k i n s back a g a i n t o t'nc earliest
t h e w r i t e r ' s primary concern?
a l r e a d y reco@zed,
v i s i o n , what, then, s e e m t o be
The broad content of h i s "statements" we have
i s t h e process an6 flux of change.
Tne aspect of t h i s
which Y e l l s f e l t should be s t r e s s e d above a l l , and be s t r e s s e d c o n s t a n t l y ,
i s r e f e r r e d t o o b l i q u e l y i n t h i s remark, again f r o n t h e A t l a n t i c Introduction:
TJc ha,ve, i t i s p l a i n , a mind p r o j e c t e d here
upon tile world, 'mused b;r 'Ae s p e c t a c l e wit'nou'~, b u t r a t h e r more concerned with t h e
ur,qnc:i w i t h i n . hxy i t a l i c d
30
Andr6 Maurois once described Wells's conception of humanity as
"...
a giant
c r e a t u r e s t r i v i n g , through aeon a f t e r aeon, t o a t t a i n a l i f e of g r e a t e r
happiness and beauty,
111.1
t alwn.ys forced back i n t o t h e p i t of i m o r a n c e and
i t a l i c g I t i s an appropriate image, f o r t h i s " p i t of
ignorance and c r u e l t y " i n t o which man f a l l s , no matter how hard he s t r i v e s
t o escape from i t , i s the i n d e l i b l e f a c t of man's o r i g i n s .
A biological
i n h e r i t a n c e c o n s t i t u t e s t h e "urgency withinI1 at its most primary l e v e l .
Dr. Xoreau, a c a r i c a t u r e of God, here admits t o Edward Prendick
t h a t c e r t a i n imperfections a r e preventing t h e completion o f h i s experiments,
and t h e f i n a l expression of h i s c r e a t i o n , t h e moulding of b e a s t t o man:
The i n t e l l i g e n c e i s o f t e n oddly low, with
unaccountable blank ends, unexpected gaps.
And l e a s t s a t i s f a c t o r y of a l l i s something
I cannot
t h a t I cannot touch, somewhere
i n t h e s e a t of t h e
determine where
emotions. Cravings, i n s t i n c t s , d e s i r e s t h a t
harm humanity, a s t r a n g e hidden r e s e r v o i r t o
b u r s t suddenly and inundate t h e whole being
of t h e c r e a t u r e with anger, h a t e o r f e a r .
32
-
-
Forty years l a t e r , Wells c r e a t e s another doctor, Dr. Norbert, t o
explain t o an uncomfortable and uninformed croquet player t h a t :
;hn i s s t i l l what he was.
Invincibly bestial,
envious, malicious, greedy. I k n , S i r , unmasked and d i s i l l u s i o n e d , i s t h e same f e a r i n g ,
f i g h t i n g b e a s t he was a hundred thousand years
w o . These a r e no metaphors, S i r . What 1 t e l l
you i s t h e monstrous r e a l i t y .
33
This i s a b r i e f glimpse of t h e range of Wells's primary
- the
e a r l y and t h e l a t e , from t h e g r e a t e r t o t h e l e s s e r
metaphor, from t h e Doctor reminiscent of 14a.ry Shelley's Frankenstein, t o
one more resembling a modern p s y c h i a t r i s t
-- e s s e n t i a l l y a theory and a
b e l i e f i n t h e animal o r i g i n s of Nan, derived from Darwin, and a warning
of i t s import f o r a l l mankind.
"Catastrophe" i s a p o t e n t i a l i t y within man
himself; t h i s , Tlells claims, man must recognize.
t h e implications of h i s o r i ~ i n s ,i f he can.
only defence, i f i t i s a defence at a l l .
He must l e a r n t o c o n t r o l
"&iucation",
then, i s t h e
This recognition gives Wells
h i s b a s i c scepticism, a scepticism which remains even i n h i s dreams o f
f u t u r e s t a b i l i t y and organisation.
He i s aware of man's ignorance of h i s
own nature and f e e l s an imperative need t o c o r r e c t t h i s , and t h e expression
of t h e need may vary i n degree from r a t i o n a l demonstration t o frightened
despair.
Re would no doubt have applauded Robert Ardrey's attempt t o
o u t l i n e a "personal i n v e s t i g a t i o n i n t o t h e animal o r i g i n s and Nature of
I.lant1, and t o r e l a t e man's present t o h i s p a s t .
animal world.
"Man i s a f r a c t i o n o f t h e
Our h i s t o r y is an afterthought, no more, tacked t o an
i n f i n i t e calendar.
Ne a r e not so unique as we should l i k e t o believe.
And
if man i n a time of need seeks deeper knowledge concerning himself, then
he must explore those animal horizons from which we have made our quick
l i t t l e march. u34
Rowever, Wellsls "experimentft i n expression of t h e s e
imperatives was t o c a r r y him beyond the a n t h r o p o l o g i s t l s t h e s i s .
Before examining those t e x t s used i n i l l u s t r a t i o n of t h i s
discussion, it i s useful t o c l a r i f y m t h e r Wells's ooncepts of hman
nature, and t h e r e i s no b e t t e r a u t h o r i t y f o r t h i s purpose than Warren
Wagarts d e f i n i t i v e a n a l y s i s , R.G.
Wells and t h e World S t a t e .
Wells's
r e l a t i o n s h i p t o t h e Darwinian revolution has a l r e a d y been indioated, and
may now be amplified.
P l a p z d e s c r i b e s him as a "philosophe of t h e
Darwinian Agev, 35 and l a t e r e l a b o r a t e s i
Although we was deeply influenced by many o t h e r
c u r r e n t s i n l a t e nineteenth century thought,
fundamentally he looked a t l i f e through t h e eyes
of a t r a i n e d b i o l o g i s t . Tor him t h e universe was
t h e enigmatic cosmos of l a t e nineteenth-century
physics; animate n a t u r e was t h e s l a u g h t e r and
s t r u g g l e f o r existence doscribed by Darwin and
Buxley; man was a s p e c i e s of animal, Eomo Sayiens.,
of t h e order Primates, thrown up by an accident
of evolution and forced t o adapt t o i t s environment o r degenerate o r p e r i s h . A good many modern
t h i n k e r s have subscribed t o t h e s e i d e a s , but f o r
V e l l s t h e y forined t h e p o i n t of departure and t h e
frame of r e f e r e n c e f o r every o t h e r idea. The
~ _ r o p o s i t i o n sof ph,ysics and biolor'<y were h i s
Dhilosophical.
italicd
36
-
Lmy
It i s i n t e r e s t i n g t o r e f e r i n comparison t o t h e r e p r e s e n t a t i v e
s c i e n t i s t i n G. Lowes Dickinson's A Xodern S~mposium (1905), who is,
s i g n i f i c a n t l y , a b i o l o g i s t , one Charles Wilsona
"...
biology i s one of t h e
d i s c i p l i n e s t h a t a r e b u i l d i n g up t h a t general view of Nature and t h e world
which i s g r a d u a l l y r e v o l u t i o n i z i n g a l l our s o c i a l conceptions. "37
t h a t he is speaking f o r a "new generationl1, one which has
ll...
Be f e e l s
a totally
new code of e t h i c s ; and t h a t code i s d i r e c t e d t o t h e end of t h e p e r f e c t i o n
of t h e r a c e . w38 V e l l s w a s i n t h e vanguard of t h a t "new generation" which
held t o , adapted, reappraised, o r a l t e r e d more r a d i c a l l y t h e o r i g i n a l
r e v o l u t i o n of Charles Darwin begun i n t h e year of h i s Origin of Species,
1859,~' b u t he could not be s a i d t o s h a r e t h e u n q u a l i f i e d s e n s e of mission
and confidence which i s expressed here.
It was Shaw who made a ' r e l i g i o n '
o f t h e "new code", who turned 'biology' i n t o 'metabiology' and who, when t h e
Western world w a s s t i l l stunned by t h e t e r r i b l e d i s i l l u s i o n m e n t of t h e
]First World War, rewrote t h e ' f i v e boolcs of Hoses1 i n terms of h i s new
faith
- Creative Evolution. 40
N e l l s t s s c i e n t i f i c t r a i n i n g comes back i n t o focus again here,
f o r as Wagar p o i n t s out,
"...
T.lellsts i d e a of nature w a s not s o much an
e x e r c i s e i n metaphysics as a d e s c r i p t i o n from t h e vantage point of a
trained biologist
....
'14'
Shaw, on tho o t h e r hand, had no s c i e n t i f i c
background at a l l ; h i s optimism and metaphysics l e d him away from Darwin
t o t h e e a r l i e r Lainarck
theories
- and Samuel B u t l e r ' s
extension of Lamarckls
- and t o Bergson' s 1' 6volutio~g,r-catrice.42
Wells r e j e c t e d one of t h e more v i c i o u s l y f a t a l i s t i c implications
of Darwinism, t h a t espoused by t h e 'imperial1 e v o l u t i o n i s t s with t h e i r
t h e o r i e s t h a t nature's law made ' n a t u r a l ' w a r and m i l i t a r y competition, 43
and t h e r e f o r e excused i t .
I n t h i s he followed T.H.
EIbxley1s acceptance
of t h e dual nature of man, with t h e defence of e t h i c a l nature within man
t o defeat, where possible, t h e imperatives of i n s t i n c t u a l nature.
This theory i s defined i n Huxleyls Romanes l e c t u r e Zvolution and
Ethics (1893)~ an e s s e n t i a l document f o r an understanding of t h e growth
of l J e l l s t s tho=ht,
and a now oft-quoted source f o r t h e d i a l e c t i c of
The I s l a n d of D r . ibreau.
However, t h e s t r e n g t h of man's "moral sense", of
o r as Wells phrases i t i n
t h e " e t h i c a l i d e a l of t h e j u s t and t h e
h i s c l o s e l y r e l a t e d a r t i c l e , IfHunan Evolution, An A r t i f i c i a l Process1', t h e
"acquired f a c t o r , t h e a r t i f i c i a l m a n ,
t h e h i & l y p l a s t i c c r e a t u r e of
t r a d i t i o n , suggestion, and reasoned
subversion f'rom within, and, as W a g a r remarks,
i s forever i n danger of
...
"there w a s always t h e
r i s k t h a t t h e blind greed and s l o t h and f e a r he had i n h e r i t e d from h i s
animal p a s t would b e t r a y human i n t e re s t s and value
Wells's entrenched r e s e r v a t i o n s about man's a b i l i t y t o control
t h e manifestation of h i s o r i g i n s may be f u r t h e r illumined by a comparison
with a contenporarjr w r i t e r , one who has a l r e a d y been linked with Wells, i n
passing, by some commentators
- lfillim
G o l d i x . 47
I n G o l d i x l s essay, l1Fable", from The Rot Gates, t h e r e i s an
account of tho a u t h o r ' s reduction of f a i t h i n t h e " p e r f e c t i b i l i t y of s o c i a l
prompted i n t h e main by t h e Second World W a r and t h e h i s t o r y of
m o p e prior to that w a r
of Lord of the F l i e s .
- which
eventually found expression i n t h e ' f a b l e '
His comments on t h e nature of man and on t h e flimsy
q u a l i t y of t h e imposed I c i v i l i s i n g 1 process a r e echoes o f Wells's scepticism
as defined i n "Iiuman Eholution, An A r t i f i c i a l Process", and elsewhere i n
h i s t h e o r e t i c a l and h i s f i c t i o n a l w r i t i n t ; , i n sources a l r e a d y indicated.
Golding speaks o f t h e "taboos" which have obscured "the sad f a c t of h i s
F a n 1 2 c r u e l t y and lust",49 and continues as follows adding t h e p a r t i c u l a r
s i g n i f i c a n c e of recent h i s t o r y :
....
Social systems, p o l i t i c a l systems were composed,
They
detached from t h e r e a l nature of man
would p e r f e c t most men, and at t h e l e a s t , reduce
Thy, then, have they never worked?
aberrance
Rmr did t h e i d e a l i s t concepts of p r i m i t i v e social- *
i s m t u r n a t l a s t i n t o Stalinism? How could t h e
p o l i t i c a l and philosophical idealism of Germany
produce as i t s ultimate f i r r i t , t h e r u l e of Adolf
i J e ? ily own conviction grew t h a t what had
happened was t h a t men were p u t t i n g t h e c a r t before
It seemed t o me t h a t man's c a p a c i t y
t h e horse
f o r s e e d , h i s i n n a t e c r u e l t y and s e l f i s h n e s s , was
being hidden behind a kind of p a i r of p o l i t i c a l
not
pants. I believed then, that man was s i c k
exceptional man, but average man. I believed t h a t
t h e condition of man was t o be a morally diseased
c~c:a,tion and t k a t t h e b e s t job I could do a t t h e
tine v a s t o t r a c e t h e connection between h i s
diseased nature and t h e i n t e r n a t i o n a l mess he g e t s
50
himself i n t o .
....
....
-
Yells t r a c o s t h i s connection most memorably i n 3.H l e t t s r o r a
on Iimpole Islanc! and The Croquet P l m , thoyyh he may i n t e r p r e t "diseased
nature" i n a b i o l o g i c a l sense, r a t h e r than i n Gelding's more t r a d i t i o n a l
theological context.
Iioriever, as 1 l a ~ ; mso perceptively comments, "Wells
i n e f f e c t preached a b i o l o g i c a l d o c t r i n e of o r i g i n a l s i n , which turned t h e
Christian teaching i n s i d e o u t but amounted t o much t h e same thing.
Wells proceeds t o explain i n "Xurnan Evolutionlf,
,151
"...
what we c a l l Xorality
becomes t h e p a d d i x of s w e s t e d emotional h a b i t s necessary t o keep t h e
round P a l a e o l i t h i c savcqe i n t h e square hole of t h e c i v i l i s e d s t a t e .
S i n i s t h e c o n f l i c t of t h e two f a c t o r s
JW
- as I have t r i e d t o convey i n my
I s l a n d of D r . :!oT~w. I152
To conclude h i s a r t i c l e , l i e l l s a r r i v e s a t a d e f i n i t i o n of
education i n t h e l i g h t of h i s theory of t h e "inherited" and t h e "acquired"
factor.
It i s t h e % a r e f u l and systematic manufacture of t h e a s t i f i c i a l
f a c t o r i n man.1153 Tlus he p i n s f a i t h of a kind i n education as "the
p o s s i b l e s a l v a t i o n of mankind from misery and
Education was I T e l l s ~ s
dream; idoreau was one manifestation of .the omnipresent nightmare, and o t h e r s
were t o follow with unrelenting frequency u n t i l h i s last manuscript.
gold in^; a d m i t s t o a s i m i l a t r dream.
"At moments of optinism I
have f e l t t h a t education and perhaps a miracle o r two would be s u f f i c i e n t
t o remove t h e i r noro dangerous elements.
&olding i s r e f e r r i n g t o Itthe
f o r c e s of off-canpus history", t h a t is, "a f a i l u r e of human sympathy,
ignorance of f a c t s , t h e o b j e c t i v i z i n g of our own inadequacies so as t o make
a scapegoat.y
lPncn I f e e l pessimistic, then they seem t o c o n s t i t u t e a
t r a p i n t o which humanity has got i t s e l f with a dreary i n e v i t a b i l i t y much as
t h e dinosaur trapped i t s e l f i n i t s own u s e l e s s armour. 1t55 Wells has &erne@
up miracles, too, from a cornet t o a "war t o end a l l
a r e not very c o n v i n c i q ones.
pre-history,
but they
And he has contemplated t n e grim record of
broncht i t t o l i f e as a teacher-historian i n The Outline, as
a Swiftian satirist i n Blettsworthg, and as an appalled and h o r r i f i e d
p a r t i c i p a n t i n humanity's r a c e t o t h e brink of chaos, i n The Croquet Player.
This, then, seem from a b r i e f survey of h i s c a r e e r as a w r i t e r
and from an introductory a n a l y s i s of t h e o r i ~ i n sof h i s thought, i s Plells's
primary metaphysic.
It motivates t h e g r e a t e r and t h e more vivid, t h e more
analogous and t h e r e f o r e more timeless, p a r t of h i s f i c t i o n a l llexperiment".
The followi% study w i l l examine t h e degree and v a r i a t i o n o f t h i s aspect
of t h e ltexperimentfl, and w i l l consider those t e x t s which employ myth and
a l l e g o r i c a l form, and i n s o doing i l l u m i n a t e r a t h e r more t h e p r i m i t i v e
and t h e anthropological end of what one might c a l l t h e spectrum of man's
instinctual life.
A t t h e o t h e r end of t h i s spectrum is, more frequently,
--- > thbso and r e l a t e d
t h e roman
s t r u c t u r e s which may b r i w together the
genres of d i s c u s s i o n - d i a l o ~ eand a l l e g o r y i n t o one whole.
Here, t h e
s u b j e c t is more o f t e n what may l o o s e l y be c a l l e d ' s o c i a l s man, man i n
s o c i e t y contemporary with ITells, s t i l l coping uneasily i n r e a l s i t u a t i o n s
with t h e r b i f i c a t i o n s of h i s i n s t i n c t u a l nature.
From first t o last, a l l
men a r e , i n essence, llCain's Childrenu. 57
There w i l l be no attempt t o observe an a r b i t r a r y d a t e whore T ~ e l l s
i s , on one s i d e , acceptable, and on t h e o t h e r , unacceptable t o t h e
normative c r i t i c .
The t h r e e main works discussed a r e not o n l y from
d i f f e r e n t decades, but from d i f f e r e n t eras:
of 1928, and The Croquet Player o f 1936.
Moreau of 1896, B l e t t w o r t h y
The placing of s o e o l e o t i o a
n o v e l i s t as ?Tells i n t h e t r a d i t i o n of t h e English novel must be limited
here t o a simple r e ~ o ~ i t i oofn h i s p o s i t i o n i n t h e broad trend which r u n s
opposite t o t h a t represented by Henry James. 58
It i s wiser, and more valuable, i f we remain with some of t h e
d e f i n i t i o n s from t h e A t l a n t i c introduction, and i n i t i a t e an e s s e n t i a l l y
d e s c r i p t i v e study of some o f t h e "experiments i n statement", noting
v a r i a t i o n i n method, emphasis and effectivoness, and explaining as far as
p o s s i b l e t h e i r contanporary significance.
To dismiss Blettsworthy and
I
The Croquet Player, simply because they belong t o what i s g e n e r a l l y
regarded as a c r e a t i v e wilderness and a period of commitment t o i s s u e s
t o t a l l y i r r e l e v a n t t o t h e techniques of c r e a t i v i t y , i s t o m i s s two
i n t e r e s t i n g and e f f e c t i v e experiments i n allegory, t o undervalue some of
t h e constant q u a l i t i e s of Wells's w r i t i n g , and above a l l t o misread t h e
'whole' Wells, t o misunderstand t h e prominence and f o r c e o f t h a t primary
concern -- Itthe urgency withintt.
1
11.G. Wells, General I n t r o d u c t i o n Tho IJorks of 1I.G. Wells, 28 vols.,
A t l a n t i c Oliition ( ~ e w~ o r k ,1 9 ~ J V, O ~ . 1, p. x v i i i .
2
.See
.
3
See An 31~qlislmanLooks a t t h e Vorld (Lordon, 1914), pp. 148-169.
4
Leon Xdel and Gordon A. Ray, eds.,
( ~ r b a n a ,I l l i n o i s , 1958), p. 264.
W. Namen lr'war, R.G.
London, 19G1), p. 239n.
Wells and tho World S t a t e (New Haven and
IIenry James and H.G.
Wells
G.9.
?fells ( ~ e o f f r e yVest) quotes p a r t of t h i s opening passage from
t h e General I n t r o d u c t i o n i n t h e concluding chapter of h i s biography,
2.G. : J e l l s ondo don and New York, 1930), p. 254, and comments t h u s a
"That i s t h e view of t h e man who terms himself j o u r n a l i s t r a t h e r t h a n
artist, not i n modesty but because he values a work of art more f o r
i t s l o g i c a l statement than i t s q u a l i t y of l i f e . Yet even those who
accept h i s standpoint may b e l i e v e t h a t f o r many years y e t a consicie r a b l e p r o p o r t i o n of h i s w r i t i n z w i l l remain a continuously e r u p t i v e
source of suggestion and i n s p i r a t i o n and delight."
5
See Robert P. lleelc's review of Bichard Hauer Costa's H.G. Y e l l s
(New York, 1967) i n En,'?:lish L i t e r a t u r e i n ~ransition,'=67),
167.
6
Preface t o The Borld of W i l l i a m C l i s s o l d (Ear York, 1926), vol. 1,
p vi
Compare, "Of Art, L i t e r a t u r e and 14r. Zenr Jamestt i n Boon
A t l . ed. (Uew York, 1925), p. 454s "In a l l h i s f i a m e s g novels y ~ u
w i l l f i n d no people w i t h defined p o l i t i c a l opinions, no people w i t h
r e l i g i o u s opinions, none with c l e a r p a r t i s a n s h i p s o r w i t h l u s t s o r
W 1 t h a t much of humanity he c l e a r s o u t b e f o r e he begins
whims
h i s s t o r y . It's l i k e c l e a n i n g r a b b i t s f o r t h e table."
. .
....
7
iflark Schorer, i n h i s well-known a r t i c l e , "Technique as Discoveryt1,
Zudson Rcvicrr, I (1948), 67-87, i s too sweeping i n h i s a p p l i c a t i o n
of t h i s s o r t of c l a s s i f i c a t i o n t o llell's. Xe d e s c r i b e s Wells as
disappearing, *Ifrom l i t e r a t u r e i n t o t h e annals of an era"
73).
Tor more s p e c i f i c r e f e r e n c e t o Schorer, s e e t h e appendix on
Tono-Bun+~p
8
RoCoIC. & s o r t s review of t h e f i r s t volume of k e r i m e n t i n
A u t o S i o t ~ m h gi n '7he Spectator ( ~ c t o b o r12, 1934), 529, provides a
r e p r e s e n t a t i v e L e a v i s i t e view of Tlclls's e a r l y influences and t h e
...
character of h i s education, which t h i s s h o r t e x t r a c t s u i t a b l y
i l l u s t r a t e s : "Suppose
i n a d d i t i o n t o a y e a r ' s biology under
Buxley he had done two years philosophy at Oxford o r Glasgow under
Nettleship o r Uward Caird, and had had t h e experience of reading
II
i h t at an average pace of l e s s than a p q e an hour
....
9
General I n t r o d u c 5 o n , p. xvi. See a l s o ~ l e l l s ' sIntroduction t o
17est's biography, p. xviii : "This world, says S i r James Jeans, i s
going on f o r a n i l l i o n m i l l i o n years. I wave t h e s t r i v i n g immortals
onward, and stop aside." ?.lest l a t e r explains t "As a student a t
South iCensington, he saw, with t h e e f f e c t of a new vision, man's
self-importance s h r i n k i n t h e b i o l o & i c a l , geological, and
astronomical perspectives. (P. 104)
10
Xeferences t o Dawin by :!ells, e x p l i c i t and i m p l i c i t , a r e countless,
but perhaps t h e c l e a r e s t testimony t o h i s c e n t r a l i t y i n X e l l s t s
mind i s the proninent p o s i t i o n given him i n Tine Outline o f Xis=.
,
As Christopher Dawson remarks i n V . G . Wells and t h e Outline of
Sistory", L ' h % ! n a ; n i c s of Vorld 1iistor.- ( ~ e wYork, 1962), p . 364;
If...
Darrrin i s almost t h e only man of science, a f t e r Newton, who
r e c e i v e s s e r i o u s a t t e n t i o n . " See The Outline ( ~ e wYork, 1961),
For an extended discussion of :?ells and Darwin, see
pp. 777-779.
Otto Barber's unpublished d i s s e r t a t i o n , "HeGo Wellsls VerhLltnis mun
D m i n i s n u s " , Leipzig, 1934, not consulted f o r t h i s t h e s i s . However,
Georg Roppen o u t l i n e s Barber's i n v e s t i g a t i o n b r i e f l y i n Evolution
A Study i n Sone Victorian and Xodern V r i t e r s
and Poetic & l i e f :
( ~ s l o ,1956), p. 404 f .
11
Vincent Brome, %haw v. Wells", S i x Studies i n Quarrellinq (Iondon,
19581, P. 29.
12
General Introduction, p. x.
13
General Introduction, p. x v i i t "Indeed a l l these volumes axe about
u n r e s t and chaqye." Geoffrey Nest, i n h i s biography, comments
f u r t h e r on t h e background which gave ? l e l l s t h e i n s p i r a t i o n f o r a l l
h i s thought: l%volution was very much i n t h e a i r from t h e 1701s t o
t h e 9 0 ' s ; a t South Kensington under Huxley i t was t h e atmosphere
i t s e l f . " (p. 98).
14
& Assessncnt of 'I'r~entiothCentury L i t e r a t u r e ( h n d o n , 1951), p. 21.
15
Also t h e significant; year f o r Virfinin !loolf. See h e r well known
i l l u s t r a t i o n of t h e d i f f e r e n c e between the technique o f Sennett,
FJells, and Gczlsworthy, t h e ~ f ~ w n r d i a n s and
l f , that represented by her
own work and by F o r s t e r , Lawrence and Joyce, t h e "Georgiansft, i n
I .
I - , ~ 3ennett and i k s . Brown",
Collected Essays, v o l e 1 (i~ewYork,
O r i g i n a l l y n paper read a t Cambridge i n 1924,
1967), pp. 319-337.
and published i n %e Captain's Death Tad.
.
For f u r t h e r comnentary on "the most productive and i n t e r e s t i n g
period o f h i s c a r e e r f t , t h a t is betwoon, 1895 and 1910, s e e Gordon A.
3ay, ItH.G. ?!ells T r i e s t o be a I J o v e l i s t f ~ Edwardians
,
and Late
Victorians, Ih(:.lish I n s t i t u t e Essays, 1959 (Xew York, 1960),
pp. 106-159.
'
3.L. Xencken, a severe c r i t i c of t h e so-called Yells i n decline,
p r e f e r s , however, t o s e e t h e cut-off p o i n t i n 1912, with the
p u b l i c a t i o n of ;Iarriame. "The Late 1.k.
Prejudices r F i r s t
pp 22-35.
S e r i e s (1~e-uyo,-r
.
Henry Seidel Canby, a f t e r a l l t h e c r i t i c a l disapproval and d i s t r e s s
at Wells's pursued experiment i n n a r r a t i v e function has been voiced,
provides a sane reminder8 "His e a r l i e r manner l e d where i t was
i n e v i t a b l y pointed, t o h i s l a t e r manner. S u b s t a n t i a l l y , a l l h i s
s o c i a l ideas a r e i m p l i c i t i n h i s f i r s t f a n t a s t i c s t o r i e s , and i t i s
not necessary t o read t h e Fabian essays contemporary with them
f o r a c a r e f u l reader t o see i n The Time Ihchine, D r . IIoreauts I s l a n d
and The !Tar of t h e Norlds, a l l the hopes and f e a r s of humanity
which later;-ame
out from romance i n t o realism with no more than a
n a t u r a l i n c r e a s e i n scope and e x p l i ~ i t n e s s . ' ~The Saturday Review of
L i t e r a t u r e ( ~ a n u a r24,
~ l925), 474. Canby i s c o r r e c t i n p o i n t i n g out
a c e r t a i n n a t u r a l c o n t i n u i t y i n lTellsls experimentation, though, a s
t h i s t h e s i s demonstrates by t h e t e x t s chosen f o r discussion,
'romance1 is never l e f t e n t i r e l y behind.
...
&iq,
16
I n p a r t i c u l a r , s e e "Bagshot' s Ikural Decorations" and "A idisunderstood
A r t i s t " , where art as fashion and art f o r art's sake, respectively,
a r e t h e 'convsrsation' topics. For a nore d e t a i l e d consideration o f
t h e f o m e r , C.C. Bickerson has some valuable i n t e r p r e t a t i o n s i n "A
Hote on some Neglected Opinions of H.G. T J e l l ~ ~Enklish
~,
Literature
i n Transition, V, v (1962), 27-30.
17
General Introduction, p. x, and repeated on p. xv.
1
I
I
I
I
I
i
I
Seo T1.C.
f i i o r s o n , The b ~ l i s hiiovel i n T r a n s i t i o n (1kw York, 1965),
0. 1942, Purdue U n i v e r s i t y ' s Sn:.lish L i t e r a t u r e i n T r a n s i t i o n
( p r e v i o u s l y %(:lish F i c t i o n i n ran sit ion) s i m i l a r l y c l a s s i f i e s 1Jells.
(From J u l y 1968, t h i s p e r i o d i c a l i s e d i t e d at liorthern I l l i n o i s
University, Del~alb).
Frank Swinnerton, i n The Geor,~ia.nL i t e r a r y Scene (London, 1951),
1938, p o 50, r e f e r s t o t h e many " d i f f e r e n t instruments1' which
Wells picked up a n d l e t f a l l d u r i w h i s l i f e
t h e Fabians and
t h e Leame of Xations, f o r example. One could a l s o v i e w h i s l i t e r a r y
experiments as t h e p i c k i n g up and p u t t i w down of " d i f f e r e n t
instruments"; a s e a r c h f o r an a p p r o p r i a t e t o o l .
@.
--
It i s w o r t h h i l o , i n t h i s context, quoting Anthony T.lestls remarks i n
h i s %counter a r t i c l e ( ~ e b r u a r y , 1957) a I1From Soon onwards he made
i n c r e a s i n g l y s t r i d e n t a t t a c k s on l i t e r a r y values which a r e , i n n y
view, only p a r t i a l l y e x p l i c a b l e by h i s sense t h a t i n t h e s t a t e i n
which t h e world found i t s e l f a e s t h e t i c s were a l u x u r y f o r which t h e r e
was not enou&
i t a l i c g It i s my v i e w t h a t t h e s e a t t a c k s ,
which went along with h i s r e i t e r a t e d statements t h a t h i s own work
had no l i t e r a r y value, t h a t i t was merely journalism, a t t a c h e d t o
contemporary i s s u e s , which would become meaningless i n s i d e a couple
of decades, r e f l e c t e d a troubled i n n e r sense t h a t t h e r e was something
profoundly wrong about h i s own course of developmentet1 (p. 59)
--
a.
Fy
1.iark 3 i l l e g a s had produced t h e most r e c e n t s t u d y of l l e l l s ; a
p h i l o s o p h i c a l and s o c i o l o ~ i c a ld i s c u s s i o n o f - h i s anti-utopianism, and
an examination o f h i s i n f l u e n c e on F o r s t e r , Capek, Zamyatin, Huxley,
Orwell and C.S. Lewis. See The Tuture a s i l i ~ h t m a r e t H.G. Y e l l s and
t h e Anti-Utopians ( ~ e wYork, 1967).
Soutn A t l a n t i c Quarterly, LVIII
Ibid.,
p.
(1959)~ 440-447.
447.
-
John Stewart llilliarnson's d o c t o r a l d i s s e r t a t i o n
"H.G. Wells, C r i t i c
of Progress: A Study of t h e & l y Fiction1', University of Colorado,
should be r e f e r r e d t o hore. X l l i a m s o n d e f i n e s V e l l s l s
1964
v i s i o n of t h e l i m i t s t o progress as 'cosmic1 and Ihurnan1. It is t h e
l a t t e r i d e a which i s i n v e s t i g a t e d i n t h i s t h e s i s , with t e x t s chosen
beyond t h e e a r l y f i c t i o n , as well as from t h i s p e r i o d of h i s w r i t i n g .
-
25
"Tne Visions of I1.G.
(~ovember5, 1364).
I J e l l ~ ~Ne~
w , Yorlc Review of k o k s
26
This compctrativcly sunny period of 17011sts w r i t i n g c a r e e r
t h o ~ h
l e t us not f o r g o t t h e serious s o c i a l accusations, i m p l i c i t and
and t h e re-appearance of memorable
e x p l i c i t , i n those s t o r i e s
comic s k i l l a h o s t t o t h e very end of h i s l i f e , i n e v i t a b l y a r e passed
by i n a discussion of t h i s nature. I l c l l s ' s much vaunted comic
"exuberance" i s not t h e most c e n t r a l f a c e t of t h e man. An adequate
study of V o l l s ' s n a r r a t i v e comedy, however, remains t o be done.
Robert P. B ~ e l i sc a l l e d f o r i t i n h i s a r t i c l e , 'Wells Scholarship
i n Perspective", Lk{:lish F i c t i o n i n TransitionJ 111, i (1960),
12-15, but i t remains as y e t an a r e a untouched, except f o r
whimsical biographical commentary and well-worn comparisons with
Dickens. Kenneth 9. lJewellts d o c t o r a l d i s s e r t a t i o n ( s e e t h e
biblioPaphy) i s concerned with s t r u c t u r e and s o c i a l theme.
-
-
Y e l l s r p. 195. l l e l l s himself s a i d t h i s of h i s brush with d e i t y :
"Xy phrascolog-y went back unobtrusively t o t h e s t u r d y atheism of my
youthful d a p . 127 s p i r i t had never l e f t i t
I n s p i t e of the
f a c t t h a t i t b h a t he c a l l e d h i s "phase of terminological d i s i n ~ e n yielded P e t e r ' s dream of God Amox t h e Cobwebs p r o m Joan
and The Und,yin,: F i r e I rrish, not s o much f o r my own sake
as f o r the sake of my more f a i t h f u l r e a d e r s t h a t I had never f a l l e n
i n t o i t ; i t confused and misled many of then and introduced a barren
de'tour i n t o my research f o r an e f f e c t i v e d i r e c t i o n f o r human affairs."
Srperiinent i n A u t o b i o ~ a p h g oron onto, 1934)~ p. 578.
H.G.
....
-
28
The group nature of t h e s e novels i s enphasised by t h e interchange
and c r o s s r e f e x n c e of c h a r a c t e r s from one novel t o t h e next, For
.example, i n iasriape t h e r e i s a reference t o t h e Remington-Isobel
Rivers scania-htic
m i t i o n , vol. w ,p . 418), and i n
The 2esearch Ilaqnificent ( ~ t l .Ed., vole xix, p . 138) Bh. Pope and
Lady %ach :.iandarin a r e mentioned.
29
Undoubtedly, i t i s Christina Alberta1 s Father (1925), a novel l a r g e l y
neglected.
30
General Introduction, p. ix.
31
7in.: mwarci and H i s Times ( h n d o n , 1933), p. 230.
The Island of I)r. Yoroau (~iarmonclsworth, 3qland,
1964), p. 112.
Subsequent references t o t h i s t e x t w i l l be given p a r e n t h e t i c a l l y .
African Gcnczis (mew York, 1967),
Ibid.,
@.
1961, p. 11.
p. 62.
( ~ e wYork, 1914) 0. 1905, p a 80.
Ibid.,
p. 82.
For a relevant survey of t h i s important background, s e e Leo J. Ifenkin,
Darwinism i n t h e 3 n , ~ l i s hNovel, 1860
1910 ( ~ e wYork, 1963), @. 1940,
p. 50 e t seq.
-
That i s , Back t o ?::ethuselah, s u b t i t l e d a llilletabiological Pentateuchu,
published i n 1921.
Tne n a i n references here a r e Ilan and Superma,, and
t o :xletnusela,,.
Vincent 3rone1s chapter, Thaw versus Veils", i n Six Studies i n
Quarrel&
(London, 1958), provides useful commentary i n t h i s
context.
I n a discussion of Shaw, Robert 3 r u s t e i n xuotes Trotsky's wish t h a t
"'the Fabian f l u i d t h a t r a n i n h i s b~awlsJ veins n i & t have beon
strencthened by even s o much as f i v e p e r cent of t h e blood of
The Theatre of Revolt (i?oston, 1 9 6 4 ) ~ pp. 207-208.
Jonathan S w i f t t
This i s p r e c i s e l y t h e d i f f e r e n c e between t h e q u a l i t y o f t h e i r
u t o p i s t visions.
."
V.S. Pritchetl;, commenting with p a r t i c u l a r r e f e r e n c e t o Iioreau, w a i n
s t r e s s e s tilo s i 3 i f i c a n t
d i f f e r e n c e between t h e philosophies of t h o
two men: I r X l i n Shaw, i s curnblc. TIo b e l i e v e s i n t h e P r o t e z t a n t
e f f o r t . Iie b e l i e v e s t h a t men ar:ye t h e i r way along t h e path of
evolution, and t h a t t h e l i f e f o r c e i o always on t h e s i d e of t h e
c l e v c r o s t mind and t h e l i v e l i e s t conscience
3ut t o t h e enotional
Y e l l s , t h e p o s s i b i l i t y of o r i g i n a l s i n i n t h e form of t h e o r i ~ i n a l
monkey i s alrrags p r e s e n t . me p r i c e of progress may be perversion
and horror, and l l e l l s i s honest enousl~t o accept t h a t . ( I 1
"The S c i e n t i f i c Romances", The L i v i n ~Novel (New York, 1947), p . 12'7.
....
43
See Xapr, p. 73. I n Tho Outline of E i s t o r z (New York, 1961)~
@ 1920, Y e l l s makes some s l i ~ h t i n groforences t o !tipling i n
connection w i t h -popular
iilisconceptions of D a r w i n i s m . He mentions
S t a l k y and Co. and t h e l i g h t i t t h r o ~ r son t h e " p o l i t i c a l psychology
It
of t h e B r i t i s h % p i r e a t t h e c l o s e of t h e nineteenth century
....
44
~ o l u t i o n a n dE t h i c s ( ~ e wYork,
45
F o r t n i g h t l y Review, vol. 60 (October 1896),
47
David Lodge1s a s t i c l e , "Assessins II .G. T J e l l ~ ~'Encounter
~,
(~anuar~
1967), 54-61, s u c g e s t s a connection between t h e two w r i t e r s i n a
d i s c u s s i o n of 12. Blettsworthy on Rampole I s l a n b T h e myth o f
l i k e t h e myth of Lord of t h e F l i e s (and Golding,
Smpole Island
d e s p i t e t h e i r o n i c epigraph from ';?lo Outline of F i s t o r x t o Tho
I n h e r i t o r s , i s very much a l i t e r a r y descendant of V e l l s ) i s
menorable, not f o r i t s t o p i c a l a l l u s i v e n e s s , but f o r i t s general
Previously, Anthony Pearson
i m p l i c a t i o n s about t h e n a t u r e of man."
had -pointed o u t Goldingts p o s s i b l e debt t o "The G r i s l y Folk" f o r
Tne I n h e r i t o r s , and Y"e Strange Case of Davidsonts Exes: f o r
Wells and Pincher ::artin", Kotes and
See %.G.
Pincher ; ' a t i n .
Richard Hauer Costa, i n i : o G o : l e a
1965), 275-6.
e r i e s , '=July
]err York, 1967), pp. 37-39, d i s c u s s e s Xoreau and Lord or" t h e F l i e s
b r i e f l y . ; h r k I i i l l e & a s , i n The Future as Bi,yhtmaret H.G. V e l l s m d
t h e Anti--Utopians, remarks i n p a s s i n g t h a t I.:oreau "looks foxward t o
a n important v a r i a n t on t h e anti-Utopian theme, Yilliam Goldiwls
Lord of t h e F l i . . . (p. 38) I n a l a t e r s e c t i o n o f h i s book, he
d i s c u s s e s The I n h e r i t o r s i n t h e context o f Wells anthropological
romances
...
F-
.
1897),@ 1893, pp. 5 4 a n d 59.
594.
The Rot Gates ( ~ e wYork, 1965), p. 86.
50
I b i d . Goldins follows t h e general theme i n h i s play, The Brass
B u t t e r f l y (London, 1958), Act 11, p. 58; t h e h p e r o r here reproves
tho e n t h u s i a s t i c inventor, Phanocles, with what ;Iamilius c a l l s Wne
last lesson"; "A steam ship, o r anything poxerful, i n t h e hands of
man, Phanocles, i s l i k e a sharp k n i f o i n t h e hands of a child. There
i s n o t h i q rcong with the knife. There is nothing wrong with t h e
steam ship. Thore i s nothing wrong with man's i n t e l l i g e n c e . The
t r o u b l e i s his nature."
53
Ibid.
55
The Hot Gates, p. 94.
56
I am r e f e r r i n g t o The World Set Free (1914) with i t s prophecy of
devastating nuclear warfare follotred by global reconstruction.
C.C. lickerson discusses t h e p o s s i b l e intended i r o n y i n the use of
t h a t well-known and unfortunate phrase, as i t appeared i n "Tne Story
o f t h e k t Trumpu, whioh Wells included i n Boon (1915). See
footnote 16.
57
The f i n a l chapter heading i n Ardreyls African Genesis.
58
A s G.S. f i a s e r begins h i s s e c t i o n on t h e novel i n The IJodern Y r i t e r
and !{is 7orl:i (~armondsworth, %gland, 1964) 0. 1953, p. 73: "Ue
can t r a c e tho immediate a n c e s t r y of t h e modern English novel back as
f a r as t h e 1890%, t o t h e work o f two n o v e l i s t s who were at opposite
poles i n t h e i r conception o f t h e novel, i t s form and f'unction
....
Ferny J m e s , then i n t h e f u l l m a t u r i t y o f h i s powers, and
H.G. iJells, then making a b r i l l i a n t be&u~ing. 'I
X.C. f i i e r s o n i d e n t i f i e s t h o samo p o l a r i t y i n h i s d e s c r i p t i o n o f t h e
two l i n e s o f dcvolopment from Zola issi sing, V e l l s , Onions, Beresford,
Cannan, S i n c l a i r , Cronin and ree en wood) and from t h e P a r i s Group
( ~ a m e s ,i , h n s f i e l d , Richardson, ?Toolf, Swinnerton, Ford and ow en).
The En.r:lish Novel i n T r a n s i t i o n , 1880 1940, I n t r o d u c t i o n , p. di.
-
2.
I;orcau, X e t tsworthy, and The Croquet Player a
Three r e l a t e d llBcperiments i n Statement*
There has been a tendency t o avoid breaking up t h e sequence of
Wells's w r i t i n g , and t h e supposed chronologically sealed c a t e g o r i e s of h i s
continuing experimentation i n prose n a r r a t i v e , but i t i s f r e q u e n t l y t h e
connections made between t e x t s , remote from each o t h e r as they a r e i n t h a t
chronological sense, which c o n t r i b u t e t o a ~ m e a t e runderstanding of Veils.
This i s t h e case with t h e t h r e e works above, though no sustained examinat i o n of t h e s e t h r e e v i v i d i l l u s t r a t i o n s o f man's damnosa hereditas, 59
grouped togetner i n t h i s way, has been previously attempted.
references by other c r i t i c s , tho@
The main
valuable, a r e few, and extend t o
I
l i t t l e beyond references.
'Tlarren ?.lagar connects t h e e a r l i e s t and t h e l a t e s t
a l r e a d y done f l e e t i w l y i n my i n t r o d u c t i o n
- i n t h i s way:
-- as I have
"In%
Croquet Player he returned t o t h e theme of The I s l a n d of Dr. ibreau
even grander scale.
As Dr. 140reau1s i s l a n d had been haunted by the Beast-
People, now t h e whole world, symbolized by t h e v i l l a g e of Cainmarsh, w a s
haunted by t h e homicidal ghosts o f p r e h i s t o r i c ape-men
...I1
60
W a g a r a l s o a s s o c i a t e s t h e themes of Blettsworthx and T'ne Croquet
,~~
Player, describing them both as "parables of t h e world c r i s i s l ~ while
Costa s e e s Blettsworthy as introducing "a note of c r u e l t y not found i n Wells
-
s i n c e Moreau. 1t62 It is however, t h e most r e c e n t Wells bibliography which
brings t h e three t i t l e s together i n an annotation of !lhe Croquet Player, a
I
I
work
It...
allegorical i n i n t e n t
...
c o q a r a b l e with The I s l a n d of Dr. 1:oreau
and ihk. B1ettsworth;r on Rangole Island. u63
!i%e i n s p i r a t i o n f o r the a l l e g o r y cones from a t o t a l v i s i o n of
evolution and hunianity i n t h e s e books and i n o t h e r works of h i s , most
r e l e v a n t l y perhaps i n The I n v i s i b l e ; h n , whore again t h e seeds o f d a w e r l i e
i n human nature r a t h e r than i n cosmic accident; but i t i s a l s o t r u e t h a t
s p e c i f i c demonstrations of human failing,
events and i n c i d e n t s i n t h e world
a t lazge, can c o n t r i b u t e t o t h e formulation of t h e allegory.
s a i d of Vells, t h e 'contemporarys r a t h e r than t h e 'modern',
It i s o f t e n
t o use Stephen
Spender's ana1;rtic scheme,64 t h a t he merely l i v e d i n , and responded t o , a
world of newspaper headlines.
This is an oversi.mplification.
For V e l l s
t h e 'headline' i s so o f t e n t h e veneer of p a r t i c u l a r i t y , of an event caught
i n time and space, and beneath i t he w i l l f i n d a p a s t and a f u t u r e , as w e l l
as a present s i ~ n i f i c a n c e . Both Xoreau and Blettsworthy emerged as
responses t o two of t h e most s e n s a t i o n a l newspaper s t o r i e s i n t h e h i s t o r y of
t h e press.
These were t h e trials of Oscar lfilde and those of Sacco and
Vanzetti; t h e operations of t h e j u d i c i a l systems of two g r e a t nations, t h e
s o p h i s t i c a t e d machinery of c i v i l i z a t i o n i n motion, demonstrating the artgci
inadequacy of W e y ' s " e t h i c a l processfl.
The o r i g i n o f The S r o w e t Player
i s r a t h e r l e s s s p e c i f i c , but no doubt more s i g n i f i c a n t t o more people
t h e r i s e of European fascism and t h e f u t i l e cartlar, i t s t e s t i n g ground.
-
of t h e Spanish C i v i l
The question of exact p o l i t i c a l commitment and
p a r t i s a n s h i p on V e l l s ' s p a r t has been v a r i o u s l y argued, but it i s b e s t
reserved f o r a t o t a l consideration of t h i s book at a l a t e r point.
(a)
!?he I s l a n d of Dr. Xorectut
The I s l a n d Biyth.
Wells admitted t h a t the spectacle o f Vilde's d e s t r u c t i o n
t h a t i s what i t mounted t o
- was meaningful
-- f o r
enough t o i n s p i r e i n him an
immediate r e a c t i o n which had t o f i n d form i n w r i t i n g , but t h e r e a c t i o n which
did m a t e r i a l i z e sow
i n t o an indictment of universal import outside any
h i s t o r i c a l context:
"There w a s a scandalous t r i a l about t h a t time, t h e
g r a c e l e s s and p i t i f u l downfall of a man of genius, and t h i s s t o r y was t h e
response of an imaginative mind t o t h e reminder t h a t humanity i s but
animal rough-hewn t o a reasonable shape and i n perpetual i n t e r n a l c o n f l i c t
between i n s t i n c t and i n junc t i 0 r - 1 . " ~ ~17it h i n t h i s wider range of meaning,
t h e a u t h o r ' s o r i g i n a l response t o t h a t prolonged, now legendary news s t o r y ,
can be traced i n the sketched backgrounds of Dr. iIoreau and h i s a s s i s t a n t ,
Xontgomery.
30th men, we a r e t o l d , have s u f f e r e d s o c i a l ostracism;
66
BIoreau w a s accused o f v i v i s e c t i o n research by a sensation hunting j o u r n a l i s t
and Fbntgomery has been a medical student, h i s c a r e e r c u t s h o r t by s o c i e t y ' s
~ central
judgement of w h a t we a r e t o assuie was a sexual r n i ~ d e m e a n o u r . ~The
meaning of t h i s s t o r y , as i t unfolds, i s savage and deeply p e s s i m i s t i c t
"It i s w r i t t e n just t o g i v e t h e utmost p o s s i b l e vividness t o t h a t conception
of men as hewn and confused and tormented beasts."
68
I n t h e Preface t o Seven Famous ITovels, which appeared t e n years
a f t e r t h e second volume of t h e A t l a n t i c W i t i o n , Wells took a r e t r o s p e c t i v e
view8
Wow and then, though I r a r e l y admit it, t h e universe p r o j e c t s i t s e l f
towards me i n a hideous grimace.
It grimaced t h a t time, and I d i d my b e s t
.
t o express my v i s i o n of the aimless t o r t u r e of creation. u69 s i n c e i t s
publication, c r i t i c s have emphasized tho darkness of i t s vision.
"No
o t h e r novel of Plells i s so completely h o p ~ l e s s ,s~a i~d Norman Nicholson.
"....
He B e l l $
r e a l i z e d t h a t c i v i l i z a t i o n i s as f r a i l a t h i n g as hunan
l i f e , t h a t t h e d e s t i n y of t h e whole e a r t h , no l e s s than t h a t of t h e l e a s t
of i t s i n h a b i t a n t s , hangs by a thread. 117O
e ~ the
~ , ~ ~
B e l l s c a l l e d h i s s t o r y a l%hoologioal g ~ o t e s ~ u and
c a r i c a t u r e of God pursuing h i s "aimless t o r t u r e u
passing
- i s at
t h e c e n t r e of t h a t story.
- already i l l u s t r a t e d i n
But beyond t h e f a i t accompli
of a n experimental universe and a n experimental c r e a t o r is t h e reminder
t o contemporary homo sapiens of t h e danger of reversion o r degeneration t o
an e a r l i e r s t a g e of t h a t experiment, of t h e r e a l i t y and implications of
man's
duality.
-
This imaginative t h e s i s , which t o quote V.S.
"takes us i n t o an abyss of human
setting
__--
- the
IIsland with No ITame8
Pritchett,
i s worked out i n a ~ i c r o c o s m i c
- and thus makes i t s e l f
a part of
a l i t e r a r y t r a d i t i o n , t h e i s l a n d ny-th, an aspect of t h e book f i r s t elaborated
-
on t o any degree by Bernard Bergonzi who was i n t u r n stimulated by
Richard Gerberls a s t i c l e , "The Zhglish I s l a n d l y t h :
Remarks on t h e
Englishness of Utopian f i c t i o n u . 73
The l i t e r a r y m a t e r i a l s a r e indeed many, with sources i d e n t i f i e d
i n Swift, Defoe, I h r y Shelley, Stevenson, Poe and Kipling, with those of
Swift and Poe undoubtedly o f g r e a t e s t importance, r e q u i r i n g constant
reference t h o u g h any d e t a i l e d reading of t h e book.74
However, Wells's
unique background, a l r e a d y s t r e s s e d , s u r e l y provides a s t a r t i n g point which
i s s c i e n t i f i c and not l i t e r a r y ; t h a t is, t h e importance of i s l a n d s i n
t h e advancment of b i o l o c i c a l knowledge.
Before t h e i s l a n d i n myth, comes
t h e i s l a n d i n h i s t o r y and pre-history.
Gordon Ray, i n a recent number of Libraqy, gave p r o v i s i o n a l l y t h e
r e s u l t s of resoarch clone at t h e Urbana Archives; namely, t h e i d e n t i f i c a t i o n
of a r t i c l e s w r i t t e n by Wells f o r Tne Saturday 3evieri between 1894 and 1898. 75
Among those p o s i t i v e l y i d e n t i f i e d i s one t i t l e d "The Influence of I s l a n d s
on Variationt1, appewing i n t h e Review t h e year p r i o r t o Lioreauls
publication.76
variation
This s h o r t a r t i c l e leads a discussion of "tk ' l a w '
...&g
of
a prince-consort o f t h e reigning ' l a w 1 of inheritancet1,77
and begins with t h e proposition t h a t t h e r e axe two cases "where the
abeyance of usual conditions of environment r e s u l t s i n g r e a t va,riationll. 78
The f i r s t i s t h e domesticated environment f o r animals provided by man, and
t h e second i s i s l a n d l i f e .
Wells, a f t e r l l a l l a ~ e ,i n~d~i c a t e s t h e t h r e e
c l a s s i f i c a t i o n s of i s l a n d , w ~ o o l o g i c a l l speakingI1r
y
t h e "recent continental"
i s l a n d , l i k e B r i t a i n ; t h e "ancient ~ o n t i n e n t a ltype,
~ ~ l i k e Idad=a,scar;
and
f i n a l l y , "there a r e oceanic i s l a n d s , i s o l a t e d peaks r i s i n g up from t h e beds
of deep oceans, with no p a r t i c u l a r connection, geological o r zoological,
with any mainland.lt
Such an i s l a n d is Dr. lJoreau's
Prendickls nephew names it i n t h e Introduction.
-- modification,
g r e a t l y accelerated.
I s l e as
I n i s o l a t i o n o f t h i s kind
which has been brought about by sinking land masses
have i t
- Noble's
- Wells's
theory would
v a r i a t i o n and c r e a t i o n of new species would be
Conversely, t h e raising of land masses, and t h e
re-formation of continonts could brilyr about a dramatic c o n f l i c t o f
previously i s o l a t e d species, and t h e i n e v i t a b l e s e l e c t i o n of t h e f i t t e s t of
these.
A reading of' t h i s t h e o r e t i c a l demonstration suggests t h e
dramatic p o t e n t i a l inherent i n i t f o r an imagination as k i n e t i c as ? l e l l s l s
during these, h i s f o r n a t i v e years.
Geolo&cal accident provides i s o l a t i o n
and secrecy, and a remote s t a g e i s s e t f o r t h e adaptation of t h e s i s t o mfih
and f i c t i o n , whom t h e anonymous procooses of evolution become t h e
operation o f one man.
I n terms of t h e work's gradual formulation, s c i e n t i f i c
knowledge contributed t o theory and statement, and t h e r e a f t e r came t h e
experiment and t r a n s f o m a t i o n i n t o a f i c t i o n a l form.
The mythic s i g n i f i c a n c e of t h e i s l a n d i s comparatively s t r a i g h t foniard, but i t nay s u f f i c e t o mention Ilorthrop F r y e t s d e f i n i t i o n of
"...
r e l a t i v e l y n e u t r a l archetypes, l i k e t h e i s l a n d , which may be Prosperols
i s l a n d o r ~ i r c e ' s . Prendick1s
~ ~ ~ ~
f i r s t r e a c t i o n i s t h a t he is, without doubt,
on an i s l a n d r u l e d by a Circe f i g u r e O 8 l Like t h e lenclosed garden1 motif,
t h e i s l a n d can be both a haven and a h e l l , a sacred place o r a prison.
I n Alleaor..r:
Thc Tineors of a Symbolic ::ode,
Fletcher cornments
f u r t h e r on t h e n e u t r a l i t y of t h e archetype, a f t e r a s s e r t i n g t h a t Goldingts
i s l a n d s i n Lord of t h e F l i e s and Pincher Xartin a r e l l h e l l s u :
'I...
Allegory
i s thus not comiitted e i t h e r t o a good o r a n e v i l p l a c e of i s o l a t i o n ; i t
can desipate
e i t h e r an i n t e r i o r o r an e x t e r i o r plague, depending upon tho
a u t h o r ' s confidence about t h e world he i n h a b i t s ...'1.82
doubt concerning I ; l e l l s t s l a c k of confidence.
t h e v i s i o n i s anti-utopist.
Again, t h e r e i s no
The problem i s "interior",
and
The economic lessons learned by Crusoe, and t h e
moral and physical challenges met and overcome by t h e Swiss Family Robinson,
and Ballantyne1s ?alph, Jack and Peterkin, seem almost t o belong t o ariothcr
universe, whcrc c e r t a i n l y t h e implications of a t o t a l "breakdown of i n s u l a
~ a f e t ~ corn
l ~in^
, ~from
~ within, would be q u i t e incomprehensible.
//
A l t h o q h t h e i s l a n d i t s e l f i s not described with t'ne p r e c i s i o n
and q u a n t i t y of d e t a i l which, f o r exanple, Goldinc employs i n Lord of t h e
F l i e s 84 c e r t a i n f e a t u r e s of i t a r e s t r e s s e d constantly, and t o a purpose.
-9
Before b e n d i c k s o t s eyes on i t , he hears much from t h e foul-mouthed
Captain, who suggests t h e p l a c e i s far from being a haven.
It i s an
"infernal i s l m d I 1 (23), and Edontgomerjrt s servant, l a t e r i d e n t i f i e d
as
?(illiw-,i s
a "lunatic
....
a d e v i l , an ugly devil."
When the captain
f i n a l l y reaches h i s d e s t i n a t i o n , and with g r e a t s a t i s f a c t i o n relinquishes
a l l h i s r e s p o n s i b i l i t y , h i s u t t e r a n c e s a r e =sin couched i n s i m i l a r
terms:
"I've done v i t h t h i s blessed i s l a n d f o r evermore amen!"
(33) There
i s a t once an i d e n t i f i c a t i o n of t h i s l o c a t i o n as a manifestation of h e l l ,
and a t t h e sane t i n e t h e as yet unconfirmed suggestion of a perverted
theavenlyt order, t h e f i r s t h i n t of t h e parody of c r e a t i o n t o follow.
The physical r e a l i t y of t h e i s l a n d i s slow t o impinge i t s e l f on
Prendick's consciousness and t h e awareness of t h e reader..
first s i g h t e d a f t e r sundown, and t h e schooner heaves t o ;
The i s l a n d i s
"It was too f a r
t o s e e any d e t a i l s ; i t seemed t o me then simply a low-1yinz patch of dim
blue i n t h e uncertain blue-grey sea.
went up from i t i n t o t h e sky."
i s t o be mentioned w a i n .
An almost v e r t i c a l s t r e a k of smoke
The last d e t a i l is important, however, and
As t h e nephew explains i n t h e i n t r o d u c t i o n t o h i s
uncle's manuscript, V o b l e ' s I s l e i s
....
a volcanic i s l e t , " and t h i s
Prendick f i n d s c l o s e r evidence of when he i s f i n a l l y rowed toward t h e shore:
It w a s low and covered with t h i c k vegetation,
chief1;r a kind of palm t h a t was new t o me. From
one p o i n t a t h i n white thread of vapour r o s e
s l a n t i w l y t o a s e a t hei,yht, and then frayed out
l i k e a down f e a t h e r
The beach w a s of d u l l
grey sand, and sloped s t e e p l y up t o a r i d g e
....
...
i r x y p l a r l y s e t with t r e e s and underpowth.
Iialf-;m;r up was a square picbald stone enclosu r e t h a t I found suboequontly was b u i l t p a r t l y
of c o r a l and p a r t l y of pumiceous lava. ( 3 9 )
The s t y l e o f t h e geologist, o r t h a t of any experimental s c i e n t i s t ,
noting down r e l e v a n t d a t a and recording observation, i s r e f l e c t e d here,
p a r t i c u l a r l y i n t h a t last description.
But though Wells may begin with
' d a t a 1 , t h e meanins of t h e s u b t e x t gradually emerges:
"Some fumarolles
t o t h e northward, and a hot s p r i n g were t h e only v e s t i g e s of t h e f o r c e s
t h a t had long s i n c e o r i g i n a t e d i t .
NOIJ and then a f a i n t quiver of earth-
quake would be s e n s i b l e , and sometimes t h e ascent of t h e s p i r e of smoke
would be rendered tumultuous by g u s t s of steam.ll (117)
This f u r t h e r elaboration of t h e o r i g i n s of Noreau's i s l a n d
comes a t t h e b e g i n n i w of t h e chapter which succeeds t h e Doctor's
explanation of h i s t h e o r i e s and h i s plans, and immediately follows
I~'Iontgomerylsa d d i t i o n a l explanation t h a t Xoreauls 11L3w11,e s p e c i a l l y among
t h e f e l i n e Seast People, "becane oddly weakened about n i g h t f a l l 11, (116)
t h a t i n s t i n c t s suppressed during the day could strengthen with t h e f a l l i n s
of dusk.
Tne juxtaposition of t h e s e n a r r a t i v e s e c t i o n s i s s k i l l f u l l y wrought.
Prendick, a l i m i t e d n a r r a t o r i n t h e manner of S w i f t s s Gulliver, t h e e a r n e s t
s c i e n t i s t , who has only time f o r "an i n p a t i e n t shrug" at Xoreauls "sophistryll
(l05), and cannot as y e t comprehend .the l i c e n c e with which Noreau operates
on t h e r a w material of ITature, does not see, as y e t , t h e f r i g h t e n i n g perspectives
which t h e i s l a n d microcosm i s beginning t o reveal.
The s i g n i f i c a n c e of t h e
l i n g e r i n g evidence of p r i m i t i v e o r i g i n s i s s u r e l y t h i s :
the threat is
primeval, dormant, and r e a l , and what i s c o n s t a n t l y threatened i s t h e fill
implication of " i n s u l a r safety", o r as S i r James Frazer explains,
ll...
the
depth t o which tho :,~ound beneath our f e e t i s thus, a s i t were, honeycombed by unseen forces.
We appear t o bo standing on a volcano which may
at any moment break out i n smoke and f i r e . 85
The t h r e a t mows f o r Rrendick.
upon t h e "dull 3ey
sand" of t h e benches.
On h i s a r r i v a l he had remarked
Ilhen d i s a s t e r f i n a l l y comes and
t h e "stubborn beast f l e s h t t triumphs, with Xoreau dead, and Xontgomery
overcome by madness and alcohol, t h e v i s i o n i s c h a q e d :
"The eastward s e a
was a f e a t u r o l e s s p o y , dark and mysterious, and between t h e s e a and t h e
shadow, t h e p e y sands (of volcanic g l a s s nnct c r y s t a l s ) flashed and shone
(157)
~
l i k e a beach of d i a m o n ~ l s . ~
The li&t from t h e sand i s of hidden
danger, unseen during t h e day, yet always there, always a beacon f o r
catastrophe.
Yet t h e ever p r e c i s e n a r r a t o r places t h e reference t o
l i k e a responsible recorder, i n parenthesis.
pre-history,
The i r o n y i s
s t i l l there.
The most powerful working of t h i s p a t t e r n of symbolism occurs
when t h e f l e e i n g Prendick, f e a r i n g he i s t o serve i n Xoreauls laboratory
f o r some g h a s t l y experiment, l o s e s himself i n t h e f o r e s t where he eventually
meets t h e " s i m i a r ; creaturet' prekiously emountered on h i s a r r i v a l , and i s
l e d on a search f o r food. t o a ravine peopled by a b i z a r r e community of t h e
half-made,
crip?led victims of t h e surgeon's h i f e e It i s i n t h e d e s c r i p t i o n
of t h i s sulphurous ravine t h a t Wells a l l o ~ st h e half-forned and retarded
i n geological nature
- a dormant
volcanic rift
- to
symbolise t h e
a b o r t i v e experinontation of Dr. Xoreau, and, i n consequence, t h e unfinished,
"rough-hewntt nature
of man:
"Presently we came t o t r e e s , a l l charred and
brown, and s o t o a bare p l a c e covered with a yellow-white i n c r u s t a t i o n ,
,
across which a d r i f t i n s smoke, pungent i n whiffs t o nose and eyes, went
driftinif
....
The path c o i l e d down a b r u p t l y i n t o a narrow ravine between
two tumbled and k n o t t y masses of blackish s c o r i a e
l i g h t smote down throu:h
on e i t h e r hand t h e
a narrow channel i n t o t h e c e n t r a l gloom.11 (80-01)
The scene i s r i c h with analogy and sug:pstion;
i o n of t h e drunlceil and l a r g e l y ignorant
captain.
...
here i s tho t e r r i b l e confirmat-
utterances of t h e Ipecacuahna's
Prendiclc i s l e d down t h e l c o i l i n g ' - p a t h by h i s "ape-like
companiont1, i n t o a kind of hades unfamiliar t o t r a d i t i o n a l myth.
There i s
a moment of savage Swiftian humour when t h e c r e a t u r e a r t i c u l a t e s thus t o
t h e s t u p e f i e d Prendiclc; "'Home',
s a i d hett.
The b i o l o g i s t from t h e h a l l s of
b i e r S t r e e t i s "axare of a disagreeable odour l i k e t h a t of a monkey's c x e
ill-cleaned1', and i f not t o him, y e t c e r t a i n l y t o us t h e image of t h e Yahoo
i s implied.
The r e c a l l of t h e o r i g i n of man and of n a t u r a l landscape, and
what t h i s may s i g n i f y , i s o f t e n a.pre-occupation of Conrad, and Victory i n
p a r t i c u l a r seem
t o echo some of t h e suggestions i n Noreau.
Tnere i s t h e
c e n t r a l i s l a n d motif, with i s o l a t i o n and a t h r e a t t o ltinsular safety".
The t h r e a t cones i n t h e form of t h r e e v i s i t o r s , v a r i o u s l y o r i g i n a t i n g from
the p a v e
- Jones,
with h i s o f t e n described l 9 l i f e l e s s
and from
-
t h e dawn of h i s t o r y , t h e Itsimian ~ e h r o " ~ who
~ come as "envoys of t h e
o u t e r world
....
e v i l i n t e l l i g e n c e , i n s t i n c t i v e savagery, am i n am.
b r u t e f o r c e i s a t t h e back."
88
The
These t h r e e men, Jones, Ricardo and Pedro,
roam Heyst's i s l a n d l i k e s p e c t r e s from t h e p a s t , yet they a r e a reminder,
as they a r e t o Beyst, of t h e permanent dangers of t h e present.
Another m x i n d e r cones from tho dormant volcano, which l i k e Veils's
l'vo 1cani c i s l e t " r e p r e s e n t s t h e hiddon but a c t i v e f o r c e s which can erupt at
any time.
Eeyst r e f e r s t o t h e volcano as a l'neityhbour
...
generally well-
but on tho night of t h e o r ~ yof b e s t i a l violence on t h e i s l a n d ,
t h e volcano and t h e cathering s t o m present a v i s i o n perhaps comparable
i n s i g n i f i c a n c e and. e f f e c t t o the s k u l l i n The Croquet Player, though
without t h e p a r t i c u l a r i t y of reference:
ll....
p i l e d up and bathed i n a m i s t of blood.
A crimson crack l i k e an open
would zigzagged between them
...."
g r e a t masses of cloud stood
Closely following a t t h e beginning of
t h e next chapter, wo read "the volcano
...
took i t s f i r s t f i e r y expanding
breath of t h e e ~ o n i n ~ . Wells,
" ~ ~ l i k e Conrad
sequence of IJoreau
- develops p a t t e r n s
- to
return t o the narrative
of image and a c t i o n which dmon-
s t r a t e and dramatise t h e i n c o n t r o v e r t i b l e f a c t of man's o r i g i n s , and t h a t
p a r t of h i s nature which signals those o r i g i n s .
The a c t i o n which takes place before Prendick reaches t h e i s l a n d
i s important, as i t serves t o present with a f a i r l y r a p i d sequence of
events, coverin2 t h e first f i v e chapters, two microcosmic s e t t i n g s which,
i n a sense, rehearse t h e r e v e l a t i o n s on t h e island.
Prendick,
lla
Charles Edwasd
p r i v a t e gont1eman1l, ( 7 ) escaping from "the dullness of
big
comfortable independence1' (15) i s forced t o s u f f e r a shipwreck, an openboat ordeal, and a rescue' which hardly l i v e s up t o i t s name.
Both t h e I n t r o d u c t i o n which i d e n t i f i e s t h e s t o r y as an
authenticated document, and some a d d i t i o n a l evidence given by Prendick
himself i n t h e first two paragraphs of h i s n a r r a t i v e , e s t a b l i s h an i n i t i a l
a s s e r t i v e method.
Contrasted with t h e t y p i c a l Wells device of j u x t a p o s i q
I
\
t h e ordinary and tho extraordinary
- f o r example,
The Vonderful V i s i t , The Var of t h e Vorlds
i n The Time !lachine,
- Prondick's
story, a f t e r the
b r i e f e s t of preparations, plunges i n t o tho remote and t h e uncanny, and i t
never r e t u r n s .
Tho influence of Swift, cmd indeed of Defoe, i n t h e method
of t h e openin2 d o ~ u m e n t a t i o n ,soon
~ ~ give way t o a pervading atmosphere
more c o n s i s t e n t l y reminiscent of Poe.
Tho p r e c i s e and informative n a r r a t o r
remains a t the helm of h i s s t o r y ; t h e v i s i o n of men as b e a s t s , and h i n t s
of S w i f t ' s scatology a r e there, too, but t h e elements of s t a r k horror,
nightmare, h a u n t i x and f e a r go beyond tho limits of eighteenth century
satire.'*
There i s more unequivocal Swift i n t h e l a t e r Blettsworthz.
Prendickls t a l e is, i n essence, t h e s t o r y of a haunting, as much
as The Croquet Player, as Wagar suggests.
'
The n a r r a t o r ' s account picks its
way p a i n f u l l y through a s e r i e s of memories, and h i s e n t i r e experience is
s u r e l y a g h a s t l y e x e r c i s e i n race-memory, f l e e t i n g l y perceived and
comprehended.
The suddenness of t h e shipwreck becomes t h e endless t o r t u r e of
h i s first t a s t e of i s o l a t i o n .
Tt i s q u i t e impossible f o r t h e ordinary
reader t o imwine those e i g h t days.
Re has not
anything i n h i s memory t o imagine with."
(10)
- l u c k i l y f o r himself that Prendick experienced
w a s t h e first demonstration of human reversion, a l o s s of human i d e n t i t y ,
and a r e v e l a t i o n of behaviour p a t t e r n s he could s c a r c e l y contend with:
tThe water ended on t h e f o u r t h day, and we were a l r e a d y thinking strange
things and saying them with our eyes; but i t w a s , I think, t h e s i x t h before
Helmar gave voice t o t h e t h i n g we a l l had i n mind.
I remember our voices
-
d r y and t h i n , s o t h a t we bent towards one another and spared our words."
(10-111
There i s only a vague h i n t at what t h e t h r e e men decided, and i t i s
never put i n t o o f f e c t , as t h e o t h e r two s a i l o r s f a l l overboard and drown i n
t h e i r struggle. 93
"They
sank l i k e stones.
I remember laughing a t t h a t and
wondering why I 1au;~hed. The laugh tau@ me suddenly l i k e a t h i n g from
without
."
(11) Prendick' s subsequent weakeninz and delirium, i n which he
imagines himself dead, and confuses t h e events o f h i s rescue, occupy a
kind of anteroom of half-known f e r n and half-perceived knowledge.
There
has been a s i n i s t e r pTeview of t h e " t a s t i n g of t h e blood", and t h e
"disconnected impression o f a dark f a c e with extraordinary eyes c l o s e t o
mine" which w i l l be seen again.
The second microcosm, before t h e i s l a n d i s f i n a l l y reached, i s
Prendick s rescue ship, t h e ~pecacuanha,94 t h e llocean menagerief1 ( 20)
captained by t h e grotesque and superannuated Noah, t h e red-haired Davis
who, along with h i s crew, had, as far as Ifiontgomery was concerned, s a i l e d
out of t h e "land of born f 0 o l s " . ~ ~ ( 1 4 ) On board t h e t r a d e r , t h e castaway
s c a r c e l y regains h i s i d e n t i t y .
Xontgomery s t r e s s e s the accident of h i s
rescue, r e f u s i n g t o allow Prendick t h e comfort of thanking, at l e a s t , t h e
ttaccessible aeent1r.96(28)
t h a t he i s
...
"... merely
Davis8s manner, meanwhile, soon persuades him
a b i t of human flotsam, cut o f f from
a mere casual dependant on t h e bounty
of t h e ship."
(24-25)
Biq resources
- o r speculative e n t e r p r i s e -
"Speculative en-terprise", t h e euphemistic d e f i n i t i o n
of t w i l i g h t commerce, i s a f u r t h e r v i c i o u s commentary on t h e process of
evolution.
Prendick's i n t r o d u c t i o n t o h i s second temporary existence
Ivhn Vho Was Going Nowhere", as t h e second chapter t i t l e reads
- "'The
- conveys
again an element of t h e s i n i s t e r i n what i s o f t e n but dimly recalled.
Xont@meryt s physical f e a t u r e s a r e uncomfortably ambiguous ;
drooping n e t h e r l i p
....
.
a
watery p e y eyos, oddly void o f e x p r e ~ s i o n . (13)
~~
These and o t h e r suggestions
- a r e repeated at
tt..
- f o r example,
h i s %lobberi% a r t i c u l a t i o n "
t h e end of t h e sane chapter, and i n a d d i t i o n , when
Prendick borrows a s e t of c l o t h e s
from him, he discovers t h a t t h e y
r a t h e r l o o s e f o r ne, f o r he w a s l a r g e , and l o w i n his limbs."
(16)
tt...
were
This
chapter c o n t a i n s f u r t h e r h i n t s of atavism, imperceptibly d i r e c t i n g a t t e n t i o n
t o t h e v u l n e r a b i l i t y of Prendick i n t h i s r e s p e c t , not merely t o what
s e e s t h a t i s unusual around him.
Bergonzi draws a t t e n t i o n t o t h e
tf...
scarlet
s t u f f , i c e d t t (13)
which Prendick a c c e p t s from t h e young doctor and swallows w i t h some
s a t i s f a c t i o n ; "It t a s t e d l i k e blood, and mado me f e e l stronger. "97 (14)
There a r e a l s o , repeated on trio occasions i n t h i s chapter, suggestive
juxtapositions of P r e n d i c k t s growing strength and expressed d e s i r e f o r
s o l i d food, meat, and t h e p e r s i s t e n t animal chorus from t h e c q e s on deck
above h i s cabins
I thought slowly. I was d i s t r a c t e d now by t h e
y e l p i n c of a number of dogs. 'Am I e l i g i b l e f o r
s o l i d food?' I asked. 'Thanks t o m'e', h e s a i d .
'*en
now t h e mutton is boiling.'
'Yes1, I s a i d with assurance; '1 could e a t some
n u t t o n o t (14)
The
overhead was ~enoried, s o suddenly
an2 w i t h so much savage anger t h a t i t s t a r t l e d
me.
':,!hat's t l ~ a t ?I~c a l l e d a f t e r him, but t h e door
had closed. He came back %sin w i t h t h e b o i l e d
mutton, and I was s o e x c i t e d by t h e a p p e t i s i n g
s n e l l of i t , t h a t I f o r @ t h e n o i s e of t h e
b e a s t forthwith. (16)
It i s not however, g o i q t o be so easy t o "forget t h e noise of t h e beastt1,
nor h i s smell, nor his a p p e t i t e , nor h i s power, when Prendick goes ashore
with t h e lInenagxiotl.
Prendickts memory plays t r i c k s and t a u n t s him again when he
encounters I.!ontt.onery' s servant ;
ItI
had never beheld such a repulsive
and extraordinary f a c e before, and y e t
- I experiencod at
-- i f
the c o n t r a d i c t i o n i s c r e d i b l e
tho same time an odd f e e l i n g t h a t i n some way I h,zd
already encountered e x a c t l y t h e f e a t u r e s and g e s t u r e s t h a t now amazed n e O t 1
(19)
This i s not merely t h e r e c o l l e c t i o n of t h e f a c e which peered a t him
as he was h o i s t e d from t h e life-boat as a subsequent meeting at night,
"At t h e SchoonW1s E a i l t l , makes c l e a r s
Tho c r e a t u r e ' s f a c e was turned f o r one b r i e f
i n s t a n t out of t h e dimness of the stem towards
t h i s illumination, and I saw t h a t t h e eyes
t h a t glanced a t me shone with a p a l e green
i
t I d i d not know then t h a t a reddish
l u n i n o s i t y , at l e a s t , i s not uncommon i n human
eyes. The t h i n g came t o n e as s t a r k inhumanity.
That black f i g u r e , with i t s eyes o f f i r e , s t r u c k
down through a l l my a d u l t thoughts and f e e l i n g s ,
and f o r a moment t h e f o r g o t t e n h o r r o r s of childhoo6 cm.e back t o my mind. Then the e f f e c t
passed as i t had come. An uncouth black f i g u r e
of a man, a f i g u r e of no p a r t i c u l a r import,
hung over t h e t a f f r a i l , a g a i n s t t h e s t a r l i g h t ,
and I found Hontgomery was speaking t o me. (30)
'Inis i s a powerful and evocative scene, operating on more than one
l e v e l of sucgestion.
Prendick's memory i s going back f a r t h e r than he can
even i d e n t i f y with h i s reference point o f %hildhood".
The s i @ f i c a n c e
of t h e c h i l d ' s nidltmare v i s i o n is pickod up c o n s t a n t l y by Wells,
s p e c i f i c a l l y i n The Outline, ItThe G r i s l y Folk", and c l i m a c t i c a l l y i n
The Croquet Plagcr.
Yet t h e t o t a l s p e c t a c l e of Ll'ling passes and i s l o s t .
What was extrmrdin,ary becomes ordinary, "a f i g u r e of no p a r t i c u l a r importft,
and h e f i n d s himself t a l k i n g t o Xontgo~nory. The r a p i d transformation
-
and i t gives t h i s impression of metamorphosis, r a t h e r than a simple switch
of a t t e n t i o n
- a c t s a s a warning
of things as they a r e , and as they a r e
constantly, whatcvor t h e p e r s u m i v e q u a l i t y of the 'seeming'.
As with
t h e ' f e a r ' i n "The Red Room",98 t h e reader i s i n t h e presence of a
permanent condition, one which c h i l d r e n may occasionally plumb i n nightmare,
but which Prendick i s t o experience i n h i s waking l i f e .
But f o r one more
night following this v i s i o n he has t h e comparative 'noxmality',
merely, of
flan avenue of tumultuous dreamsf1.
The last we s e e of Davis a l i v e demonstrates how inadequate anti
dangerous i s t h e usual a t t i t u d e t o t h i s condition, t h i s b i o l o g i c a l
embodiment of e v i l .
To Davis and his crew it i s simply a matter of
persecuting X'ling, of f i n d i n g a convenient scapegoat f o r something which
i s omnipresent, and c e r t a i n l y i d e n t i f i a b l e i n Davis himself.
The l a t t e r
f i n d s s o l u t i o n s simple; ffOverboardwith 'em! l l e g l l have a c l e a n ship soon
of t h e whole b i l i n l of 'em."
(31)
But his ship, taken again as metaphor,
i s no 'cleaner1 a f t e r t h e cargo has been discharged; i t cannot be.
t h e p i g ' s head explains t o Simon i n Goldingss f a b l e ,
him, t h a t he i s "the reason why i t ' s no goff
:hat
- t h a t he is p a r t
of
- i s t o be demonstrated
c l e a r l y enouC;h f o r t h e b e n e f i t of Prendick, a t l e a s t , w i t h i n t h e confines
o f IrIoreau' s island.
Prendick's sojourn of n e a r l y t e n months concentrates t h e s t o r y of
p u r s u i t , both l i t e r a l and psychic, and t h e demonstration of reversion, of
t h e " a r t i f i c i a l f a c t o r t t , and of man's d u a l i t y .
,
o r %tatementtt "Dr.
Except f o r t h e s e t t h e s i s
Iioreau ~ x p l u i n s99
~ ~Prendick
,
remains at t h e centre,
a psyche r e c e i v i w f r a n e n t e d infortnation and i n t e r p r e t i n g t o t h e b e s t of
his ability.
EIe continues t o respond t o t h e stimulus of memory, and t h e
e a r l i e r sense of c i 6 ; j b m becomes one of s a - o n t e n d u when he l i s t e n s t o
t i e three strwe
boatmen who unload t h e launch on a r r i v a l ; llSomewhere I
had heard such a m i c e before, and I could not think where .I1 (41)
The
name 'Ibreaul has a r e a l but l o s t s i g n i f i c a n c e f o r him, too, at t h i s stage.
Once e s t a b l i s h e d i n h i s rough q u a r t e r s i n t h e enclosure, t h e elements of
t h e puzzle a r e assembled, and more sense-impressions a r e received,
"...
a
curious f a i n t odour, t h e h a l i t u s of something f a m i l i a r , an odour t h a t had
been i n t h e background of my consciousness h i t h e r t o , suddenly came forward
i n t o t h e f o r e f r o n t of my t h o x h t s .
It was t h e a n t i s e p t i c odour of the
operating-room.tt (50) He cannot account f o r t h e secrecy surrounding what
he imagines i s straightforward animal v i v i s e c t i o n .
But "by some odd leap
i n my thoughts t h e pointed e a r s and luminous eyes of 140ntgomery1s attendant
came back again before me with t h e sharpest d e f i n i t i o n .
I s t a r e d before n e
out a t t h e p e e n sea, f r o t h i n g under a freshening breeze, and l e t t h e s e and
o t h e r strange memories of t h e last few days chase each o t h e r through my
mind."
(50)
The r e l a t i v e s e c u r i t y of h i s new i s l a n d existence allows him
momentary r e l a x a t i o n of a kind, but as the r e a l i t y of t h e Doctor's vivise c t i o n becomes more apparent
doors.
- ttlPhe crying
sounded even louder out of
It was as i f a l l t h e p a i n i n t h e world had found a voice."
(54)
-
so t h e pleasant i f i n d i f f e r e n t environment takes on t h e q u a l i t y of a world
which i s
It...
a conf'usion, blurred with d r i f t i n g black and r e d phantasms."
It i s duriq: h i s f i m t f l i g h t from t h e enclosure t h a t he i s made
l i t e r a l l y aware of t h e metaphor which runs t h r o w h t h i s s t o r y .
t h e g a t h e r i n s darkness, he i s pursued by a ' c r e a t u r e ' ,
Lost i n
as y e t unidentified:
IT thought a t f i r s t i t w a s fancy, f o r whenever I stopped, t h e r e was s i l e n c e ,
save f o r t h e evenin,- breeze i n t h e tree-tops.
Then when I went on again
a l. i ~c g~ The previous e f f e c t on his
t h e r e was an echo t o m y f o o t s i e p ~ i~t ~
consciousness of t h e s i g h t of N1ling at t h e s h i p ' s r a i l i s repeated here
i n more dramatic form.
The phenomenon i s defined f o r Prendick a t t h i s
p o i n t , and h i s f e a r , t h e need f o r h i s fear, remains.
Months l a t e r , i n
England once again, Prendick d e c l a r e s t h e r e i s s t i l l t h e %hadow
over my soulf1. (190)
I
...
Tney a r e d i f f e r e n t manifestations of the same
'I
condition, t h e same reality.loO
On t h e dark beach, i n t e r r o r , Prendick i s
c l o s e t o both a p a s t and a present, and c l o s e a l s o t o an awareness of a
connection between t h e two, which w i l l always be at h i s back.
The r e l e n t l e s s n e s s of t h e p r i m i t i v e and t h e timeless i n t h i s
i s l a n d s e t t i n g i s f u r t h e r demonstrated by a s e r i e s of r e l a t e d image
The sound of t h e s e a i s c o n s t a n t l y i n t h e e a r s of Prendick.
patterns.
Earlier d u r i w
t h e p u r s u i t by t h e ape-creature through t h e f o r e s t , he seeks it as a guide,
as a kind of refuge; "1 l i s t e n e d r i g i d , and heard nothing but t h e creep of
blood i n my ears.
I thought t h a t my nerves were unstrung, and t h a t ny
imagination was t r i c k i n g me, I quickened my f o o t s t e p s almost t o a run and
turned r e s o l u t e l y towards t h e sound of t h e s e a again."
(65) When Prendick
I
m s away from tho en c l o s u r e a second t h o , he l i e s low i n a cane t h i c k e t
and looks about hix.
"The wild scene
...
l a y sleeping under t h e sun, and
t h e only sound near me was t h e t h i n h m of some small gnats t h a t had
discovered me.
3 r e s e n t l y I becane awaro of a drowsy breathing sound
soughing of t h e s e a upon t h e beach."
- tile
(76)
The scone i s I'wild", yet i t sleeps, and t h e sound of t h e i n s e c t s
merges i n t o t h e b r o a t h i w of t h e sea, as u n f a i l i n g as t h e coursing blood o f
the l i s t e n e r .
These p r i m i t i v e rhythms of Nature a r e important symbols
102 in
of t h e i n e v i t a b l e r e i n c a r n a t i o n of the tlbrutetl. Like Golding
Lord of t h e Flies, ITells, too, a s s o c i a t e s t h e i d e a of rhythm and r i t u a l .
It i s d u r i n ~h i s f i r s t f l i g h t t h a t Prendick witnesses a d i s p l a y of
Dr. 130reau1s "sa;ring of t h e Law"lo3-
at t h e time
- and discerns,
mark of t h e beast".
though unaware of t h i s explanation
more p o s i t i v e l y than before, "the unmistakable
hs a temporary s&uests o f t h e people of the ravine,
while f l e e i n g t h i s time B e i m a g i n e g f o r h i s l i f e f m n t h e Doctor, he s e e s
a more exact display:
"A kind of rhythmic fervour f e l l on a l l of us ; we
gabbled and swayed f a s t e r and f a s t e r , repeating t h i s amazing law.
Super
f i c i a l l y t h e conta@on of t h e s e b r u t e men was upon me, but deep down w i t h i n
me laughter and d i s s s t struggled t o ~ e t h e r . " (85)
The s e r i o u s Prendick
s t r u g g l e s with an undertow of i n s t i n c t , and h i s profession of r e s i s t a n c e
here c o n t r a s t s i r o n i c a l l y with t h e confessions of a brute-tainted man who
walks a strarqx m i d t h e London crowds, at t h e end of h i s story.
I
Iloreau' s "Fixed Ideas"
-- tho
n e w e s t t o the " e t h i c a l processI1
t h a t t h e Nietzschean doctor comeslo4- have t h e i r a r t i f i c i a l r e g u l a r chant
metamorphosed back i n t o deeper, i n s t i n c t i v e rhythms, which he admits he
cannot command, a d rrhich eventually cause h i s d e s t r u c t i o n and plunge t h e
i s l a n d i n t o a dosenorating w a r .
Animalism, f o r Xoreauts people
children
- be$na
- as
with t h e shedding of blood.
f o r Goldingt s school
It i s t h e sayer of t h e Law
who chants; %one rran'l; t o follow t h i n p t h a t move, t o watch and s l i n k and
w a i t and s p r i n c , t o k i l l and b i t e , b i t e deep and r i c h , suckin:, t h e blood
....
It i s bad."
(88) The s1nu:htered
r a b b i t i n the f o r e s t glade i s the
f i r s t physical s i g n t h a t t h e Law has been disobeyed, and brown s t a i n s on
t h e mouths of t h e c r e a t u r e s provide more i n t i m a t e and f r i g h t e n i r q evidence
f o r t h e human masters on t h e island.
Xoreau c a l l s an tfassemblyft,but h i s
a u t h o r i t y i s already weakening, as t h e Leopard PI, i n a short-lived b u r s t
of glory, demonstrates.
I n t h i s f i n a l , grotesque mockery of t h e order concept of
' c i v i l i z a t i o n 1 , of law and execution of j u s t i c e , Prendickqs memory and
awaseness i s
stirred.
before perceiving t h e t r u t h ;
He executes t h e transgressor himself but not
'I...
seeing the creature there i n a perfectly
animal a t t i t u d e , with t h e l i g h t gleaming i n i t s eyes, and i t s imperfectly
human face d i s t o r t e d with t e r r o r , I r e a l i z e d a s a i n t h e f a c t of its
humanity."
(136) And, with t h e v i s i o n of t h e Beast People grouped about
t h e scene, he a t last recognizes t h e
perspective; "I had here before me
t h e whole balance of human l i f e i n miniature, t h e whole i n t e r p l a y of i n s t i n c t ,
reason, and f a t e , i n i t s simplest forrn.It (138)
To use Rex Warner's
terminology, t h e q u a l i t y of t h e a l l e g o r y moves from the ttoccult" t o t h e
ttoverttf,105 as ?rondick s e e s t h e i s l a n d as a micmcosm f o r t h e c o n f l i c t and
ttpainful disorder" of tho l i f e process i n general.
Thc "occulttt end of
t h i s spectrum of d e f i n i t i o n continues t o be represented with psychic
r e v e l a t i o n s of individual human nature, and t h e personal dreams and f e a r s
of ,Prendick h i n s e l f .
Tiith t h e disappoarance of Ibreau, and the departure
of Xontgomery t o meek him out, t h e r e i s t h e r o t u r n of only p a r t l y explained
fearsa
"Tne norninl; w a s a s s t i l l as death.
Not a whisper of wind w a s
s t i r r i n z , t h c sea ims l i k e polished g l a s s , t h e sky empty, t h e beach
desolate.
I n my half-excited,
oppressed me."
half-feverish s t a t e t h i s s t i l l n e s s of thin@
(143)
Xoreau i s dead, and t h e c o l l a p s e of order i s f u r t h e r assured.
a s last r e s t i q place, atop a pyre with h i s l a t e s t animal victims, i s
described with s o t h i c anphasis and r e t u r n s us again t o t h e influence of Poe;
" - his
massive face
...
white moon above
and ominous shadows
...
with t h e hard e m s open, s t a r i n g a t t h e dead
f i n g my eyes upon t h a t g h a s t l y p i l e of s i l v e r y l i g h t
...."
(157)
IIontgomery d i e s , too, and Prendick i s alone;
'I...
over a l l t h i s
i s l a n d t h e r e was now so s a f e place where I could be alone, and secure t o
r e s t o r sleep.
I had recovered s t r e n c t h amaziwly s i n c e my landin&, but I
was s t i l l i n c l i n e d t o be nervous, and t o break down under any g r e a t s t r e s s . "
(167-8)
X i s mind i s occupied with a l l t h e warnings and h i n t s from h i s
e r s t w h i l e companions about the dangers of t o t a l reversion i n t h e i s l a n d ' s
macabre populace.
I n t h e penultimate chapter, Prendick chronicles t h e essence of
t h i s process, as he remembers i t , lasting a fill t e n months before he could
e f f e c t h i s own s a l v a t i o n .
Speech i s t h o f i r s t t o d i s i n t e g r a t e -- as aspect
of reversion i n i s o l a t i o n which Go ding enphasises i n LoTd of the 71
and Pincher I.i=tin
-- and
AUU
Prendick r e c a l l s v i v i d l y the i n c r e a s i w d e c l i n e
of p r e c i s e a r t i c u l a t i o n , and t h e f i n a l , z o t e s q u e , "mere lumps of sound".
(179)
h c h day he goes i n f e a r of new s i g n s of t h e "explosive animalismu
among t h e beast f o l k , and more si,yif'icantly h i s own decline, noticable
by degrees; "1 am t o l d t h a t even now my eyes have a s t r a n g e brightness, a
s w i f t a l e r t n e s s of movenent
."
(181)
The s e a sends a means of escape, with t h e sane eleinent of
accident and i n d i f f e r e n c e displayed i n Prendickls e a r l i e r experience,
though with t h e added evocation of sheer horror, a s a i n borrowed from Poe,
as Raknem i d e n t i f i e s p r e c i s e l y .
The i s l a n d s l i p s away out of h i s vision,
and "the lank s p i r e of smoke dwindled t o a f i n e r and f i n e r l i n e a ~ a i n s tt h e
hot sunset.
my eyes."
The ocean r o s e up around me, hiding t h a t low dark patch from
(188)
The i s l a n d ' s physical r e a l i t y indeed fades, but i t s
netaphysical r e a l i t y never dies.
Prendickls nightmares c o n s t i t u t e a height-
ened awareness, too a~qfult o bear i n t h e s o c i e t y of 'men1; "I could not
persuade myself t h a t t h e men and women I met were not a l s o another, s t i l l
passably hunan, Beast People, animals half-wrought i n t o t h e outwwd image of
human s o u l s , and t h a t they would p r e s e n t l y begin t o r e v e r t
...."(189)
Like IIr. Blottsworthy and Dr. Finchatton, he too receives help
from "a mental s p e c i a l i s t H , makinc t h i s one of Tlellsls e a r l i e s t recognitions
i n h i s f i c t i o n of t h e psychic drama and s i g n i f i c a n c e of animal o r i g i n .
This, too, emphasises t h e r a d i c a l d i f f e r e n c e between Prendick's r e a c t i o n and
Gulliver's f i n a l 'adjustment' problem on h i s return.
S w i f t ' s savage
misanthropy never s t r a y s i n t o t h e twili@t zone inhabited by 1Jells.
The
s i m i l a r i t y of s i t u a t i o n i s , of c o u ~ s e , obvious, but S w i f t ' s name must not
be used too loosely i n t h i s kind of association.
f i n d help o r r e l i e f ;
Prendick cannot e a s i l y
"Though I do not expect t h a t t h e t e r r o r of t h a t i s l a n d
w i l l ever a l t o g e t h e r leave me, a t most times it l i e s f a r i n t h e back of my
mind, a mere d i s t a n t cloud, a memory and a f a i n t d i s t r u s t ; but t h e r e a r e
times when t h e l i t t l e cloud spreads u n t i l i t obscures t h e whole sky.'
The e s s e n t i a l i d e a s a r e here:
(190)
"memory", "back of my mind", "cloudtt, and
"shadow over my soul", previous1 y quoted.
Tnis mental presence gives h e n d i c k l s v i s i o n a new dimension
-
l e s s startliw perhaps than t h a t i n "The Strange Case of Davidsonfs Eyes",
- as t h i s oft-quoted
but more universal, more r e l e v a n t and urgent
passage
demonstratesc
I would go out i n t o t h e s t r e e t s t o f i g h t with
my delusion, and p r o x l i n z women would m e w a f t e r
me, f u r t i v e craving men glance jealously at me,
weary p a l e workers go coughing by me, with t i r e d
eyes and eager paces l i k e wounded deer d r i p p i w
blood, o l d people, bent and d u l l , pass murnurixg
t o themselves, and a l l unheeding a ragged t a i l
of gibing children. (190-191)
- from t h e catstrazglirg children -
Prendick s e e s t h i s h a s t l y composite p i c t u r e of man-beast
l i k e women t o t h e concentrated simian image of
because, by v i r t u e of one man's s u r g i c a l s k i l l , & h a s
seen t h e personific-
a t i o n of t h e b r u t e i n man, and i n s e e i n g t h i s he has been made aware of "the
animal w i t h i n ust1.(200)
o f r e a l nightmare.
He has held t h e memory of t h e r a c e i n eleven months
Xe may end h i s s t o r y " i n hope and solitude", but t h e
%olitude", so f o w f u l l y understood and experienced, must n e c e s s a r i l y govern
t h e %ope1'.
A t one point on I h r e a u l s i s l a n d , he feared he would be operated
on, and c a s t out t o join t h e b e s t i a r y ,
"...
a l o s t soul t o t h e r e s t of t h e i r
Henkin comments on t h e " f a t a l i s t i c shadow o f damnosa hereditas"
with reference t o Floreau, p. 195.
Ibid.,
p. 44.
Costa, p. 141. Antonina Vallentin makes a very s i m i l a r comment i n
her e a r l i e r c r i t i c a l b i o p a p h y , 13.G. :Jells r Prophet of Our Dax
(new York, 1 3 5 0 ) ~p. 265; "The note of c r u e l t y , previously s t r u c k
i n The I s l a n d of Dr. Xoreau and The I n v i s i b l e Idan, i s heard again."
J. & g a l i t s k i , whose comments on B l e t t s w o r t h y w i l l be r e f e r r e d t o
at a l a t e r p o i n t , r e c a l l s Wells's s h o r t s t o r y , "The Remarkable Case
of Davidsonls Eyesft (1895) as well as Koreau. See The Life and
Thou.-$~tof HOG. l7ells, trans. by Iloura 33uciberg (NW York, 1966);
H.G.
Yells r
A Comprehensive Bibliocraphy, The H.G.
Wells Society
ondo don, 1968), 0. 1966, p. 37.
The Struc:,qle f o r t h e blodern ( ~ e r k e l e yand h s Angeles, 1963), pp. x
Spender regards l l e l l s and Snow as e a r l y and recent
and 71-72.
examples of 'contemporaries'; w r i t e r s who "see t h e changes t h a t have
taken place i n c i v i l i z a t i o n as t h e r e s u l t of developments of s c i e n t i f i c
technology, and t h i n k t h a t , on t h e whole, t h e duty of w r i t e r s i s t o
e n l i s t t h e i r art t o support t h e cause of progress." (x) I n o t h e r
words, as Spender l a t e r amplifies, t h e 'contemporaryt, o r t h e
'Voltairean I' of Y e l l s and Shaw, " a c t s upon events!', whereas t h e
"'modern I' of Rimbaud, Joyce, Proust, E l i o t ' s Prufrock is acted
upon by thea." (72)
Preface t o Vol. I I . o f The Norks of I1.G. Wells (28 vols.), The I s l a n d
of Dr. Xoreau, ?Fie Sleeper Awakes ( ~ e wYork, 15)24), p. ix.
Wells's stand on t h e c o n t r o v e r s i a l i s s u e of v i v i s e c t i o n can be found
i n Vincent Brome's record o f t h e Shaw-?fells b a t t l e . See S i x Studies
i n Q a r r e l l i g ( h n d o n , 1958).
I n I I a r r i a ~ e( l 9 l 2 ) , t h e skeleton i n Prafford' s cupboard proves t o be
h i s f a t h e r ' s involvement i n a v i v i s e o t i o n scandal* A t l a n t i c Mitic
vol. xv (NW York, 1926), p. 203.
-
-
"'Fhy an I horo now
an outca.st from c i v i l i z a t i o n
i n s t e a d of
being s happy man, enjoying a l l t h e pleasures of London? Simply
eleven years ago
I l o s t my head f o r t e n minutes on
because
a foggy night .If (28)
-
--
Preface t o Vol. I1 of A t l a n t i c = i t i o n ,
p. ix.
B.G. Yells (London, 1950), pp. 37-38.
Preface t o Vol. I1 of A t l a n t i c B l i t i o n , p. ix.
-
The Livin:: iiovel ( ~ e wYork, 1947), p. 126.
George Comes r e p r e s e n t s a l e s s common response t o t h i s novel i n etude
Sue l
a Pens& de ITells ( p a r i s , 1926), 86-91.
Connes begins h i s
discussion t h u s : "11 y a deux faqons d'envisager L I I l e du docteur
~,l ~ o r e a on
I
: peut l a prendre au s&.eux, m6me au tragique; e t on peut
s ' e n amuser; nous inclinons v e r s l a seconde." His dubious a n a l y s i s
r e s t s on such s u r p r i s i n g statements as t h i s : W t enfin, l l o e u v r e
n'a pas & r i t e dans une pgriode du pessimisme, mais au c o n t r a i r e p a r
un Irells d&ordant d'exub&rance, dans c e t t e p6riode r i c h e de bonno
hurneur e t de joie de v i n e dont l e s contes sont l e produit l e p l u s
d i ~ t i n ~ gThe
. ~ b~r i e f e s t of surveys of ITells's s h o r t s t o r i e s of t h e
period would r e v e a l the gross s i m p l i f i c a t i o n inherent i n t h i s view.
--
Bernard Bergonzi
C r i t i c a l Quarterly, vol. I, no. i (1959), 36-43.
r e f e r s t o Gerber's a r t i c l e i n t h e i n i t i a l s t a g e s of h i s discussion
of 1,ioreau. See The Early 1-I.G. 77ells: A ~ t u d oi f t h e Science
Ronances oron onto, 1961), p. 100.
See Ingvald Raknem, X.G. Wells and E i s C r i t i c s (Trondheim, l962),
pp. 395-397, f o r t h e most comprehensive survey of l i t e r a r y influences.
Some of t h e i d e n t i f i c a t i o n s have been v u i o u s l y contested: f o r
example, 1;ille;~as disag-rees with 3 e r ~ ; o n z i ' sview of iJoreau as a
the
Frankenstein fi;ure, (see b r g o n z i p , 108: "He i s Frankenstein
i n a post-Darwinian guisef',) and
would-be c r e a t o r of l i f e
consequently disagrees with tlediin, who i n t e r p r e t s t h e novel as
It..
i n t h e l a b o r a t o r y t r a d i t i o n of Iiary Shelley's Frankenstein".
(p. 265) iiillog-as cannot accept t h e implication of t h e l'alcheanicalF'rankenstein i n t e r e s t i n science as a kind of magic t o g e t somethiw
f o r n o t h i w . Iloreau i s a f a r nore s i n i s t e r c r e a t u r e than t h e
mediaeval Faust o r I h r y S h e l l e y ' s F'rankenstein". (p. 2'7) He p r e f e r s .
t o s e e i n !breau "the foreshadowing of t h e r u l e r of t h e modern
scientific state,"
.
-
-
A reading of ! l o l l s ' s a r t i c l e , ttTi~eLimits of I n d i v i d u a l P l a s t i c i t y N ,
'Ele Saturda:,r Review (19 January, l895), 89-90, supports Henkin and
Bergonzi f o r tho g r e a t e r p a r t , as t h i s passage i l l u s t r a t e s r
overlook only too o f t e n t h e f a c t t h a t a l i v i n g being may a l s o be
regarded as raw m a t e r i a l , a s s o m o t h i q p l a s t i c , somethine t h a t nay
be shaped and a l t e r e d , t h a t t h i s , possibly, may be added o r
eliminated, and t h e organism as a rrhole developed f a r beyond i t s
apparelit possii~;.lit i e n
(p. 9 0 ) h w e v e r , i n t h e periultimate
p a r a g a p h of the a r t i c l e t h e r e i s seen room f o r B i l l e g a s ' ar;unent:
"In our growin; s c i e n c e of hypnotism we f i n d t h e promise of a
p o s s i b i l i t y of replacilt.; old i n h e r e n t i n s t i n c t s by new suggestions,
g r a f t i n g upon o r r e p l a c i n g t h e i n h e r i t e d f i x e d i d e a s . Very much
indeed of what we c a l l moral education i s such an a r t i f i c i a l
modification and perversion of i n s t i n c t ; pugnacity i s t r a i n e d i n t o
courai;oous s e l f - s a c r i f i c e , and suppressed s e x u a l i t y i n t o pseudor e l i g i o u s e n ~ t i o n . (p
~ ~ 90)
.
The question of source i n Xoreau, and elsewhere i n Y e l l s , i s t r e a t e d
under t h e heading " O r i g i n a l i t y o r Plagiarismtt i n R&nemls study.
The implications of t h i s approach a r e contested by David Y. Hughes,
ItH.G. U e l l s and t h e Charge of Plagiarism", Bineteenth Century
where
Hughes reminds us t h a t
F i c t i o n , xxi ( ~ u n e1966), 85-90.
t h e r e i s a t r a d i t i o n , t h e dichotomies of ' o r i g i n a l i t y 1 versus
lplagia.rism' a r e over simple s i n c e most l i t e r a r y e f f e c t s become
common p r o p e r t y and o r i g i n a l i t y becomes a f'unction o f t h e i r use."
( P * 89).
"...
75
L i b r a & vol, 16 (1961), 29-36.
76
The Saturda:~Review,
77
Ibid.,
78
I b i d , , p. 205.
79
For a b r i e f and r e l e v a n t i n d i c a t i o n of t h e importance of A.R.
s e e Kenkin, p, 49.
80
It!i'he a c h e t ~ e sof L i t e r a t u r e t t , il.ybh and Ikthod: IJodern Theories o f
F i c t i o n , ed, James 23. K i l l e r , Jr. ( ~ i n c o l n ,Nebraska, 1961), p. 162.
This chapter by Frye i s taken from m a t e r i a l contained i n Anatomy of
Criticism (princeton, New J e r s e y , 1957), f o r t h i s reference,
s p e c i f i c a l l y , pp 156-157,
(17 August, 1895), 204-205.
p. 204.
.
Wallace,
'
See %rgonzi, p . 1048 Vrendick assumes t h a t Moreau i s a modern
version of Circe o r C o m u ~ . ~A~t t h e beginning of Chapter 11,
"The I I u n t i x of t h e k n " , Prendick f e a r s he w i l l be transformed
t h e r e s t o f t h e i r Cornus
by surgery, and s e n t o f f t o join
routtt.
74)
"...
( ~ t h a c a ,Xew York, 1964), p. 214 n.
Gerber, C r i t i c a l Quarterly,
1, i (1959), p. 40.
Golding, i n e - q r e s s i n g h i s f a s c i n a t i o n f o r t h e i s l a n d s t o r i e s of
Stevenson and IJyss, speaks of t h e concretion of t h e myth i n t h e s e
terms r "An i s l a n d must be b u i l t , and have an organic structure l i k e
a tooth." See tfIsland", The Hot Gates ( ~ e wYork, 1965), p. 109.
IfPsyche' s Task" ( l 9 l 3 ) , c i t e d i n "Cultural Historytt, The Modern
Tradition: Back.rounds of Kodern L i t e r a t u r e , ed. Richard Ellman
and Charles Feidelson, Jr. (New York, 1965), p. 532.
Victory (New York, 1928),
Ibid.,
0. 1915,
p. 112.
p. 285.
Ibid., p. 329. For a relevant a n a l y s i s of Victory, s e e Stanton
de Varen Hoffman, tfConrad's Menagerie; Animal Imagery and !Themeu
b.R.,
XII, ii (1964)~ 59-71.
Victory, p. 193.
Ibid., pp. 355 and 356. The s u ~ ~ e s t i oofn e a r l i e r , powerful f o r c e s
on GolGingts i s l a n d i s a l s o made i n t h e d e s c r i p t i o n s of t h e strange
pink rock formations which Xalph, Jack and Simon explore on t h e i r
f i r s t expedition together8 "Some unknown f o r c e had wrenched and
s h a t t e r e d these cubes so t h a t they l a y askew, o f t e n p i l e d diminishi n g l y on each other." And i t i s one of these l a r g e pink bolders which
t h e t h r e e boys send crashing down t h e h i l l - s i d e , " l i k e an enraged
monstert1, an a c t which suggests t h a t t h e animal f o r c e s i n t h e i r own
nature a r e below a t i s s u e s u r f m e . Lord of t h e F l i e s
%land,
1964)
See t h e Preface t o Vol. I1 of t h e A t l a n t i c B i t i o n , p. ix:
ll...and. t h o influence of Swift i s very apparent i n it."
Raknem,
again, a v e s p r e c i s e i d e n t i f i c a t i o n , pp. 395-397.
Bergonzi would perhaps seem t o bo too cautious i n i d e n t i f y i n g t h e
influence of Poe.
Raknem r e f e r s t o P o e t s "The lYarrative o f Arthur Cordon Pym",
P * 396.
The species of p l a n t providing t h e emetic drug of t h e same name;
an example of 'lJellsls e x e r c i s e i n Swiftian scatalogy, but not without
r a t h e r more s i n i s t e r undertones.
The c h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n of Davis may be influenoed by P o e t s d e l i n e a t i o n
of t h e h e a r t l e s s Captain Block.
Bergonzi expands on t h i s d e t a i l , see p. 102.
Ibid.,
p. 102.
"'Yne worst of a l l t h e things t h a t haunt poor mortal man', s a i d I;
'and t h a t i s , i n a l l i t s nakedness
Fear! F e a t h a t w i l l not
have l i g h t nor sound, t h a t w i l l not bear with reason, t h a t deafens
and darkens and overwhelm^.^^ The Short S t o r i e s of H.G. Wells
(London, 19521, 0. 1927, P O 456.
--
See Bergonzi, p. 104 e t seq., f o r a f u l l e x p l i c a t i o n of t h e
philosophical importance of t h i s s e c t i o n of t h e n a r r a t i v e , adapted
from e a r l y a r t i c l e , "The Limits of Individual P l a ~ t i c i t y ' ~ .See
footnote 74.
,
Collected
See C a r l Jung, "The Psychology of t h e U n c o n s c i o ~ s ' ~The
Vorks of G.C. J u q , t r a n s . R.F.C. Hull, 17 vols. ( ~ e wYork, 1953),
"And indeed i t i s a f r i g h t e n i n g thought t h a t man
v i i , pp. 29-30:
a l s o has a shadow s i d e t o him, c o n s i s t i n g not j u s t of l i t t l e weaknesses and f o i b l e s , but of a p o s i t i v e l y demonio dynamism
Blindly, he s t r i k e s against t h e s a l u t a r y dogma of o r i g i n a l s i n ,
which i s yet s o prodigiously true."
....
101
Golding c r e a t e s i d e n t i c a l imacory i n Lord of the F l i e s . While Simon
crouches i n h i s s i l e n t glade, we read1 ttrfie deep s e a breaking miles
away on t h e r e e f made an undertow l e s s p e r c e p t i b l e than t h e
s u s u r r a t i o n of t h e blood .It ( p 55)
.
...
.
102
The rhyt'nmic r i s e and f a l l of the sea, " l i k e t h e breathing of some
t h e sleeping leviathan" (p 101), t h e
stupendous c r e a t u r e
rhythm of t h e day's cycle, "the slow swing from dawn t o dusktt
( p a 55), merges i n t o t h e t r i b a l chants and dances of Jack and h i s
hunters, t h e t'wordless rhj.thmtt (p. 88).
103
Recopized by B r g o n z i ( p a 103) as a parody of Kipling's "Law of
t h e Junglet1, from t h e Second J u n ~ l eBook. Raknem c i t e s an e a r l i e r
acknowledgement i n Now Statesman and Xation ( ~ e ~ t e m b 4,
e r 1943), 154.
104
See Aldous Euxley, I s l a n d ( ~ e wYork, 1962), p a 199: ltGod s a i d , 'Let
Darwin be', and t h e r e was Nietzsche, Imperialism and Adolf Hitler."
The connections here a r e i n t e r e s t i n g 1 Bergonzi p o i n t s out t h a t the
Nietzschean ' t r a n s v a l u a t i o n of values1 i s suggested i n t h e motives
of D r . Ihroau, though, as he explains, i t i s not known whether Flells
saw t h e T i l l e t r a n s l a t i o n of Thus Spake Zarathustra, which w a s a l s o
published i n 1896. I n The Croquet Player, w r i t t e n under t h e shadow
of &ropean fascism, Yells makes a more t a n g i b l e l i n k i n t h i s context.
ItThe Allecorical ldethodtt, ?!he Cult of Power (London, 1946), p a 109.
I.?arner d i f f e r e n t i a t e s between t h e attempt Itto give vigour and
vividness t o a d e f i n i t e b e l i e f t t , and "to attempt f a n t a s t i c a l l y t o
throw some l i g h t on what i s beyond t h e ordinary reach of wordsmtt
(pp. 109-110) Though a shmp l i n e cannot be drawn between t h e two
methods, Barner c i t e s Bunyan and Swift as r e p r e s e n t i n g t h e former,
and Dostoievsky, Dickens, Melville, h f k a , the l a t t e r . As bloreau
demonstrates, Wells i s capable of working i n both areas.
106
I n Lord of t h e F l i e s , t h e r e i s a gradual s u b s t i t u t i o n of animal
response; Bobert "squeals" and Piggy Itgruntstt, P e r c i v a l W a y s
Xadison, i n h i s t e r r o r of t h e d w k and i t s mysteries, i s reduced t o
" i n a r t i c u l a t e gibbering". Laughter becomes stbloodthirsty snarlingtt,
and animal a r t i c u l a t i o n i s complete as the wolf-pack scours t h e
i s l a n d f o r 3alph, ttululating", and t h e @boy1i s driven from t h e
t h i c k e t , Itscreamin~,snarl in^^ bloody .I1
It i s i n Pincher blartin t h a t t h e rock-bound s a i l o r holds desperately
on t o speech as "proof of i d e n t i t y t t , t h e only q u a l i t y of being which
stands betveen him and t o t a l d i s i n t e p a t i o n .
Bergonzi comments on t h e importance iloreau gives t o the Itgift of
speech1' as t h e major d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n between man and monkey. See p. 110.
,
(b)
Xr. 3lettsworth.v on Rampole Island:
The Psychic Journey.
The Reverend Rupert Blettsworthy, t h e r e c t o r of Harrow Zoeward,
h i s nephew r e c a l l s , riould occasionally have h i s f a i t h i n t h e fundamental
good of man a s s a i l e d by t h e d a i l y f a r e of t h e newspaper columns8
A l l men meant t h e same t h i n e r e a l l y and
everyone was funclamentally good. But sometimes
people f o r g o t themselves. O r d i d n ' t q u i t e
understand how t h i q s ought t o be explained.
I f t h e Origin of h v i l troubled my uncle but
l i t t l e , he was sometimes perplexed I t h i n k by
t h e moral inadvertence of our fellow c r e a t u r e s .
He would t a l k over h i s newspaper at breakfast
t o h i s wife and Xiss Duffield and me, o r w i t h
our frequent guests at lunch o r dinner, about
crimes, about t h e disconcerting behaviour o f
p i t i f u l ungracious individuals, murders,
swindlers and t h e l i k e .
107
If Arnold Blettsworthyls e a r l y nentor was unable t o d i s c e r n
connections between t h e llOrigin of Mlftand t h e d a i l y testimony of % o r a l
inadvertence", at l e a s t h i s nephew has ample opportunity t o come t o some
r e l e v a n t conclusions a f t e r h i s succession o f l i t e r a l and psychic experiences,
c l e a r l y r e l a t e d t o those of t h e much e a r l i e r Edward Prendick.
Tie p a r t i c u l a r case of "moral inadvertencef1 broadcast t o t h e
world, which
- as has a l r e a d y been i n d i c a t e d - must be considered as an
important background source f o r I&.
Boston t r i a l of Sacco and Vanzetti.
Blottsvrorthy on Xanpole Island, i s t h e
It i s misleading i n t h e context of t h e
book i t s e l f , and when one considers l J e l l s l s c l o s e concern with t h e h i s t o r y
I
o f t h e case, t o r e c o p i z e o n l y
- as David
Lodge does -- t f a . c a s u a l referencett108
i
F
I
i
t o t h e whole a f f a i r , towards the end of t h e narrative.
I n t h e first place,
t h e e x t e n t of : l e l l s l s commitment t o tho i n t e - i t y
of t h e l i v e s of those
two I t a l i a n i m i p a n t s , whose s t o r y began i n April 1920 with tho alleged
robbery and murder m d ended i n August 1927 with t h e i r execution, w a s
considerable and manifest.
Sufficionc reforonce may be found s m a r i z e d
t h e llorld i s Goinc (1928);
i n two essays fiom t h e c o l l e c t i o n , Tilo Ya:!
"Outrages i n Dofenco of Order.
Radicals" (@ i b j 29, 1927 )
Anericans a Sacred People?
Eastward Position?"
The Proposed ;Iurder of Two American
, and
"Somc P l a i n ?lords t o Americans.
Are t h e
Is I n t e r n a t i o n a l Criticism R e s t r i c t e d t o t h e
(aOctober 16,
1927).
Ilells, i n t h e f i r s t a r t i c l e ,
c l e a r l y implies t h a t t h e case f o r him stands out as an example of
c i v i l i z e d savagery, a signal, possibly, of t h e devolution of s o c i a l man,
giving t h e l i e , once again, t o p r o g e c s .
Ho s e e s i n i t a t y p i c a l ,
"paradoxical r e s o r t t o e v i l on t h e p a r t of tnose who a r e supposed t o bo its
professional a n t ~ o n i s t s , "and s e t s i t s si@ficance
work;
i n t h i s kind of frane-
"It i s an a f f a i r more dismayiw from some p o i n t s of view oven than
t h e long t a l e of a t r o c i t i e s on which t h e F a s c i s t dominion i n I t a l y r e s t s
today.
It c a l l s f o r t h e c l o s e s t study on t h e p a r t of everyone who i s
concerned w i t h t h e present development of our c i v i l i s a t i o n . 11109
r
~
-
~
~
perspectives 2lettsworthy becomes aware of on t h e imaginary Rampole I s l a n d
a r e echoed, thoush with more s p e c i f i c application, i n t h i s concluding
evaluation;
I1Too many Americans, I f e a r , believe t h a t a l i t t l e blood-
l e t t i n g i s ,good f o r t h e i r c i v i l i s a t i o n .
So did t h e Aztecs before them.
blood is a poor c m e n t f o r t h e foundations of a c i v i l i s a t i o n .
cement than a corrosive.
But
It i s l e s s a
There have been c i v i l i s a t i o n s before t h e present
1
one i n America, and f o r a l l the blood they shed s o abundantly upon t h e i r
3
1
high places they have gone and a r e buried and s t u f f f o r t h e archaeologist. Ill10
1
V e l l s ' s pre-occupatiorswith t h e v u l n e r a b i l i t y of c i v i l i s a t i o n as a v i a b l e
concept a r e again i n t e n s i f i e d by t h e s p e c t a c l e of j u s t i c e , mercy and reason
flouted utterly,
He goes i n t o more d e t a i l concerning h i s personal engwement i n
t h e a f f a i r i n the second of t h e a r t i c l e s c i t e d ; t h e appeal which he,
Galsworthy and Sonnett signed, and which drew a prolonged response from
"wrathful Nassachusetts c i t i z e n s u and assurances from t h e s e same people
t h a t they had ltlconsignedl w i o u s of my unimportant w r i t i n g s t o ' t h e
g a r b w e can1 and
bag otherwise
t r e a t e d them with contumely.
,1111
These trro commentaries on t h e case and on contemporary Ainerican
a f f a i r s i n general
- and here one might
"The New American People t
add from t h e same c o l l e c t i o n ,
that i s Tlrong with I t ? " (Kay 15, 1927)
- may
well form a @ e a t e r part of t h e i n s p i r a t i o n behind Blettsworthg than i s
g e n e r a l l y renarked upon.
The s t o r y begins and ends i n W l a n d , but i t i s
not n e c e s s a r i l y very easy t o decide q u i t e how 'Ehzlishl a r e t h e
i n s t i t u t i o n s and codes which s u f f e r tho barbs of s a t i r e i n Blettsworthyls
five-year imprisonment i n t h e 'transparencyf of Rampole I s l a n d
- in
fact,
New York, t h e i d e n t i f i c a t i o n o f which i s first hinted at when t h e c a p t i v e
Englishman i s rowed ashore, "into a s o r t of f i o r d winding through c l i f f s f 1 :
...
Guarding t h i s , as i t were
was a s t r a n g e
freak of nature, a jut-tinz mass of rock i n
t h e shape of a woman with s t a r i n g eyes and an
opon mouth; a s p l i n t e r e d pinnacle of rock r o s e
above her l i k e an upraised arm and hand
brandishing a club; t h e eyes had been r i m e d
w i t h white and t h e t h r e a t of t h e mouth had
been enhanced by white and r e d p a i n t ,
suggesting teat11 and oozing 'ulood. It was
very hard and b r i g h t and ugly i n t h e morni n g sunshine. This, I was t o l e a r n , was
tho Great Goddess welcomin;; h e r slaves.
The savages stopped thc canoe ahead of h e r
and r a i s e d t h e i r paddles a l o f t i n s a l u t a t i o n .
Tho forward paddler held up a f i s h , an
exceptionally b i g one. Another l e a n t back
towards me, l i f t e d my head by t h e h a i r as
i f t o introduce me t o t h e d i v i n i t y , and
tlren threw me back among t h e r e s t of t h e
catch. (163)
This p o t e s q u e v i s i o n of t h e S t a t u e of Liberty
- i t s f a c e and
mouth reminiscent of t h e primordial s k u l l i n The Croquet Player
- might
w e l l serve as r e - d e f i n i t i o n of America's t r a d i t i o n a l freedoms i n the l i g h t
of contemporary s o c i a l a t r o c i t y .
I n a sense, Sacco and Vanzetti a r e p a r t
of t h e same catch and a r e eventually o f f e r e d f o r s a c r i f i c e .
112
I n t h e work i t s e l f , t h e "casual reference" occurs i n Section 1 3
of t h e f o u r t h chapter, under t h e t i t l e "Old Borror Recalled".
i s now r e - i n t e g r a t e d
- but b a r e l y - i n t o t h e s o c i e t y of men,
Blettsworthy
and has
s i n c e h i s r e t u r n experienced what t h e same s o c i e t y was preparing f o r
during h i s long mental d i s o r i e n t a t i o n , t h e First World War, "the frame o f
all contemporai-y r e a l i t y " .
Tile a l l e g o r i c a l correspondence i s by n m w e l l
e s t a b l i s h e d and, indeed, heavily s t r e s s e d * I n one o f many expository
passages i n t h e fourth chapter, he describes t h e renewed s t r e s s e s upon h i s
mind, "produced by t h e trial, t h e appeals, t h e prolongations and delays,
t h e r e t r i a l and t h e execution of Sacoo and Vanzetti i n I~assachusetts"
(326).
The case and its implications a r e b r i e f l y discussed before he
proceeds t o deacribe, with n vividness and immediacy generally lacking i n
t h i s l a s t chapter, t h e reclaiming of h i s mind by the landscape of
Rampole Island, now t h e scene of a t r i a l and an execution:
'?he c i r c l e of t h e Ancients had been r e i n f o r c e d
by various judces and l a r y o r s and strange,
stron:,-- jawed b i t e r s of cigar-ends and chewers
And thoso trro men p e r p e t u a l l y on
of gum
t h e i r w a j r t o execution I saw i n tho l i k e n e s s
of two commonplace, luck1e s s excuse-making
v i s i o n a r i e s , who had cone t o t h e i s l a n d as
cheap, i l l - t r a i n e d missionaries from some
source unknown. ETy fancy dressed then i n
shoddy c l e r i c a l carb. Sacco looked puzzled
and dark and s u l l e n , but Vanzetti had t h e mild
f a c e of a dreamer and h i s eyes were f i x e d on
t i e l i p of s u n l i t p e e n between t h e c l i f f s and
the ribbon of t h e sky. I saw t h e p a i r of them
very p l a i n l y . I f I could d r a w , I could d r a w
t h e i r p o r t r a i t s even now as tho~ugh they were
before me. (329)
....
,
Blettsworthyls nightmare covers t h e s i x years of t h e i r march t o
Itthe Reproof and t h e i r doomtt. (330)
The execution i s a p p r o p r i a t e l y a mass
k i l l i n g , and i t i s a l s o a cannibals' f e a s t at which everyone shares;
"Such
is t h e c r u e l over-emphasis of these v i s i o n s ; they magnify v e r i t i e s i n t o
rnonstro~ities.~
(330-331)
~
He i s forced t o accept t h e s a c r i f i c e before t h e
Temple of t h e Goddess, a s a c r i f i c e which reninds him of t h e carnage he
witnessed i n t h e r e a l h e l l of t h e Western Front.
A t t h i s point, t h e o t h e r
world s l i p s away and he escapes t h e awful implications o f t h e common f e a s t .
The magnification of ttverity" i n t o t h o n s t r o s i t y " i s p r e c i s e l y
what, i n p a r t , Vells c r e a t e s i n t h i s oddly mixed fantasy.
I n t h i s respect,
t h e stimulus of a contemporary event, a t t v e r i t y t t l i k e t h e Boston t r i a l , i s
of v i t a l importance.
'dolls compared i t at one point with t h e Dreyfus case,
where "the soul of a people is t e s t e d and displayed".
113 However, t h e
substance of tho particular
f i c t i o n which d e r i v e s from t h i s degree o f concern
and awareness extends t h e i d e a of a ' t r i a l 1 which " t e s t s t 1 a n a t i o n ' s soul.
As i n Xoreau, i t i s tho "soul" of t h e human species which i s put on trial,
and as i n t h e e a r l i e r s t o r y t h e t r i a l takes place i n an i s l a n d microcosm
- though here i t i s a mental dreamland and not
an a c t u a l l o c a t i o n
discovered and mappod by t h e Royal Navy.
It i s not, then, merely, a llcasual reference"; i t i s necessary t o
r e a l i s e t h e potency of t h i s t o p i c a l a l l u s i o n f i r s t , and then we may be
q u i t e prepared t o %Tee with Lodge when he Lmes on t o s t r e s s t h a t tho
"general implications about t h e nature of m a n
constitute the ultimate
relevance o f t h e story.
The e c l i p s e of W e l l s g s influence as a w r i t e r came about by h i s
own v i r t u a l retirement from t h e f i e l d i n t o t h e s o c i a l and p o l i t i c a l arena,
by t h e pronouncements of Virginia Yoolf and
DOH.
Lawrence i n t h e Twenties
and t h e changes wrought by t h e i r own f i c t i o n , and by t h e oversimplified
left-wing contempt f o r t h e alleged ' u t o p i s t l Wells i n t h e T h i r t i e s .
Es
d e c l i n e was hastened by t h e kind of chronological catego'ri zation a l r e a d y
c r i t i c i z e d i n t h i s argument.
largely justified
uninspiring
- but
- the
This e c l i p s e was l a r g e l y explicable and
"experiment i n statementll was o f t e n cum'oersone and
i t d i d mean t h a t w o r t h j "experiments" were neclected o r
i n c o r r e c t l y c l a s s i f i e d , and B l e t t s w ~ ~ t hi gs c l e a r l y one such work.
Yne c l o s e s t c r i t i c a l perspective on t h i s s a t i r i c f a n t a s y i s i n
West's biography of 1930.
I n h i s f i n a l chapter Nest llmarks a more hopeful
development 11115 i n i t s pages but f i n d s t h e 'generalisingl and Idesiccating'
1
e f f e c t s of synbolism c l a s h with tho ' i n d i v i d u a l i s i n g l and 'animating'
e f f e c t s of s a t i r c .
110 f i n d s t h i s d u a l i t y i s resolved i n The Autocracy of
1.b. P a r h w (1929), ft%?llsfs
b e s t s t o r y , as such, s i n c e 1914. "116 !lest goes
on t o p r e d i c t t h z t t h i s may w e l l prove :Jells's f i n a l form:
n a t u r a l medim f o r t h e artist
- such as
"Satire i s the
Swift, Voltaire, Anatole France
.
whose purpose ,and a t t i t u d o =e p r i m a r i l y i n t o l l e c t u a l t t 'I7
-
m e admixture
of symbolism and s a t i r e w i l l be discussed l a t e r with c l o s e r reference t o
t h e t e x t , but i t nay s u f f i c e hero t o note ? J e s t l s undue p r a i s e of Parhm,
an i n f e r i o r novel, which 'ilells, too
judgements
- found worthy
-- i n another of h i s
surprising self-
of s p e c i a l nontion,l18 and Vest's suggestion
t h a t s a t i r e may be t h e n a t u r a l medium f o r : l e l l s t s f t i n t e l l o c t u a l t lpurposes.
I n Slettsvrorth;.,
again, we w i l l f i n d need t o r e f e r , a t v e a t e r length than
i n ;breau_, t o t h e influence of Swift
book i s
t r a d i t i o n of
...
- and a l s o t o Voltaire,
t o whon t h e
but estimations of l l l e l l s t h e s a t i r i s t , i n t h e
and so on, must be made with care.
Tnere a r e p o i n t s at
which s a t i r e on human nature and human s o c i a l s t r u c t u r e s becomes obsessed
with a darker nit;htnare, a l e s s i n t e l l e c t u a l l y conceived v i s i o n which nakes
Swift's c a t h a r t i c l a u d l t e r and s c a t a l o g i c a l misanthropy seem almost
rational.
It i s t h i s added dimension which i s perhaps c l o u d i w t h e r e a l
c h a r a c t e r of Slettsrrorthg f o r Vest, thouzh a t l e a s t he ackno~rledgesi t s
singularity.
Antonin Vallentin, i n t h e f i r s t f u l l - l e q t h post-war study of
Wells, H.G.
?lolls:
i'rophet of O l r Day (1950), discusses i n some d e t a i l
T ? e l l s qs u n f a i r l y neglected novelgf, f i n d i n g it 'barked by a new seriousness,
a more vigorouo approach t o r c a l i t y I 1 , and w i t h a s t y l e
than lieretoforc, t!ic i n c i s i v e phrasco ,&ivinJ
...
more b i t i x
with t o o t h and claw i n t o
t h e vcrp h e a r t of t h c hmnn problem. 11120
It :?as ncxt taken up a t an7 lcngtil by ;(a-garlitski i n Tho LiTe
---
and 7hoil:;ht of T1.G.
Yells (1366).
The 2ussia.n s c h o l a r , an e a r l i e r e d i t o r
of Y e l l s , adds i l l u n i n a t i n ~ perspectives
.
on much of I l e l l s ' s work, including
3 1 e t t s ~ o r t h : ; . ~ ~5 ~s coAmentse n c o u r a ~ e dDavid Lodge t o t e s t t h e v a l i d i t y
of t h e recomcnded r e s u r r e c t i o n , and hc found i n its favour, though
p r e f e r r i n g h i s orrn m a s o n s f o r a r e c o g n i t i o n of t h e book's importance,
namely a l a t e r c x m p l e i n t h e Y e l l s canon o f "an anti-humanist moral drawn
122
fYom t h e i d e a of evolutionf1.
These post-war commentaries
t h e i r approval and r c c o p i t i o n
- in
- far
i n number but c o n s i s t e n t i n
f a c t n e r e l y r e t u r n t o t h e responses
of Blettsworthr' s contemporary reviewers.
l l c l l s was wrong, o r at l e a s t
f o s ~ e t f h l ,when he described i n h i s a u t o b i o p a p h y t h e book's "very t e p i d
reception". 123
perio6icals
A p e r u s a l of s i x r e p r e s e n t a t i v e m l i s h n a t i o n a l
- E l e Saturday ?,eview,
' h e Spectstor, 591e London I.Ierc1.rg,
The 3err S t a t e s n s n , Tine and TideJ and %c Tine3 L i t e r a r y Supplemen5
-
r e v e a l s a umninous r e c o p i t i o n of a r e v i v a l i n t h e imaginative powers o f
i t s author.
L.P.
F s t l e y , f o r example, f i n d s "the f r e e manner of t h e
e a r l i e r Ydls, t h e d i r e c t n e s s , t h e a u t h o r i t y and t h e v i t a l i t y 1 1 .124
Sward
Shanks, an e a r l i e r a p p r e c i a t o r of Wells's mythopeic q u a l i t i e s , i n f i r s t
Essays i n L i t o r a t u r o , 125 though l a r n e n t i q t h e l o s s of t h e Itold rnethod1I, can
say "yet t h e od d nethod has here a b e t t e r i n n i w s t h a t f o r many years pas
....
teeth
There i o p i t i n t h e writing, s t u f f ono can f e e l between one'^
....
"I2'
I1:iero i s Nells at h i s
beginn The S ~ e c t a t o r
reviewer, and ends on t h e hope t h a t t h i s i s not t h e last we have seen of
Arnold B l e t t s ~ i o ~ t h y .Elizabeth Bibescu, writ in^; f o r The Wev Statesman, f i g h t s
a personal prejudice a z a i n s t tTllat dreary non-man's land, t h a t last r e s o r t
of t i r e d s a t i r o
- allegory", 128 and
a personal preference f o r "the f i r s t
three-quarters o f Z i r i s t i n n Alberta's Father", but i s drawn t o p r a i s e h i s
"vivid
...
unencumbered t1129 prose and t h e sustained %oloraturatl e f f e c t s
throughout t h e book.
Vera B r i t t a i n , i n f i n e and Tide, r e f e r s t o t h e
p u b l i s h e r ' s c l a i n t h a t it s i g n a l s Wells's "return t o f i c t i o n ' p l a i n and
unadorned' and t h a t t h e s t o r y may be recarded
...
as t h r i l l e r , fantasy,
romance o r even r e a l i ~ m and
~ ~ a,f t~e r~ a~ personal i n v e s t i g a t i o n of t h e
s o c i o l o ~ ~ c implications
al
and t h e p a t t e r n s of symbolism, concludesr
tl'i'ilis
book may be reconmended t o a l l bz. Wells's admirers, f o r i t r e f l e c t s every
aspect of h i s many-sided powers.
reviewer opens confidently:
11131
F i n a l l y , The Tines L i t e r a r y S u n ~ l m e n t
"His l o x career of s w i f t and p r o l i f i c l i t e x r y
production has done nothing t o d u l l .the freshness of 13. H.G.
Opening ?5-. Slettsriorthy on Xam-pole I s l a n d
...
t l e l l s l s eye.
i t was h a r d l y possible not t o
wonder whether, a f t e r a l l t h e s e years of voyaging, adventuring and b a t t l i n g
i n t h e most arduous realms of t h e mind, i t s author would not prove at l e a s t
a l i t t l e exhausted, a t r i f l e blase'.
But not a b i t of i t s
he looks out today
upon t h e world i n which he l i v e s and f i n d s i t as i n c r e d i b l e as ever.1t132
Like ~ 1 m k 3 ,t h i s reviewcr i s forced t o r e c a l l IToreau,
and i t i s t h i s c c n t r a l connection which ~ i v e st h e answer t o t h e
questions rihg 7~11si s not blasc?, why he does find t h e world s t i l l
"incredible"
Thirty-two
years af t o r w r i t i n g Xoreau, y e a r s of
fevered involvcrnont with t h e modern ace, B e l l s i s s t i l l mazed
and h o r r i f i e d t o s c e t h a t t h e world i s s t i l l t h e same.
In
3 l e t t s r i o r t h x he r e t u y n s t o the sombre evidence of unchanged human
n a t u r e , of an unchanged s p e c i e s .
The v i s i o n t h i s time has, perhaps,
nore Swiftian ' l a u 3 h t e r t , b u t t h i s should not d i v e r t our a t t e n t i o n
f r o n t h e same underlying f e a r s , nor should t h e concluding record of
o l d wounds healed, and t h e p r e d i c t e d b r i g h t e r f u t u r e , be i n anyway
taken as decisive.
Having e s t a b l i s h e d t h i s c r i t i c a l p e r s p e c t i v e , i t is
convenient n m t o becin an examination of t h e n a r r a t i v e s e q u e n t i a l l y
i n t e r n s of i t s theme and accommodatin~f o m .
SJells s o t s t h i s work unambi;uously
i n t h e eighteenth
century novel t r a d i t i o n on t h e t i t l e p a p , by elaboratirq
t i t l e which alrnos"uems
t o s u b s t a n t i a t o B a l t e r de l a blare's
explanation i n another b u t r e l a t e d context;
"Authors of t h e
eighteenth century dolighted i n copious s u b - t i t l e s .
signal m e r i t ; they saved t h e r e a d e r f u r t h e r trouble.
i s i n its entirety:
a sub-
They
had one
Here i t
i.
Being t h e S t o r y of a Gentleman of Culture and Refinement vho s u f f e r e d Shipwreck and saw no FIurnan
Beirq-s o t h e r than Cruel mil Savace Cannibals f o r
s e v e r a l years,
IIar he beheld Xecatneria a l i v e and made some n o t e s
of t h e i r IIabits.
Iiorr he becamo a Sacred Lunatic.
Iiaw he did at l a s t escape i n a Stranze Yanner from
t n e Xorror and B a r b a r i t i e s of Ranpole I s l a n d i n time
t o f i g h t i n t h e Great War, and how afterwards he came
near r e t u r n i n g t o t h a t I s l a n d f o r ever.
l l i t h much Amusing and Xiifyiq Xatter concernins
b i i e r s , Customs, Beliefs, Yasfare, Crime, and a
Storm at Sea,
Conc1udigfi;with some Reflections upon L i f e i n General
and upon these Present Times i n P a r t i c u l a r .
The s t o r y which follows i s divided i n t o f o u r chapters, o r i n e f f e c t books,
i n t h e manner of G u l l i v e r l s Travels, each of the chapters d e f i n i n g a
d i f f e r e n t a r e a of t h e n a r r a t o r ' s experience;
h i s i n i t i a l problem of
adjustment anorg h i s fellow men, and h i s h i s t o r y up t o t h e point of h i s
d r a s t i c d i s o r i e n t a t i o n ; t h e symbolic journey t o r e d e f i n e h i s i d e n t i t y and
t h e soinbre lessons learned from t h i s ; h i s l i f e and adventures on "riampole
Island, and f i n a l l y t h e r e t u r n t o t h o ' r e a l 1 world, with questions
answered and assessments made.
t h i s narrative
-a
Arnold Blettsworthy l e a d s t h e reader through
"new Gulliverll as The Spectator reviewer c a l l e d him,lJ4
enacting a similar drama of discovery, displaying t h e same exactitude i n
observation, and both the' t r u e and t h e l i m i t e d perceptions of t h e eighteenth
century adventurer.
IIowever, t h e hand of Wells, i n p a r t i c u l a r t h e Wells who had w r i t t e n
"The Contemporary Uovel" and t o a p e a t extent had re-directed h i s own p a t h
of f i c t i o n s i n c e 1910, i s made evident w i t h i n a very few pages,
The
Narrator o u t l i n e s h i s b i r t h and p a r e n t ~ ~ oi n, d i c a t i n s t h e influences
v i s i t e d on him 'og h i s mother and f a t h e r , and of t h e f o m e r he
her
ment
...
...."(6),
sap1
llTo
I must orre n y preference f o r i n c l u s i v e r a t h e r than concise state-
an admission remarkably l i k e George Ponderevo' s s t a t e d i n
t h e introductory chapter of T o n o - 3 u n ~ t "LIy ideas of a novel throuL;hout
a r e comprehensive r a t h e r than austere." 135
This comment i s extended and
suggests i t s e l f c l e a r l y as an a u t h o r i a l preference f o r a p a r t i c u l a z purpose
and method of f i c t i o n :
"...
her minc! could not r e s t s a t i s f i e d so l o w as
a statement was i n any way incomplete
...
IIow well I understand1
understand how insupportable inexpression may become.
I too
(6)
As Ponderevo's opening c l a r i f i c a t i o n suggests a c e r t a i n ranging
looseness of n a r r a t i v e t o come, and i s y e t b e l i e d by t h e studied symbolic
s t r u c t u r e which a reading w i l l demonstrate, s o t h i s r a t h e r more oblique
warning does not soem j u s t i f i e d , at l e a s t f o r t h e f i r s t t h r e e chapters.
I n t h e f i n a l chapter, the weight of those e a r l y h i n t s i s f e l t , and t h e
progression of t h e whole work f'rom metaphor t o discourse may be f u l l y
r e a 1 i ~ e d . l (This
~ ~ progession, i n capsule f o m here, i s a scaled down
version of t h e ;:enera1 d i r e c t i o n of V e l l s as a w r i t e r , though, as has already
been mentioned, such an exact perspective should not be r e l i e d upon too
I
r
heavily.)
The temptation, o r r a t h e r t h e need
conscious educator
t
t
- not
- the
imperative need of t h e
t o r e s t with statements incomplete, i s more than
apparent i n w h a t ',me Spectator c a l l s "an unnecessary and i n a r t i s t i c conclusion. 11~37
%fore t h e d e p e e of l l t e l l i ~ lincreases
l
and t a k e s over almost
!.
e n t i r e l y i n tho concluding chapter, and t h e import of t h e s t o r y is c a r r i e d
CP
by t h i s llinclusivell statement, t h e n a r r a t i v e r e s t s on o f t e n s u b t l e and
complex n e t a p h o r i c d d o s c r i p t i o n and s e t t i n g .
To begin with, i n
31ettsworthy1s account of h i s family h i s t o r y , and h i s own p o w t h t o
manhood, t h e r e a r e a nunlber of thanes and images, reminiscent of those i n
;-!orozu, carrS'ing a potent sub-text beneath the o f t e n urbane utterances o f
the narrator.
'Ilm f i r s t s u ; ; ~ ; e s t i o n sof "the dark fountains of my being: (228) and
the l a t e r realisntion that
If...
the c r u e l t y of t h e universe was i n me as
well as about meu (301) emerge i n t h e n a r r a t o r ' s account of h i s mixed
parentage.
2 3
f a t h e r l s family, "very scrupulous
...
and g e n t l e t f ( 3 ) , w a s
l ~ ~ e s t a b l i s h e d "a
t family of c u l t i v a t o r s a i d culture11, spreading i t s
unostentatious influence throughout tho q u i e t counties of t h e >lest Country,
a c c u m u l a t i ~woalth but doing so i n t h e b e s t p o s s i b l e t a s t e .
holdls
" e n t i r e l y legitimate" ( 6 ) b i r t h w a s a product of the union between an h e i r
of a family whose nane had been recorded i n t h e Domesday Book and a woman
"of nixed Portq-peso and S p i a n o r i g i n , with a touch of the indigenous
blood of Ihdeira, where I was born."
( 6 ) Some of what ho owed t o h i s
nother has already been i l l u s t r a t e d , but t h e r e i s moze, and of g r e a t e r
thematic significance:
::oreover.I s u r e l y owe t o her something even more
a l i e n t o t h e 3lettsworthy stock i n my sense o f
i n t e r n a l moral c o n f l i c t . I am divided a g a i n s t
nyself
t o what extent t h i s book must t e l l . I
am not harmonious within; not at peace with mys e l f as t h e t r u e B l e t t m o r t h y s are. I am a t i s s u e
with my own 13lettsworthyness. ( 7 )
-
This i n d i c a t i o n of a kind of schizophrenia, a c l e a r d i v i s i o n of i n h e r i t e d
c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s , i s s t r e s s e d repeatedly i n these e a r l y pages.
Significantly,
t h e c l a i m of h i s motiiorts ancestry sccn t o be of l e s s weight because of
h e r e a r l y death and h i s dim memories of her.
She fades i n t o t h e shadow
of t h e p a s t , and a f i v e - y e a r a l d Arnold i s brought from ~ k d e i r a ' t~o ~
Cheltenhan and t h e c u e of an aunt.
Tile mmory he does r e t a i n of h e r i s
conf'used with one of a tornado which swept t h e i s l a n d :
apprehension miwled and b u r s t i n dreadful changes.
"lko clouds of
I remember see in^;
t r e e s and hours moot shockingly inverted and a multitude of crimson p e t a l s
soddened i n a g u t t e r , and t h a t i s associated conf'usedly with being t o l d t h a t
my mother w a s dying and then dead .I1 (7 )
The dark, southern passions a r e here given symbolic representa t i o n i n t h i s n a t ~ a a lmontage of h i s motnerts death, but t h e "crimson
p e t a l s " a r e not l i f e l e s s a.nd t h e storm has not blown i t s e l f out.
The storm
i n Chapter Two i s a prolude t o i31ettsworthyts t o r t u r e d progress of s e l f identification.
As t h o above passage s u g ~ e s t s ,i t i s i n him t o f a c e t h a t
i d e n t i t y , t o enquire and t o probe, i f t h e r e a l i s a t i o n s a r e h a l t i n g and
reluctant.
His p a r e n t a l background conveniently r e p r e s e n t s t h e u n i v e r s a l
s i g n i f i c a n c e of human d u a l i t y , and t h e experiences which make up his s t o r y
provide t h e proof of t h i s d u a l i t y .
I n r e c a l l i w h i s move t o an English r u r a l peace, 139 and t h e
s e e s a t r a n s i t i o n from
guidance of "The Good Sroad C h ~ r c h a n ~Blettsworthy
~,
darkness t o list. He a r r i v e d , "a small indeterminate p l a s t i c c r e a t u r e ,
which might have become anything.
Blettsworthy I am today."
(14)
But t h e r e i n e v i t a b l y I became t h e
The naive b e l i e f i n t h e s t r e n g t h of t h e
" e t h i c a l process" moulding and covering t h e raw m a t e r i a l of human nature
seems i r o n i c a l whon rocallod with some of t h e r e v e l a t i o n s which a r e t o
follow;
the 3lottsworthy I m today" i s t o be duly shown.
It...
But f o r a
number of e a r l y , sunny years, h i s Unclols influence was appreciated with a
comfortable but l i m i t e d visions
"It was l i k e awakening on a bright
morning merely t o nos him* B e r y t h i n ~i n my l i f e before h i s appearance
had been vague, minatory, and y e t unconvincing; I f e l t I was none; and
unsafe, t h a t I was surrounded by shadowy and yet d e s t r u c t i v e powers and
driven by impulses t h a t could be a s d i s a s t r o u s as they were uncontrollable.
Daily l i f e w a s t h e mask o f a tornado.I1 (14)
The llpersonal magicI1 (15) of h i s Uncle made t h e wmld seem a
s a f e place, and r e s t o r e d confidence i n t h e "fundanentally good".
he had known i n tiadeira
thunderyt1 (16)
- "a subtropical
-- becomes
The God
passionate Dios, hot and
Itthe confederated shadow of my uncle, a dear
Znglish gentlenan of a God, a super-Blettsworthy i n c o n t r o l , a God of dew
and b r i g h t f r o s t y mornings, helpf'ul and unresentful
t h a t w a s r i g h t way up.I1 (16)
....
t h e God of a world
These "two d i v i n i t i e s " a r e again suggestive
of t h e dilemma of d u a l i t y , and though t h e rationa.4, ' e t h i c a l ' f o r c e
dominates h i s imagination a t t h i s time, ho i s driven t o reconsider;
'Ilas
it no more than a dream?" (17)
The a p p r e c i a t i v e nephew catalogues a l l t h a t h i s uncle taught him.
The r e c t o r becomes almost t h e embodiment of t h e c i v i l i z i ~process, y e t i n
some degree
unseeinc o r unwilling t o see.
The E?ranco-German W a r had been
t h e last major c o n f l i c t , and he w a s convinced t h e r e could be no chance o f
f u r t h e r animositr, e s p e c i a l l y with Queen V i c t o r i a ' s grandson on t h e Imperial
Throne of Germany.
Wiltshire h i l l s
."
Tnese were, indeed, I 1 p l d e n Victorian days among t h e
(26)
Arnold i s convinced8
"in s p i t e of tho f r i g h t f u l adventures t h a t
have happened t o mo and t h e dark stroa3.r~of f e a r and baseness t h a t have
.
been revealed i n my composition,
(26)
b o c m q an e s s e n t i a l l y c i v i l i z e d manet1
The reader may bo r a t h e r more convinced, too, than he would be i n
response t o such a statement from Dihard Prondick, but t h e concept of
' c i v i l i z a t i o n 1 , the deg-ree t o which Blettsworthy, o r anyone, can l a y claim,
is s t i l l h i g h l y suspect.
And the reasons f o r t h e suspicion i s t h e constant
pre-occupation of Tlells, man's anha1 o r i t i n s , here alluded t o with a
deceptive casualness and humour8
I
J
d you mot me i n my f l a n n e l s on t h e way t o t h e
p r a c t i c e n e t s i n S i r Nilloughby Denby1s park you
would no more have suspected t h a t my mother was
P o r t u ~ u o s eand Syrian with a dash of Zladeira than
t h e remoter ancestors of t h e B l e t t s w o r t h p had
h a i r and tails. So completely had t h e assimila t i v e power of our Blettsworthy countryside
worked upon me and c i v i l i z e d m e . (28)
The I f p l a s t i c c r e a t u r e f f would seem q u i t e secure i n t h i s c i v i l i z e d environment
of c i v i l i z e d appearances, a t t i t u d e s and i d e a l s , but 'ldaily l i f e was t h e
mask of a tornadou, and t h e tornado
experience
- was,
- a r e a l and symbolic p a r t
of h i s
i n t u r n , masking do fttcto q u a l i t i e s o f human l i f e .
Arnold Blettsworthyls e x o t i c o r i g i n i s merely a symbol of humanity's
saurian ancestry.
Heanwhile, t h e world goes by, i n t h e form of t h e Boer War which
claims t h e l i f e of h i s f a t h e r , and leaves Ifno s c a r s u on h i s young son's
world view, semiryl; t o be "the most c i v i l i z e d w a r i n a l l h i s t o r y , fought
with r e s t r a i n t and frequent
(29)
Amoldls Oxford education cones and goes, and hc remains i n tho
c i v i l i z e d shadow of h i s alma mater i n partnership with a f r i e n d , Graves,
together endeavouring t o start a chain of bookshops.
It i s i n these
circumstances t h a t he develops h i s r e l a t i o n s h i p with Olive Slaughter, a
fir1 ho had mat as an undergraduate, i n a m m e r reminiscent of o t h e r such
encounters elsewhere i n Y e l l s ' s f i c t i o n , i n p a r t i c u l a r The X a r IIachiavolli. 140
This semi-autobiographical r e a l i s a t i o n of an adolescent dream i s l o o s e l y
conceived, and unconvincing as only Itlells can be i n r e l a t i n g a f f a i r s of t h e
h e a r t , 14'
The pyccision and b i t e of t h e n a r r a t i v e at t h i s p o i n t i s
temporarily l o s t , and we s e e t h e s e h u r r i e d l y recounted events merely as a
device f o r brin;;i~l;; about t h e n a r r a t o r ' s first collapse.
He discovers
Olive i n t h e a c t of betraying him, i n t h e arms of h i s f r i e n d and business
partner,
From t h a t moment, t o quote t h e a u t h o r i a l voice i n The Autocracy of
1.k. Parhan, we s e e t h e t r u t h i n t h e statement t h a t Ifno p e r c i p i e n t c r e a t u r e
has ever y e t l i v e d i n s t a r k r e a l i t y " . 142
For 3lettsworthy, with t h e evidence
of b e t r a y a l writhing absurdly and i n e l e g a n t l y on t h e bed before him, l o s e s
his grasp on t h e ' r e a l 1 worldr
"At t h a t my memory h a l t s f o r a time.
I do
not know through what black e t e r n i t i e s I l i v e d i n t h e next few seconds.I1
(47-48)
He momentarily l o s e s himself i n a wild physical rage, denonstratily:
Iieminctonls "red blaze
suite.144
and r e c a l l i n g Denhamls l o n e l y f i t i n the h o t e l
He becomes aware f o r t h e f i r s t time of b e i w unaware o f t h e
sequence of h i s actions.
There are mysterious gaps i n h i s memory, and t h e
scene of f i g h t and p u r s u i t t a k e s on tho character of an o v e r e d i t e d picco
of f i l m .
It i s porhaps not s o much t h e t r u t h of supposed f r i e n d ' 8
d i s l o y a l t y which is alarming f o r him, but t h e discovery of h i s own r e a c t i o n
t o t h e experience.
From hero t o t h e end of tho f i r s t chapter, o r book, t h e
inexplicable t r i c k s of a d i s i n t e g a t i n g hold on r e a l i t y dominate
Blettsworthy's r o c o l l c c t i o n s .
As he explains :
"lIy e x p l i c i t personal
n a r r a t i v e must give place hero t o a v a s e circumstantial onet'. (63)
Mter
an aimless bicycle r i d o i n p u r s u i t of an e l u s i v e personal i d e n t i t y , and an
i n e v i t a b l e accident, t h e r e comes a six-weelc confusion of events, which
culminates i n a Homich infirmary bod, and a padual
repossession of
f a c u l t i e s : t t r h elnemories returned l i k e a roassembliw school.
Tney got
i n t o t h e i r places, noddinc, s h o u t i w out names, and c a l l i n s t o one
another
...."(66)
IJeurasthonia i s t h e medical v e r d i c t .
Tho g e n i a l family s o l i c i t o r
ik. Ferndjke recommends s e a t r a v e l as t n e b e s t recuperative cure, t o
f o r g e t t h e wrecked personal an6 business l i f e behind him.
suffered a loss.
Youth has
Ibpefully, manhood can, i n p a r t , be i d e n t i f i e d .
Ferndyke
even urges him t o r r r i t e about h i s coming t r a v e l s ; "Like Conrad?", queries
Slettsworthy.
I n t h e second chapter, h i s v o y q i n g and what he discovers
belong t o t h e same dark world as s o many of Conrad's s e a t a l e s .
Tho n a r r a t o ~sails i n t o f u r t h e r d i s i l l u s i o n , i s o l a t i o n and t e r r o r ;
h i s journey i s an exploration of t h e ways o f t h e world, and t h e nature of
man, and h i s f i n d i w s a r e universal, lilro those recorded i n t h e t r a v e l s of
Candide
.
The vcssol chosen f o r the n a r r a t o r ' s therapeutic escape i n d i c a t e s
immediately a lovol of sugcestion which r o l a t e s t o t h e s o c i a l and c u l t u r a l
p a r t i c u l a r i t y of ino boolcts e a r l y soction.
The young S l e t t s w o r t h y l s v i s i o n
of Ensland ha6 been or' an o r d e r l y s o c i a l p p a x i d , a west-country version
of t h e Bladesover Sptcn,
.
f ixmneos 145
i m p o s i n ~securit;. and correctness with a c e n t l e
Xis n a t i o n a l heriia;e
i s rcprcnented r a t h e r d i f f e r e n t l y on
board t h e llGoldon Lion"; t h e i r o n y of tho name is s u r e l y d e l i b e r a t e .
Zle
ship i s a comon tramp steamer, a " v i b r a t i n g s h u t t l e of s a l t e d and rusting
ironf1, (88) a t tho beck and c a l l of co;imorcial empire, and i t s crew a
collection of occoiitrics l e d by a descondant of Davis, whom he resenbles
i n h i s resentmen-t toward t h e un~iolcomepasoengor, h i s c r u d i t y and
tyranny, and evcn h i s red h a i r . Iq6 11~11si s w i n
employing the 'ship of
fools' motif, a n enforced microcosm c o n t i n u a l l y r e f l e c t i n g t h e naturo of
man, and allowin:; us t o a r r i v e at such d o f i n i t i o n s t h o u g h t h e p a r t i c u l a r
i s o l a t i o n , tho s p e c i f i c mental c r i s i s o f t h e rato or.
Tho ship i s a l e s s n e u t r a l archetype than the i s l a n d and i t takes
no t i n e a t a l l f o r t h e "Golden Lion's1' s o l i t a r y passenger t o respond t o
h i s new environment, t o recognize t h e paradox of t h e l'open sea1':
"lad I
f e l t t h a t night t h a t I had cone out i n t o something v a s t , whereas I was f o r
t h e f i r s t time i n my l i f e a prisoner.l1 (76)
The growing awareness o f an
expanse of ocean at odds with a minute w e a of f l o a t i n g t e r r i t o r y i s
recorded i n a s e r i e s of both a b s t r a c t and t a c t i l e impressions;
below, come up again, pace t h e r e s t r i c t e d deck, f e e l i n g t h a t
immensity.
You t u r n i n and sleep.
YOU
"You go
savow
The creaking dawn seeps i n t o your dark-
ness and makes tho swinging oil-lamp snoky yellow
i n mysteriously pivotod n o t i o n s and slowly changiw
....
3 v e r y t h i ~i s e W a ~ e d
its l e v e l towards you.
The sky o u t s i d e and tho horizon have joined i n t h a t slow unending dance.
You g e t up and droos staggeringly, and blunder up t h e gangmy t o t h e deck
and c l u t c h t h c rail.
IJator.
An imieaourable q u a n t i t y and extent of water
about you and bolotr, and wet and windy a i r above; these a r e t h e enornous
(77)
~
and i n v i s i b l e v a l l s of your s t i l l unrealized i n ~ c t r c e r a t i o n . ~
B l e t t s u o r t h y ' s senso of i s o l a t i o n i s i n p a r t due t o h i s p o s i t i o n
as s o l e pasoengor
- and
one cultured i n a manner a l i e n t o t h e o f f i c e r s he
shares ship-board l i f e with
presented i t s e l f t o him.
-- and t h e vory q u a l i t y of
humanity which
The o f f i c e r s were cowed by t h e Old I h n , and were
i n thomselves i s o l a t e d f i g u r e s , e i t h e r p h y s i c a l l y grotesque, o r displayinl;
idiosyncrasies of bohaviour i n some way:
llThe Zngineer, by a l l ri&ts
and t r a d i t i o n s , ou&t t o hzve been a Scotsman, but i n s t e a d he was a huge,
dark, curly-headed,
s t r o q l y Semitic type, with a d r o o p i q l i p ( a cornion
d e s c r i p t i o n i n Yells, and as i n lJontpmeryls case, p o s s i b l y h i n t i n g of
atavism) and an accont he seemed t o have baled up from t h e lower Thames.
The first o f f i c e r was a t h i n , small, preoccupied, greyish individual, with
a g i f t f o r s e t t i w sententious remarks i n wide s t r e t c h e s of silence.
He
picked h i s t e e t h a good deal, and w e e d with t h e c a p t a i n i n everything,
even before t h e captain had f i n i s h e d o a f i q i t
."(81)
s o c i e t y of t h e f o r e c a s t l e remains a world a p a r t
-
ll...
I.Ieamhile, t h e
a l l t h e reminders I
had of t h e lower c l a s s i n our l i t t l e sample of human societyl1 (79)
world underground:
- and a
"It w a s as i f sono i n t e n s e quarrel was i n s e c u r e l y
battened down and n i g h t at any time f l a r e up again should t h a t tension be
relaxed.
l1
(79 )
Lsmdfall proves i n no way a r e l e a s e .
Blettswortny's experience
a t Recife and Siio r e c a l l s t h e lldelusion of immanent emancipationt1 f e l t on
h i s o r i g i n a l departure from London.
A t Recife, a f t e r f a i l i w i n a desperate
attempt t o rovivo a sonso o f community with h i s fellow men he i s driven t o
ask:
"Am I a l o s t soul?
....
Do I h a t e mankind?" (92)
Like Prendick,
another quester a f t e r appalling t r u t h s , who i n a sense becomes trapped i n
t h a t quest, B l o t t s ~ o r t h yhas already s u f f e r e d and i s t o s u f f e r more i n a
loss of i d e n t i t y which seems a necessary condition of h i s eventual 'success'.
Such i s t h e nature of t h e t r u t h which i s found.
I n Xio, h i s s i t u a t i o n worsens8
"1 prowled through t h e c i t y ' s
p r o s p e r i t y asking i f t h i s multitude which seemed s o pleased and gay could
r e a l l y be human and not r e a l i z e my d e s o l a t e need f o r humanity.
O r w a s all
t h i s p l a c e no more than a c o l l e c t i o n of animated masks t h a t looked l i k e a
f r i e n d l y commun.t y?" (107 )
Ferndyke's advised cure has proved t o be as e f f e c t i v e as Candidefs
world-%?i.det r a v e l s .
The range of reference and experience provided has
a s s e r t e d t h e r e a l i t y of a t o t a l community, a species, u n i t e d i n t h e same
weaknesses; t h e r e are no g r e a t d i f f e r e n c e s , no r e a s s u r i n g s u r p r i s e s .
oppressive r e a l i s a t i o n of % h i s ill-omened,
The
l o n e l y and l i m i t l e s s voywefl
(102) f o r c e s h i s &.rowing sense of a l i e n a t i o n t o a c r i s i s point, experienced
r 10.
i n p a r t duri% t h e v i v i d storm sequence described before t h e a r r i v a l at 9'
I r o n i c a l l y , at this time, h e f e e l s he has f o o l i s h l y turned h i s back on h i s
"proper worldt1 (102), but h i s eventual r e t u r n t o t h a t world w i l l f i n d
s c a r c e l y any j u s t i f i c a t i o n f o r tho use of t h e e p i t h e t "proper".
The accuracy of t h e n a r r a t o r ' s d i r e c t address t o t h e reader
-
"For i n t r u t h , t h e s t o r y I have t o t e l l i s a t its core a mental case" (99)
i s d m o n s t r a t e d following t h e c a l l at Rio, on t h e ship's last v o y q e t
Ve
went i n t o Rio and Rio pushed m e and my shipmates back i n t o t h e s e a with no
-
more ado than Pornmbuco, and a f t e r t h a t the %olden Lionu smelt s t r o n g l y
of coffee and a mixture of run and vegotablo decay, and steamed i n t o illlulcc and e v i l acts". (106)
As B l e t t m o r t h y l s i s o l a t i o n becomes a
"paralysing obsossionN, s o t h e oncoming chaos manifests i t s e l f i n e x t e r n a l
The l1prisonIt becomes a "clanking prison" (108) on a
phenomena and events.
journey she w i l l not f i n i s h .
The "ugly molodyu (109) of t h e engines seems
t o match t h e "srrin,-ing rhythm" (103) vhich was running through Blettsworthy'a
mind j u s t before h i s non-encounter with Rio r
abnonnal
. .."
(103)
"abnormal, normal, normal,
The appearance oP t h e -neerls
revolver, and t h e
c r y i n t h e darkness, i n d i c a t e t h e growing u n r e s t of t h e crew.
f'ron "overstrainu and i s buried at sea. 147
described:
I1Dimly
...
A man d i e s
The occasion of t h e b u r i a l is
I became aware of t h e gathering physical storm t h a t
enveloped t h i s mental one
....
hken as I looked up those edges becane
a c l u t c h i n g claw and seized upon t h e sun, and a l l t h e watery world about us
was suffused with a dark coppery glow.
The deck passed i n t o a c h i l l y shadow
and every f i p o and shape upon i t was touched with an inky quality.
The
leeward sky by c o n t r a s t became s t i l l c l e a r e r and b r i g h t e r and whiter than
before
."(119)
"lJomality, abnormality
....
11
IJutiny and k i l l i n g follow t h e ravages of t h e storm, and t h e s i G l e
passenger remains a b s o l u t e l y alone aboard a d e r e l i c t "Golden Lion".
passin2 of time he s l i p s i n t o meditation, f a n t a s y and delirium. 148
I n the
kt
before his final breakdown he can r e c o d z e t h e lesson t h a t experience has
taught him thus
over-confidence.
f a r 8
,
"This deathbed on a sinking s h i p i s merely t h e end of
3 e s t i n y has always been harder and s t e r n e r than we have
seen f i t t o roco,yxiae
....
Ten thousand p o l l e n s a i n s blow t o waste f o r one
t h a t reaches e p i s t i l . "
(145)
Here a s a i n i s t h e Ifanti-humanist moraltt,
pointed out by Lodge, "drawn from t h e i d e a of Zv01ution~~. The d e r e l i c t i s
i n i t s e l f a matchin,; symbol f o r the Ucgatheria on t h e I s l a n d .
For i n both
i l l u s t r a t i o n s , t h e r e i s not t h e absoluto cataclysm of d e s t r u c t i o n , t h e
"the graceless d r i f t towards a dead ond".149(2~5)
Xan i s i n e x t r i c a b l y
caught i n t h e processes of evolution, and i n t h i s book as i n s o mang o t h e r s
by Veils, t h e s e processes a r e seen as e s s e n t i a l l y i n d i f f e r e n t o r aimless i n
t h e i r operation, and doomed i n t h e i r d i r e c t i o n .
The one p o l l e n g r a i n t h a t
succeeds i s t o be even held i n doubt with t h e r e v e l a t i o n s which a r e t o
come.
T a l k i q t o himself, holding himself i n conversation, i n an attempt
t o maintain t h e i d e n t i t y of speech
reminder of Goldin&
- an echo from Xoreau and another
- Blettsworthy shorrly d r i f t s i n t o a psychic no-manls
lands where f a n t a s i e s and buried f e a r s prey upon the mind.
The shark
which h e had seon r o l l i n g on t h e deck at t h e height of t h e storm r e t u r n s a s
a permanent companion i n nightmare.
He a d m i t s he has an widiosyncrasyu about
sharks, but i t would appear t o be r a t h e r more than t h i s .
As Goldingts Simon i s held i n a one-sided discussion with t h e p i g ' s
head on t h e o r i g i n s of e v i l , so Blettsworthy i s intimidated by t h e shark,
which proves t o be another manifestation of t h e I1echo" t o Prendickts foots t e p s and t h e shadow which s t a l k s t h e i n h a b i t a n t s of Cainmarsh, though here
presented with l e s s shadowy suggestion and more "statementtt, i n t h e manner
of Aesop, y e t s t i l l r e l y i n g on a metaphorical i n t e r p r e t a t i o n .
What t h e shark
i s implying when i t i n v i t e s Blettsworthy t o join i t i n t h e s e a
- where
" l i f e a t i t s b e s t was bold and free and frank and fundamentalt1 (154) -- "to
l e a r n what r e a l i t y i s M ,i s a r e t u r n t o primitivism, a self-wrought
reversion.
Blettsworthy r e c a l l s t h e shrtrk's arguments about the c r e a t u r e s
"but t h a t , he declared, was
which had l e f t t h e s e a t o l i v e upon tho land;
merely a r e t r e a t from a c t i v e l i v i n g u . (154)
(one i s reminded of Wellsls
estimation of n a n l s evolutionary s t a t e as that of an uneasy amphibian, i n
h i s introduction t o a e r i m e n t i n Auiobioi~aphy.)I5'
The d e l i r i o u s castaway
challenges t h e c r e a t u r e , suggesting tho v i c t o r y could be h i s s "'This game
ends my way,' snapped t h e shark." (155)
The argument ends i n an undignified
s t r u g g l e and a waking from t h i s hinterland which he judges "one of my saner
dreams". (156)
S a m , yes, inasmuch as t h e c e n t r a l dilemma i s faced, on a
subconscious l e v e l , but t h i s c a t h a r s i s i s not of r e a s s u r i n g value i n i t s e l f ,
as some uncomfortable and b a s i c a l l y unanswerable questions remain.
k t one
p o i n t t h e n a r r a t o r paraphrases t h e shark thus:
It was not f o r t h e land t o teach t h e s e a how
t o l i v e . (154)
Has, then, t h e p r i m i t i v e l i f e , symbolised by the sea, t h e place of man's
o r i g i n , got an i n e v i t a b l e hold on t h e " e t h i c a l process", t h e land, t h e scene
of mankind's attempts t o construct ' ~ i v i l i s a t i o n ' ? ' ~ ~The e n t i r e s e a journey
i s i n f a c t a r e t u r n t o t h e o r i g i n s of l i f e , a journey which moves progressively
c l o s e r t o t h a t origin.
The i s l a n d i s a demonstration of how inadequate was
t h a t f i r s t attempt t o e s t a b l i s h human evolution on land, and i n its atempora l i t y , t h e r e f o r e , i s as r e l e v a n t a comment on human nature as it is on
contenporary society.
"!?ampolo I s l a n d Comes Aboard";
t h i s s e o t i o n heading i s a clue t o
t h e uninformed first reader t h a t t h e i s l a n d may not be r e a l .
On Xorenu's
Island, t h e physical l o c a t i o n was Prcndick1s prison, but he was f a s t
c r e a t i n g h i s own mental p r i s o n by t h e end of t h e s t o r y , and v i r t u a l l y
confesses t o this i n t h e last pages of h i s manuscript.
The phenomenon
of s e l f imprisoned by s e l f , of t h e d i s t o r t i o n of t h e r e a l world by mental
d i s o r i e n t a t i o n , and t h e t r a n s p o r t i n c of sonso experience t o another
dimension of tho mind, i s here given f u l l play.
The i s l a n d comes t o
Blettsworthy; one p a r t of' t h e mind takes over from another, and he s l i p s
i n t o a ion,- " i n t e l p r e - t a t i v e r e v e r i e f f (261).
The savages who take hin o f f
t h e d e r e l i c t , % i l a ~ i qslowly and s t e a d i l y with t h e i r heavy jaws'l, a r e i n
f a c t a team of American r e s e a r c h b i o l o g i s t s , but t h i s ' r e a l i t y 1 i s not
appreciated f o r f i v e years.
liowevcr, at t h e b e g i n n i q of t h i s t h i r d chapter, t h e r e a l i s a t i o n of
an a c t u a l i s l a n d and i t s i n h a b i t a n t s i s at b e s t cloudy:
"....
I must admit
t h a t I never did f e e l even at t h e t h e t h a t i t was a l l there.
e a r l y days of my c a p t i v i t y I had my doubts.Ii (162)
*en
i n the
Again, i n a d i r e c t
address t o tho reader he apolo@zes f o r t h e i n e v i t a b l e "obscurityw and
"disconnectedness" of t h e n a r r a t i v e from t h i s point forward.
The aut'nor' s
commentary on t h e process of reproducins t h e s t o r y emphasises h i s r e l i a n c e on
t h e vagaries of memory:
Wince my memories have t o be t o l d i n f r a g e n t s ,
given l i k e peeps i n t o a book openod hore and there, t h e reader may be a l i t t l e
incredulous of some of t h e things I have t o t e l l o f ' (162)
The character of t h e n a r r a t i v e does indeed a l t e r here.
personal h i s t o r y , t h e first c r i s i s , tho s e a journey
- all
The r e l a t e d
these a r e developed
more o r l e s s i n sequence, with sug,pstivo h i n t s and motifs s c a t t e r e d beneath
a vigorous d e s c r i p t i v e surface.
The a u t h o r i a l preamble at t h e beginning of
t h i s next s t a z o au;zlrs
and rnore apparent c o n t r o l of narrativo,
t h e s e t t i n g up of s i t u a t i o n s r i p e f o r cliscussion, a n a l y s i s and a l l e c o r i c a l
correspondence, and t h e planning of a s e r i e s of a n a l o ~ i o s . Yot the
pervasive suggesiion of mental fog d r i f t i n g and c l e a r i n g over the gross
landscape, t h e continuing sense of u n c e r t a i n t y and u n r e a l i t y , prevents t h e s e
a r t i f a c t s from hardenins i n t o fbnctional emblems and no more.
m i l i t a r y i n s t i t u t i o n s a r e c l e a r l y s a t i r i z e d on t h i s ' i s l a n d ' ,
s a t i r e on contenporary phenomena l i e s a vieri of human n a t u r e
based on tho impl.icati.ons of evolution
- which
Social and
but behind t h e
- i n turn
i s relxlered through
synbol.
West's d i s t i n c t i o n md complaint i s not r e a l l y v a l i d i n t h i s context.
?fells
animates t h e whole bg connecting so c l e a r l y and so v i v i d l y nodern man's
' c i v i l i s a t i o n ' and h i s o r i g i n s .
Tne one adds its own p a r t i c u l a r "statement"
t o t h e o t h e r ; each one illumines t h e other. 152
Believed a madman, "by t h e i r standards", Blettsworthy becomes a
"Sacred Lunatic" i n t h i s 'primitive1 s o c i e t y and so i n h e r i t s a s e c u r i t y none
other e n j o p .
3ut t h i s i s not before a si,-gificant
i n t e r r o g a t i o n takes place,
a t which he i s askeri t o choose between a bowl of "bogs-nut milk and blood":
I s i t l i k e a I3uddha musin:.
I choose t h e blood,
nnd m i d s t s i g n s of f r i e n 6 s h i p and r e j o i c i n g I
am made t o drink. The vecetarian milk i s flung
contemptuously away." (168)
I n doing so he r e p e a t s Xdward Prendiclc's l i k e denonstration and a c k n o ~ i l e d ~ e s
h i s own o r i g i n s , and t h e o r i g i n of e v i l i n man.
A l i t t l e l a t e r on he looks
back upon t h e events which gave him "place a d p r e s t i g e " (173):
had I done the expocted thing!
"Xow r e a d i l y
A t t h e last moment of ny t r i a l I had turned
f'rom t h e milk t o tho clraucht of blood.
It had been a cood ~ w e s sf o r
s u r v i v a l , but a r e n u n c i a t i o n of my own stomach, h e a r t , and brain."
(172)
:Tithin t h e t o t a l v i s i o n of t h e book, horrevcr, t h e i m p l i c a t i o n i s t:-t
his
choice was not p u x l y and simply e self-abhorred g e s t u r e f o r s u r v i v a l .
Undeterred, t h e h e i r of an a n c i e n t west country family d e t e r n i n e s
t o win t h e s e people Trom t h e i r " c r u e l t y and f i l t h " .
(173)
The c o n f r o n t a t i o n s
which emerge as a consequence of t h i s determination owe much t o G u l l i v e r l s
defence of t h e c i v i l i s a t i o n he had cone f r o n i n G u l l i v e r ' s !?ravels Sook 11,
Chapter 6, with h i s account of t h e s t a t e of Europe rendered f o r t h e b e n e f i t
of t h e E n g of 3robdingnag, and f'urthor reiiarks made on p o l i t i c s and w a r f a r e i n Chapter
7.
I n Swift, as i n Wells, t h e i r o n y f a l l s back h e a v i l y
on t h e defenders and a p o s t l e s of f a i t h , and t h e c i v i l i z e d world i s made t o
look absurd.
I n t h e s e c t i o n headed "Discourse with t h e Five Sagestt, Arnold
Blettsworthy of Lattmeer r e b e l s a z a i n s t h i s s o r d i d s i t u a t i o n and d i s p l a y s
"an a l t o g e t h e r novel s p i r i t of s e l f - a s s e r t i o n "
confidence and pride.
(182), h i s ' G u l l i v e r i a n t
Taking advantage o f h i s s p e c i a l p r i v i l e g e as Sacred
l u n a t i c , he c a s t s o f f h i s ceremonial s k i n s and launches i n t o "an impromptu
p a n e ~ y r i cof c i v i l i z a t i o n and a l l t h a t i t had done and could do f o r mankind
...."
( l g o ) , drawing upon t h e teachinzs and philosophy of h i s uncle.
The
e l d e r s of t h e t r i b e l i s t e n i n s i l e n c e u n t i l t n e end, when Chit responds
and denolishes tine t w e n t i e t h century, demolishes t h e i d e a s of progress and
p e r f e c t i o n , and reduces l i f e t o t h e b a s i c d i r e c t i o n s of n a t u r e and p r a ~ a t i s n ,
removing, t o use Goldin,nts analogy again, t h o t r o u s e r s from c i v i l i z e d m a n :
....
"i'1:ero i s no such world
There never
was such a world. Tllore never could be
such a world, f o r rncn s o not made t h a t way
YOU a r e a droamer, an i n s m e dreamer,
and YOU a r e passing through l i f e i n a dreain
Tilo r e a l world i s about you here and
now, t h e on1 r e a l world. Seo i t f o r what
i t is. (192y
....
....
The second major r e v e l a t i o n t o undermine the n a r r a t o r i s caused by
the expedition t o seek tho Xegatheria, o r g i a n t s l o t h , %lumsy denizens of
t h e p r e h i s t o r i c world", which survived on t h e uplands of Rampole I s l a n d i n
t h e i r hundreds.
From discussion and a r b v e n t , t h e n a r r a t i v e moves t o
imaginative demonstration, and t h e c r e a t i o n o f a landscape and a c r e a t u r e
which i s reminscent of t h e d e s c r i p t i v e power of t h e e a r l y science-romances.
The r e t u r n t o such a perverse elaboration of h i s c e n t r a l concern with
evolutionary theory
- rendered
i n such deliberake and imaginative d e t a i l
-
may p o s s i b l y *'lave i t s i n s p i r a t i o n i n y e t another t r i a l which must have
caught Wells's a t t e n t i o n and reminded him t h a t Darwin's discoveries had not
only l o s t t h e i r relevance f o r some people, but t h a t f o r c e r t a i n c o r n u n i t i e s
i n t h e southern s t a t e s of America they had never gained recognition.
essay, ITne
IT814
Anerican People:
I n his
Uhat i s Yrong Vith It", w r i t t e n i n Iby,
1927, t h e year i n which Blettsworthy was being put together, Ifells conments
i n a survey of i b e z i c a ' s various claims t o p r o p e s s ;
I1The fundamentalist
controversy displayed g r e a t a r e a s of t h e United S t a t e s as being mentally
twenty years behind Vestern 1;kope. ,1153 I n 1925, at Dayton, Tennessee,
schoolteacher John Scopes was brought t o t r i a l and found g u i l t y of t e a c h i m
Darwinian evolution, a d o c t r i n e c o n t r a r y t o t h e Tiible, an12 t h e r e f o r e
o o n t r a v e n i q t h e S t a h Law.
Conceivably t h i s t r i a l , and t h e Fundamentalist
upsurge i n conoral i n t h e United Statoa at t h i s time
- represented by
& y a n t l s 'Tne &naco of Daminism (1921) and Tho B i b l e and I t s &cmico (1921)
most notably
-- added
t h e i c o n o c l a s t i c vigour t o t h i s p a r t i c u l s r s e c t i o n of
Blettsworthy.
These i n c r o d i b l e c r e a t u r e s who have dominated animal l i f e on t h e
island
-- another extension of
t h e theory i n llIslands and Variation"
- and
a r e slowly devasta-liw a landscape, destroyinz a l l vegetable l i f e , a r e not
merely, as Ble-ttmrorthy muses over t h e campfire during t h e hunt, suggestive
of i n s t i t u t i o n s , of "lumpish l e g a c i e s of t h e past".
c o r r e c t but a s u p e r f i c i a l one
-- l e a d s him
This a s s o c i a t i o n
-a
t o wax e n t h u s i a s t i c about a
"Vinding up of t h e Past" (207) and some r a d i c a l s o c i a l reconstruction
protqamme.
But at t h i s p o i n t , s i g n i f i c m t l y , h i s musings a r e interrupted
by an a t t a c k from one of t h e s e beasts, sudden, t e r r i f y i n g and with a degree
of violence and livini;: danger which immediately undercuts t h e simple
correspondenco between pre-his t o r i c ( a c t u a l ) c r e a t u r e s and p r e h i s t o r i c
( p e j o r a t i v e ) hunan i n s t i t u t i o n s a
I t s l i t t l e eyes r e f l e c t e d t h e glow of our f i r e
and shone, two s p o t s of red li&t i n t h e midst
There w a s
of t h a t advancing blackness
n o t n i w f o r i t 'out a b o l t i n t o t h e scrub
I could f e e l t h e hot reek of my pursuer's breath
l a d now i t was I r e a l i z e d
on my bare back
how f a s t a IIegatherium i n a mood of destructiveI ran with
ness could g e t over t h e ground
ny h e w i n g i n t e n t upon t h e crashing rhythm t h a t
followed me. After each l e a p I seemed t o ~ e t
away f o r a few seconds and then came the bound
and t h e b r u t e had smashed down again c l o s e on
my heels. (209)
....
....
Blettsworthy escapes much chastened;
....
....
ll.
..
my vain i m q i n a t i o n s about
...
s t a r t i n g t h e c i v i l i z e d w o ~ l danew
...
rrore completely s c a t t e r e d and
disposed of anon;. t h e narsh r e a l i t i e s about me."
(211)
These ' ? l a s h r e a l i t i e s " a r e " a ? ~ o u thim
~ ~ on t h e primary l e v e l of
h i s r e c e n t expcrienco, but i n a f i n a l a n a l y s i s t h e y a r e 'within' him.
This d e c e p t i v e l y nori'ound b e a s t has proved very much a l i v e and d a ~ e r o u s ;
t h e power of p z i n i t i v e l i f e has once a g a i n been demonstrated.
These v i v i d
scenes go a long way t o i l l u s t r a t e t h e r e a l i t y of human d e f i c i e n c i e s ,
savagery and b a r b a r i t y , which make up t h e i n s t i t u t i o n s which Blettsworthy
was so concerned about, which make up tilo i n s t i t u t i o n o r system which s e n t
t h e I t a l i a n innnipants t o t h e e l e c t r i c c h a i r .
s t r u c t u r e s i s e n o u ~ h , can be enough.
iu'o sweeping r e f o m of s o c i a l
!kis i s t h e sombre l e s s o n learned on
t h e ravaged, moonlit uplands of Ranpole I s l a n d .
Xhat Blettsworthy, a s P l a i n
Xan, has t o contond rii-l;h i s what, metaphorically, pursues him from t h e
s e c u r i t y of t h e canp-fire
and sends h i n f l e e i n g i n t e r r o r , t h e t e r r o r t h a t
Prendick and Finchatton knew.
Tie f i n a l set-piece i n t h i s chapter, ordered i n t o sequence, i s
t h e t h r e a t o f w a r between t h e people of t h e gorge and those of t h e upland,
a n opportunity f o r s a t i r e on t h e m i l i t a r y mind and m i l i t a r y o b j e c t i v e s .
Tke Sacred Lunatic, i n a r o l e fast l o s i n g i t s unhindered s e c u r i t y , p r o t e s t s
t h e f o o l i s h n e s s of t h e s e p r e p a r a t i o n s , and reaches back i n t o a memory which
knows only of tho Iiague Conferenca and nothing of t h e p r e - F i r s t World :;'a?
fever.
The urzency of t h e ' r e a l ' s i t u a t i o n begins t o assist t h e gradual
d i s s i p a t i o n of h i s r e v e r i e , and t h e s o l i d walls of h i s mental p r i s o n fade
o c c a s i o n a l l y t o a mysterious transparency:
"1 would l i f t my eyes t o t h e
rocky walls above me and i t would seer: t o me t h a t they were pierced by
phantorr, windows an< bore s t r a n g e devicos and i n s c r i p t i o n s w r i t t e n i n
l e t t e r s of f i r e , mil I would look s p i n and behold i t was nothing more than
f a c e t s and rowjilnesses of t h e rock touched by s h a f t s of t h e s i n k i n g sunm1I
(222
Yar i s declared, a n i tho Sacred Lunatic t u r n s away i n despair.
F l s f i n a l brea;ithrou:-h
i n t o t h e world he had l e f t behind f i v e years
p r e v i o u s l y i s e f f e c t e d by the love f o r a woman, Xeena, a member of t h e
tribe
-- t h e
name and t h e manner of h e r rescue r e c a l l Tne Time Kachine
-
m d so t h e c y c l e i s complete, as t h i s was a l s o t h e cause of h i s f i r s t
crisis.
2ampolo I s l a n d disappears, but not irrevocably, and an apartment
i n 3rooklyn : i e i & ~ t st a k e s i t s place.
'?he l a s t c h a p t e r
- that
i s , t h a t p a r t of i t which follows t h e
explanation of IT. :Ynchett, ' C h i t 1 of Iiampole I s l a n d , and t h e concluding
r e v e l a t i o n of 3 1 e t t s r o r t h y 1 s t h a t t h e i s l a n d "was only t h e r e a l world,
- is
looming through t h e mists of my i l l u s i o n s 1 1
a l o o s e and h u r r i e d
e l a b o r a t i o n of t h e correspondence between t h e n a r r a t o r ' s psychic e x i s t e n c e
and t h o world he r e t u r n s t o .
and very e f f e c t i v e l y .
P r e n d i c k q s experience i s t e s t e d only b r i e f l y
The f i n a l c k p t e r o f t h e l a t e r book covers an
excessive amount of
The w a r i t s e l f i s si&mlevidence of t h e
v a l i d i t y of h i s i n t e r i o r v i s i o n s , 154 and almost seems t o p i c k up t h e t h r e a d s
of 3 1 e t t s w o r t h g t s e a r l i e r t r a v e l s and t r i a l s i n t h e r e a l world.
of Candide r e t u r n s again.
n a r r a t i v e i s maintained.
Tne f l a v o u r
Yhere t h e nightmare p e r s i s t s , t h e f o r c e of t h e
Perhaps t h e most e f f e c t i v e scene i s a chance meeting
with t h e Captain of' t h e "Golden Lion1' i n a London r e s t a u r a n t .
Be has not
changed, b u t t h e wcu: h a s enabled him t o s a t i s f y h i s f r u s t r a t e d ambitions, f o r
I
now as c a p t a i n of a 'Qt s h i p he can thrill t o t h e hunt of fellow human
i
s
- leally.
iiis macabre s t o r i e s d c l i & t him anew i n t h e tell in^,
but leave t h e man ho once t r i e d t o murder appalled:
I111e s t u c k h i s forearms
on t h e t a b l e and held k n i f e and f o r k e r e c t as he r e c a l l e d t h i s and t h a t
savoury i t m of t h e rionderful anti-su'imarine story.
And I r e a l i z e d more
than ever I had done, t h a t Zampole I s l a n d had indeed now spread out and
swallowed a l l tho world."
(297)
Similarly, t h e re-appearance of t h e Island, i n p a r t i n t e g r a t e d
with t h e r e a l world of events, as with tho instance of Sacco and Vanzetti,
a c t s as a f o r c e f u l s p b o l , p e r p e t u a l l y a "shadow" hindering communication,
and y e t p e r p e t u a l l y a necessary reninderr
I have never t o f o r g e t Rampole Island, I f e e l ,
I have t o s e t t l e my account with it. Until
t h a t account i s s e t t l e d , t h e i s l a n d l i e s i n
wait f o r me. (325)
Here i s one of t h e important paradoxes of t h e s t o r y , one now much dwelt upon
i n modern f i c t i o n , poetry, and drama; t h e a i d of i n s a n i t y of 'abnormality'
i n gaining a t r u e v i s i o n of t h e modern predicament.
c r y p t i c exchvlge from Candidet
- 'To
One i s reminded of t h i s
I1'??hy was t h i s world formed a t a l l ? ' asked
d r i v e us mad', answered liartin.
11155
The conclusion of t h e s t o r y i s made unwieldy by t h e encounter with
Oxford business p a r t n e r , and r i v a l f o r t h e a t t e n t i o n s of Olive
Slaughter, L ~ l p hGraves, and h i s readjustment t o a companionship which
counters h i s pessimistic v i s i o n with a n optimism r e j e c t i n g t h e claims of t h e
Rampole nightmare.
This prepares t h e way f o r a f i n a l dialogue s e c t i o n
-a
discussion botrroon Blottsworthy and Cravoa
- which
expressed confident hope t h a t "%inpole I s l a n d
...
concludes with t h e
w i l l pass away
...
.I1
(347)
and t h a t t h e r e w i l l be an emancipation of t h e f u t u r e from "the blunders o f
t h e past".
(346)
iIoriever, we a r e not l e d t o believe t h a t Blettsworthy i s
convinced, f o r Graves a d m i t s t
"You a r o t h e doubter, always
n e i t h e r can t h e reader be convinced. 156
." (347)
And
It i s t h e doubt which c a r r i e s t h e
conviction, which concentrates ? J e l l s ' s ima~;inatives k i l l s t o produce t h i s
hybrid a l l e g o r i c a l fantasy, with i n i t i a l mythic overtones.
The l o s s of
n a r r a t i v e power i n t h e final chapter nay be traced t o a p e r s i s t e n c e i n
d e l i n e a t i n g t h e love i n t e r e s t
momentarily
- which marred
- and t h e re-introduction
t h e end of Chapter One
of Graves, a f i g u r e at t h i s sta-ge of
t h e s t o r y r e p r e s e n t a t i v e of t h e popular inage of Yells, a f e e b l y ressurected
mouthpiece, suggesting t h e r e s o l u t i o n of t h e i n d i v i d u a l ' s c r i s e s and c o n f l i c t s
i n a comrnon cause.
(345)
For t h e individual l i f e , he p r o f f e r s "creative Stoicismff.
This i s reminiscent of t h e f i n a l advice f o r Candide;
...
"we must
c u l t i v a t e our garden", 157 and as i n V o l t a i r e ' s t e x t , Graves's advice r i n g s
strangely hollors.
The e v i l has been dwelt on too much and too 10%f o r u s t o
r e t u r n peaceably t o personal slogans of t h i s nature.
I n t h e e n t i r e n a r r a t i v e , Wells has moved from l i t e r a l and
metaphorical expression of t h e individual condition t o i n d i r e c t and direck
commentary on man, t h e s o c i a l and p o l i t i c a l animal.
a connection which cannot be broken.
Between t h e two he makes
X g h t years l a t e r , i n t h e midst of new
European c o n f l i c t s , f u r t h e r demonstrations o f t h e s o c i a l animal at play, t h i s
connection is examined again, and =sin w i t h reference t o t h e evidence of
evolution.
The form o f ?'he Croquet Player i s more u n i f i e d , s h o r t e r , i t s
message more d i r a c t , b u t i t remains undeniably a vivid work of imagination,
worthy of comment and a n a l y s i s .
K r . Slcttsworthy on Rampole Island (Toronto, 1928), p. 21
Subsequent references w i l l be given p a r e n t h e t i c a l l y .
ffAssessinz R.G.
Wellsf1, k c o u n t e r (January 1967), 57.
The Yay t h o TJorld Is Gofnc (London, 1928), 240-241.
Ibid.,
p. 250.
Ibid.,
p. 257.
There i s one o t h e r f l e e t i n g reference t o an ' a c t u a l ' victim of a
perverted j u s t i c e , namely Charlie Ciiaplin. I n h i s account of what he
found t o occupy h i s time while ashore i n Rio, t h e n a r r a t o r r e c a l l s
h i s frequent visits t o t h e cinema; I1'I!hose were t h e days when Charlie
Chaplin was shown f r e e l y and abundantly without any fiss.It (107)
The I?ay t h e Yorld Is Goinb p. 255.
"Assessing R.G.
R.G.
TJellsu, p.
57.
Wells ( ~ e wYork, 1 9 3 0 ) ~p. 229.
Ibid.
Ibid.
Experiment i n Autohiomaphy, p. 421.
Specifically8
Dedicated
t o t h e Immortal Xanory
of
CAIJDIDE
Vallentin, p. 263. Her e n t i r e discussion, pp. 263-7, works towards
a comparison w i t h Parham.
See pp. 194-199
" A s s e s s i x H.G.
Wells",
57.
.
h e r i r n e n t i n AutoSio.~raphy, p 421. U e l l s mentions t h i s novel,
Parhan, and Xon Like Gods i n t h e same contexts "I wish I could at
times hear of people s t i l l r e a d i w t h e s e t h r e e s t o r i e s . They got,
I think, a d u l l press." (p. 422).
The Saturday Seview, v o l e 146 ( ~ o ~ t e m b e1,r 1928), 276.
.
Uergonzi r e f e r s t o Shanks' pioneer
(London, 1 9 2 3 ) ~pp 148-171.
e v a l u a t i o n i n The Early H.G. iJells_, pp. 18, 42, and 61. mward Shanks
was himself t h e w r i t e r of an anti-utopian f a n t a s y , The People of t h e
Zuins, a S t o r y of t h e h g l i s h Revolution and After (1920).
London :iercury, 18 ( ~ e p t e m b e r1928), 538-539Sloreau i n t h i s review.
Shanks, too, r e c a l l s
"Our Sacred Lunatic", The S p e c t a t o r ( ~ e ~ t e m b e1,
r l928), 269.
IThe Genius of tlr. Wellslt, The New Statesman (September 22, 1928),
Ibid.,
p.
733.
'Y3ymbolism i n I h n and Nature",
Ibid.,
734.
Time and Tide (mst31, 1928), 817.
p. 818.
The Timos L i t e r a r y Supplement Lseptember 6, 1928), 630.
Desert I s l a n d s and Robinson Crusoe ( ~ o n d o n , 1947), p. 7
Loc .tit.
A f u r t h e r h i n t comes a t a l a t e r p o i n t when, i n d e s c r i b i n g h i s l i f e
i n Oxford a f t e r ~ ~ a d u a t i o nhe, r e c a l l s h i s varied ambitions a t t h e
time, which included a d e s i r e t o w r i t e r "1 w a s not unmindful o f
the s o c i a l i s s u e s of t h e time, and determined t h a t a s t r a i n of moral
and humanitarian purposiveness should u n d e r l i e t h e p e r f e c t a r t i s t i c
expression o f whatever I decided t o do." ( 3 6 )
The s i g n i f i c a n c e of an i s l a n d l o c a t i o n may again be noted.
This p a r t i c u l a r s e t t i n g , unusual i n Wells's f i c t i o n , i s probably based
on h i s e a r l y teaching experience a t Wookey, Somerset i n t h e Vinter of
1880, under t h e t u t e l a g e of h i s Uncle Williams. It may be gathered
from 3&erimont i n Autobiography, pp. 96-99, t h a t h i s b r i e f s t a y
gained much from t h e i n f l u e n c e s of h i s uncle, though r a t h e r d i f f e r e n t
i n f l u e n c e s from t h o s e d e l i v e r e d from Rupert Blettsworthy t o h i s
nephew: "A f a c e t i o u s scepticism which l a t e r on became h i s ~ e l l s ' ~
f a v o u r i t e pose may owe a g r e a t d e a l t o Uncle Willisms .I1 ( p 8 99)
See "the d a k g i r l o f Pengetl, The New Xachiavelli (Harmondsworth,
England, 1966), 55-58, a t y p i c a l ' a f f a i r 1 .
This i s not t o i g n o r e t h e success Wells can show i n h i s c r e a t i o n o f
pathos and comedy o u t o f r e l a t i o n s h i p s between men and women.
The Nori IJachiavelli would i l l u s t r a t e t h e former, and Kipps and
Xr. P o l l x t h e l a t t e r .
( ~ e wYork, 1930),
0. 1929,
p. 250.
The New ; i a c h i a v e l l i , p. l 5 t "1 do not know where I might not have
ended but f o r t h i s r e d b l a z e t h a t came o u t of my unguarded n a t u r e and
closed my c a r e e r f o r ever."
The Iiosoach : . l a , ~ i f i c e n t ,A t l a n t i c Edition, vol. x i x ( ~ e wYork, 1926),
@ 1915, p. 358.
See p. 18 f o r an extended d e s c r i p t i o n of a h i e r a r c h y which linked
God, by numerous ranks, t o t h e l o c a l m a p a t e s and landowners.
See p. 80: "He was a sturdy, square-faced, ginger-haired i n d i v i d u a l ,
w i t h sandy eyelashes and a b i t t e r mouth. E s l i t t l e grey-peen eyes
regarded me poisonously."
This i s a f ' u t h e r example of perversion of a u t h o r i t y , t h e l i e s of
those e x e r c i s i n g a u t h o r i t y , and t h e hidden i n j u s t i c e
a miniature
t r i a l and execution at sea.
-
Like Prendick a d r i f t i n t h e open boat, at t h e whim of i n d i f f e r e n t
f o r c e s s p b o l i s e d by Nontgomery and D r . IJoreau, Blettsworthy i s y e t
anot'ner p i e c e of flotsam, though g i v i n g more d i r e c t voice o r 'statement1
t o h i s predicament: "So far as t h e s p e c i e s i s concerned t h e r e need
be nothing l e f t . L i f e can always begin again. B i r t h and death are
t h e warp' and woof of i t s process; i t i s l i k e a f r a u d u l e n t tradesman
who can keep going by destroying h i s accounts. I was j u s t a
discarded o b l i g a t i o n , a b i l k e d c r e d i t o r , a repudiated debt .It (149)
.
See Ardrcy, p. 155: I1We a r e evolutionary f a i l u r e s , trapped between
e a r t h and a glimpse of heaven, prevented by our s u r e c a p a c i t y f o r
s e l f - d e l u s i o n from achieving any triumph more noteworthy than our
own s e l f - d e ~ t r u c t i o n . ~ ~
B q e r i m e n t , p. 31 We a r e l i k e e a r l y amphibians, s o t o speak,
s t r u g g l i n g o u t of t h e waters t h a t have h i t h e r t o covered our kind, i n t o
t h e a i r , seeking t o breathe i n a new f a s h i o n and emancipate ourselves
from lone; accepted and long unquestioned n e c e s s i t i e s . A t last i t
becomes f o r us a c a s e of air o r nothing. But t h e new land has not
y e t d e f i n i t i v e l y emerged from t h e waters and we s w i m d i s t r e s s f u l l y i n
an elenent we wish t o abandon."
Colin Vilson uses t h i s passage i n two of h i s philosophical works t o
See I n t r o d u c t i o n
i l l u s t r a t e t h e p o w t h of t h e '1Jeri ?&cistentialism".
t o t h e i'Tm E x i s t e n t i a l i s m (Boston, 1967), p. 124, where !.lilson goes on
!
I
&
t o comparo dc Chardin's concept of "biosphere" and "noiisphere" (
Phenomenon of ::an) with l l e l l s t s i d e a of t h e physical world and Itthe
country of t h e mindf1. The g i s t of t h i s example and argument i s
repeated i n Tho S t r e n t ~ t ht o Drem (cambridge, 1-Sass., 1962), pp. 97-100.
1
llagarlitsh-i r o f s r s i n passing t o tho s e a and t h e shark, as s i c , n i f y i q
a world h i s Uncle had neglected t o explains "The i d y l l i c c r a d l e of
l i f e i s a l s o t h e kingdom of t h e shark. H i s uncle had q u i t e f o r g o t t e n
about t h c shark." (197)
Henkin's i n p l i e d o b j e c t i o n t o - ? l c t t s w o r t h ~- t h e o n l y comment he
seems t o be based on a very
makes, i n a f i n a l s u n m a r i s i x chapter
ISlr.
3
l
e
t
t
s
w
o
r
t
h
y
on
Rampole
I s l a n d (1928) Y e l l s
"In
t i r e d reading8
f o l l o t ~ e dDoyle t o t h e discovery of a land peopled w i t h p r e h i s t o r i c
n o n s t e r s ; but those a r e simply pegs on which t h e author h a n p h i s
u s u a l sociolo$cal moral .I1 (p. 267 ) The "moralt1 i s f i r s t b i o l o g i c a l ,
and d r a m a t i c a l l y so. One i s reininded of two similar b r i e f l y
described scene:,
from ICipps (1905) and The !Jar i n the Air (1908).
I n t h e fonnor, Xi.pps i s wanderin2 i n t h e Crystal Palace grounds and
f i n d s a s t r i k i n s resseablance b e t m e n t h e outdoor l i f e - s i z e model
Lab?rrinti:odon and Chester Coote, with t h e obvious s o c i o l o ~ i c a l
impiications. I n The Yar i n t h c Air, Betridge's f l s n g machine i s
housed near t h e model of t h e mec;cttherium i n t h e same park. These
g i a n t r e n i n d e r s of pre-history &c man-made and s t a t i c , and more
obviously, convenient pegs f o r T e l l s ' s moral. The same cannot be
s a i d f o r tile c r e a t u r e on Rampole I s l a n d .
-
The Yay t h e P:orld I s go in^, p. 238.
The b a t t l e scenes and conditions at t h e Front may be compared with
t h o s e described i n t h e l e t t e r s of IZr. b i t l i n g ' s son.
t r a n s . Robert I.1. Adam ( ~ e wYork, 1966), p.
47.
L.P. Hartley i s one such reader: ltPersonally, I t h i n k t h e despondent
I?. Rlet.tsworthy of t h e .isi and arid t'ne war, cor~vincedof i n e r a d i c a b l e
flaws i n hurnan n a t u r e , more l i k e l y t o be r i g h t than h i s sanguine
f r i e n d o f f ?'hc Saturday lieview, 276.
Candide,
p.
47.
(c)
'I?le Croquet Playerr
"...a t t h e t u r n of
t h e future.
The Theme of he-History.
the c e n t u y , Tlells had c a r r i e d h i s reader i n t o
A t t h e end of t h e 'twenties,
' t h i r t i e s and ' f o r t i e s , he w a s
nore i n c l i n e d t o remind us of our p r i m i t i v e past. t1158 %ether t h e f u t u r e i s
t h a t of ?he Tine lhchine o r t h e p a s t t h a t of S l e t t s t r o r t h ; ~ , t h e moral drawn i s
t h e sane, a s t h e exact juxtaposition of A Story of t h e Stone Aye and A Story
of t h e Days t o Cone demonstrates. 15'
I n f a c t , both e a r l y and l a t e
K a g a r l i t s k i ' s general proposition i s t r u o
of pre-history,
- thou;.h
- Xells was drawn back t o a v i s i o n
and i t s lessons f o r modern men.
Two years before t h e p u b l i c a t i o n of ::orenu,
Island" appeared i n t h e P a l l Xall &d;:ct.
Mells ' s "Aepyornis
lGO
This s h o r t s t o r y , drawin;. e
n
upon evolution and tho a u t h o r ' s t r a i n i n g i n biology, shows t h e influnnce
of a p r i m i t i v e p a s t t h r u s t i w i t s o l f upon t h e present, i n the f o m of a
supposed long e x t i n c t s p e c i e s of b i r d , tho roc of Sinbad's legend, holding
a modern adventurer at bay f o r two years on a l o n e l y d e s e r t i s l a n d .
The
s t o r y i s t o l d by t h e adventurer, a h i r e d c o l l e c t o r f o r a n a t u r a l i s t , t o
l e l l s , who records t h e n a r r a t i v e , even addins a f o o t n o t e l d l f o r t h e r e a d e r ' s
benefit
- another
f o a t u r e of t h e a s s e r t i v e method, and thus includes himself
i n t h e f i c t i o n as a convenient e a r f o r t h e speaker's anecdotal, conversati o n a l tone.
Butcher, as he i s perhaps a p p r o p r i a t e l y c a l l e d , i s a jocu1;~-
but c a l l o u s inCiividua1, who records h i s p a r t i n t h e expedition t o recover
I
t h e eggs of t h e Aepyosnis from a c o a s t a l swamp on 2idqasca.r with an unfeeling
I
I
egatism demonstrated by t h e account of h i s treatment of t h e ''heathen" n a t i v e
helpers, and h i s attempted murder of ono of them. 162
The s i t u a t i o n foreshado~rs
I
t h e Q a p episode i n T o n o - 3 s n u whom Georze Pondorevo records
- but
with
a s e n s i t i v i t y and atfctreness q u i t e lack in^ i n "the man w i t h t h e scarred f a c e w
- how he becarno oppressed
by the p r i n i t i v o nature of h i s remote enviTon-
ment163 and f h c neanncss of h i s purposo, and w a s reduced t o t h e s t a t e where
b r u t a l murder c m be c o m i t t e d .
3utcher i s desorted, d r i f t s away i n a canoe with i t s precious
cargo of eggs, and i s eventually c a s t ashore on an a t o l l .
storm
- "One
After a sjrinbolic
p e a t r o l l e r came writhing at ne, l i k e a f i e r y serpent" (267)
- he i s l e f t trith t h e
" d i 3 a r t i c u l a t e d sl.rsleton" of h i s canoe, and t h e
r m a i n i n g et-l;, which hatches t h e da:* a f t e r t h e storm.
;roun.g, i s almost a companion, but,
paradise went wron:."
(263)
If...
The bird, while
about t h e second year our l i t t l e
The " i d y l l " ends and t h e i s l a n d become2 a placo
o f p u r s u i t and p e q o t u a l danger,
made ' s a f e 1 only when 3utcher succeeds i n
t r a p p i n s and k i l l i n g t h e creature.
EIotrever, as t h e n a r r a t i v e ends with t h e
suggestion t h e r e may bc more such phononem, we a r e reminded t h a t t h e
"damned anachronism" (270) has the h a b i t of mddng i t s appearance a t any tine
and d i ~ l o c a t tho
i ~ arch of evolutionary 9 p r o ~ e s s s .
Vhen t h e d r i f t i n g 3utcher held t h e last egg t o h i s e a r and fancied
he heard llblood p u l ~ i r q(266)
~ ~ &ou&hJ
It.
.. it might have been t h e r u s t l e
i n my own e a r s , l i k e what you l i s t e n t o i n a s e a s h e l l " , he was
q u i t e incapable of u n d e r s t a n d i w i t
--
- though
9tuning-in' t o an omnipresen2 under-
current of i n s t i n c t u a l l i f e , which may manifest i t s e l f i n t h e form of an
absurd "anachronism" l i k e t h e aepyornis, o r , what i s more important, mc!
what t h e b i r d s;mbolises,
being l i k e Butcher.
i n t h e c r u e l and i r r a t i o n a l behaviour of a hunan
%en i n an apparently l i g h t yarn,164
t o l d with humorous
vigour by a d o l i b e r n t o l g limited n a r r a t o r who i s lacking i n any synpathetic
i n t e n s i t y , N c l l s t s concerns with t h e relevance of t h e p a s t , e s s e n t i a l l y a
p r e - h i s t o r i c a l p a s t , i n t h e present, a r e r e a d i l y d i s c e r n i b l e .
'310
c e n t r a l metaphor of ItAop;rornis I s l a n d t t becomes a l e s s removed
demonstration and statement i n "The Beconciliationtl, a s t o r y f i r s t
published as "T11e k l l a t t i n 1895. 165
Two men, Findlay and Temple, meet
a f t e r a space of some years t o e f f e c t a r e c o n c i l i a t i o n .
rras
t h e i r o r i ~ i n a breach
l
(L
Tie cause of
q u a r r e l over a woman, t h o u ~ hno s p e c i f i c d e t a i l s
a r e ~ i v e n . I n tho course of a s i n g l e cveniw t h e r e c o n c i l i a t i o n onds i n
murder.
I n toto, i t s e a m a s t o r y i n a hurry; t h e incorporation of recorded
p a s t event t o explain t h e present s i t u a t i o n i s not always achieved
c o n v i n c i n , ~ l yo r elegantly.
The a c t i o n i s s e t i n Findlay's study, tho place
of work o f a man who has ahcieved tteminenco i n comparative anatomy", and
t h e atmosphere of t h i s miniature museum of p r i m i t i v e and lower forms of
l i f e i s e f f e c t i v e l y described:
Wow and then t h e f i r e f l i c k e r e d and s t i r r e d ,
sending blood-red r e f l e c t i o n s chasing t'ne shadows across t h e c e i l i x ,
and
b r i q i n c i n t o & o s t l y t r a n s i t o r y prominence some p o t e s q u e ,-rouping of
This s e t t i n g remains t h e
animals' bones o r s k u l l s upon the s h e l v o ~ . (553)
~~
s t r o w e s t f e a t u r e of t h e s t o r y
- a vivid
and s i n i s t e r record of t h e animal
world displayed about t h e daskened study, a s i l e n t testimony t o t h e violence
t h a t t a k e s place there.
On t h e i r r e t u r n from t h e music-hall
t n e two men e n t e r t h i s
grotesque arena, and f i n d l a y fumbles with tho lamps:
"His hand w a s unsteady,
and he had some d i f f i c u l t y i n turning up t h e wicks; one got jammed down, and
t h e o t h e r f l a r e d up k - i ~ u s l y . (553)
~~
This imbalance of l i g h t and s t r e n g t h
s u r e l y foreshadows t h o upsurge of i n z t i n c t u a l aggression rihich i s t o
re-awaken
fin all^ t h e i r o l d eninitye Flushed rrith drink, t h e two men t u r n a
boxing bout i n t o a f i g h t t o tho death r ~ i t hTemple having succunbed t o h i d i n g
a mama1 ' s ear-bone,
tho innocent door-stop,
i n h i s zlove.
t h e f i g h t i s i n d i c a t e d by a very e x p l i c i t n a r r a t o r m & i q
?'he lesson of
q u i t e sure tho
r e a d e r recognizes which a s p e c t of man's dual n a t u r e i s defeated i n t h i s
exenplun and rihich i s v i c t o r i o u s a
"Temple's upper l i p was c u t asinst
his
t e e t h , and the t a s t e of blood and t h e s i g h t of i t t r i c k l i n g down Findlay's
cheek destroyed t h e last v e s t i g e s of r e s t r a i n t t h a t d r i n k had l e f t him,
s t r i p p e d of a l l t h a t education had ever done f o r him.
only t h e savace nan-animal,
The deed i s done.
There remained now
t h e c r e a t u r e t h a t t h i r s t s f o r blood."
(557)
Temple, i n h o r r o r , throws t h e " d i a b o l i c a l
thingt1 (558) a17ay from him, and "To Temple's excited imagination i t seemed t o
b e l y i n g at e x a c t l y t h e sane s p o t , t l x s o l e and s u f f i c i e n t cause of E n d l a y ' s
death and h i s orm."
(558) It i s
a n i c e i r o n y t h a t Temple, years away from
t h e anatomy s t u d i e s he once shared w i t h h i s one-time f r i e n d , should mistake
at t h e beginninc of t h e s t o r y t h e b u l l a f o r a human brain-pan.
Once again,
man's o r i g i n s have r e t u r n e d t o deny h i s evolutionary s u p e r i o r i t y .
not j u s t a murder; i t i s every murder.
This is
166
Wells's i n t e r e s t i n manqs p r i m i t i v e p a s t , s p e c i f i c a l l y as an
h i s t o r i a n and an a r c h e o l o g i s t , may be noted i n "A S t o r y of t h e Stone &elt
from h i s e a r l y period, and i n "Tne G r i s l y Folktt (1921)
as well as i n
t h e first two books of The Outline of FIistory, regarded by many as the n o s t
vivid p o r t i o n of t h e book, the most ouccossful a t r e c r e a t i n g t h e past.
The e a r l i e s t n a r r a t i v e , discussed by Loo IIonlcin as an "anthropolo&cal
168
romancett,
talcoo us back t o a southorn 3nglish landscape of 50,000 years
w o , and t h e drama o f
3
man callod Uzh-Lorni who discovers t h e uses of a
flint-headed s o , cmd teaches the homo t o be h i s servant.
The five-part
n a r r a t i v e presents a s e r i e s of t a b l e a u displaying danger, challenge and
achievement, with Ugh-Loni as a kind of e a r l y 3veryman and an e a r l y e p i c
hero r o l l e d i n t o one.
Yet t h i s cycle of s t r u g g l e i s played out i n an
atmosphere of p r i m i t i v e t e r r o r and, as t h e i m r r a t i v e concludes, drawing away
from t h e s p e c i f i c drama t o t h e genoral p i c t u r e , t o t h e r e p r e s e n t a t i v e glimpse
of t h e evolution of a species, t h e tone almost becones t h a t of a B i b l i c a l
h i s t o r i a n , and a s t o r y of i n d i v i d u a l achievernerit i s l o s t i n a general f i g h t
f o r survival:
w i l l i n peace.
"Thereafter f o r many moons Ugh-bmi was master and had h i s
And on t h e f u l l n e s s of t i n e he was k i l l e d and eaten even as
Uya had been slain.lt (714)
'Pne heroic element and t h e p r i d e i n human achieve-
ment i s undercut by t h i s suggestion of an i n d i f f e r e n t , determined process,
and i s rendered suspect f'urther when read i n conjunction with t h e sequel.
This takes us on i n t o t h e f u t u r e , one which o f f e r s no i n t r i n s i c improvenent.
The hope t h a t mperhaps
- men w i l l be wiser
...If
(805) i s not pursued by
e i t h e r Elizabeth o r Denton as t h e sun s i n k s and t h e day cools,
"tCa.n those bones l i ~ e (607)
? ~ ~ So l l e l l s queries a t t h e be~rinning
of "The G r i s l y Folkt1, expressing t h e same f a s c i n a t i o n f o r the evidence of our
h e r i t q e which l i e s beneath our f e e t , t h e same r e a l i s a t i o n of a p a s t irmodiacgt
as Golding does i n h i s occasional piece, " D i g g i q f o r ~ i c t u r e s ~:Tells,
~ . ~ ~ ~
however, would not a p p r e c i a t e Goldingts s e n s i t i v i t y t o t h e "days of innocencett
buried below and tho "wickednesst1 of t h e world above.
I f anything, he would
s e e an i n e v i t a b l e d u p l i c a t i o n of a b i o l o g i c a l condition
and would weep no t e a r s f o r a f a l l fron pace,
- call it sin -
o r a r u i n a t i o n of t h e noblo
"En.e G r i s l y Folk" becins as an h i s t o r i c a l a r t i c l e , d e s c r i b i q t h e
neanderthalers and t h e t r u e man, and t h e i r ~ernoter e l a t i o n s h i p .
The
a r t i c l e then moves i n t o a dramatisation of a meeting between these two
species
- %sin taking t h e converse of
f i n a l l y t o t h e h i s t o r i a n ' s perspective.
Goldin;.'~ viewpoint
- returning
'ine piece i s i n t e r e s t i n g i n t h e
context of t h i s argument inasmuch as i t suggests
- i n non-dramatic
terms
-
t h e r e l a t i o n s h i p between t h e t r u e man and h i s ape-man ancestor, which i s
extended with c r u e l i r o n y and near h y s t e r i a by the tormented victims who
t e l l t h e i r s t o r y of t h e Cainmarsh hauntings i n The Croquet ?la?rer.
blells
speaks of V h o beginning of a nightmare w e f o r t h e l i t t l e c h i l d r e n of t h e
human t r i b e
....
Their s t e p s were do2~l;ed. Tne legends of ogres mu man-
e a t i n g g i a n t s that haunt t h e childhood of t h e world may descend t o us from
these ancient days of fear." (698)
Prendick, Blettsworthy and Finchatton
a l l experience t h i s nightmare as f u l l - ~ o v nmen.
Wells wonders at thoso
ancient c o n f l i c t s and t h e i r final vic-Lory, and'our r e l a t i o n s h i p with t h i s
ancient p a s t :
%cept perhaps f o r some vague t e r r o r s i n OUT
clreming l i f e and f o r some l u r k i n g elements
of t r a d i t i o n i n t h e legends and w a r n i n ~ sof
%he nursery, i t has gone all;o@her out of
t h e nexory of our race.
at n o t h i w i s ever
completely l o s t . Seventy o r eighty years
a f a r curious savants began t o suspect t n a t
t h e r e were hidden memories i n c e r t a i n b i g
chipped f l i n t s and s c r a p s of bone they found
i n ancient gravels. 2luch more r e c e n t l y o t h e r s
have begun t o f i n d h i n t s of remote s t r a n g e
.
e x ~ e r i e i l c e si n t h e dreams and odd kinks
i n nodern minds. Sy d e p x m these dry
bones begin t o l i v e w a i n . (620)
The "dry bones" come t o l i f e i n the a;~'cixologicald i g s around Cainnarsh,
and the "memory of t h e r a c e v si s a c t i v a t e d again, breaking %he Frame of Our
Present". 17' A s c i e n t i f i c and h i s t o r i c a l f a s c i n a t i o n f o r t h e p a s t i s o v e r
taken once more 7sy nis;.ivin;.s
about man's i n h e r i t a n c e which simply cannot
b e quelled, and which emerge here i n "a s o r t of ghost s t o r y , but not an
ordinary one."
(10)
An i n t r o d u c t i o n t o The Croauct Player via the above t e x t s i d e n t i f i e s
t h e content and i t s p l a c e i n T e l l s ' s c o n t i n u i t y of s c i e n t i f i c i n t e r e s t s and
of h i s associated f e a r s , and it a l s o suggests t h e d e r i v a t i o n of t h e s t o r y ' s
fornl from t h e techniques of :Jells's s h o r t e r f i c t i o n and t h e s h o r t s t o r y
itself.
7 e l l s , i n f a c t , f o r t h e basic s t x c t u r e of The Croquet Player, r e t u r n s
t o h i s e a r l i e s t f o m s of f i c t i o n , and except perhaps f o r a loosening of t h e
n a r r a t i v e i n t h e f i n a l chapter, T h e I n t o l e r a b l e Ps;rchiatristtl, achieves a
unique compactness and an imaginative i n t e n s i t y .
David Garnett rornarks,
"I was g e a t l ; . novcd by i t and I put i t r ~ i t ht h e b e s t things t n a t 3.G.
wrote.
ever
Certainly, i n t n e context of t h e ' t h i r t i e s , t i e 'hythfl of
Cainniarsh, a s c l t-an::st
expressed through f a b l e , 173 leaves h i s other w r i t i n g s
of t h i s decade f a r behind.
The parable V e i l s constructs i n The Brothers
(1936), another
v a r i a t i o n on t h e Cain myth, s e t i n an imaginary country playing out t h e a c t u a l
drama of tho Spanish Civil War, i s s t i l t e d with discussion cind argument between
t h e extreme l e f t and tho extreme ri&t,17' and y e t buoyed paradoxioally with
what one reviower c a l l o d "tho Great Ruritanian t r a d i t i o n of cc-incidence. ,1175
The brothers, Batzcl and Bolaris, r o a l i o e they should be f i g h t i n g f o r
higher common p r i n c i p l e s i n s t e a d of f o r polasised f a c t i o n s , but they
r e a l i s e too l a t e , and they p e r i s h i n t h e i r own c o n f l i c t , with t h e i r dreamed,
plans out of s i g h t , l o s t i n the smoke.
of s i g h t , i s t h a t man remains
And t h e reason t h e f u t u r e i s out
"...an untrained,
unquickened animal; animal
s t i l l ; a -eedy,
cowardly animal whose only l o y a l t y i s a disguised
IJarcissism.
The s t o r y has some things t o commend it,177 but t h e
u l t i m a t e weakness of t h i s r a t h e r more s p e c i f i c a l l y p o l i t i c a l "experiment i n
statement" is pinpointed w e l l here by xho ITew Statesman and Nation reviewer:
'Tut t h e t r u t h about f a b l e s of t h i s kind i s t h a t they exceed t h e limits of
a philosophical d i s s e r t a t i o n , and f a l l s h o r t of successful f i c t i o n . 1 , ~ 7 ~
The Canford V i s i t a t i o n (1937), another s h o r t work, i s a s a t i r e on
higher education, of t h e kind represented ( f o r V e l l s ) by B r i t a i n ' s two
senior universities.
+
Iiowever, t h e s a t i r e ranges wide
- p r e d i c t a b l y - and
somewhat e r r a t i c a l l y , bringing down everything i n s i g h t from student
p o l i t i c a l p a r t i c i p a t i o n t o ToS. E l i o t .
There i s l i t t l e t o t a l impact.
Only
i n t h e p r e d i c t i o n of a coming catastrophe f o r t h e 'uneducated' human race,
as "the burning rubbish of worlds t h a t n i & t have
n a r r a t i v e r e a l l y work toward a s i n g l e purpose.
does t h e
The use of a 'cosmic voice1
suggests t h e need f o r e x t e r n a l help t o eGucate and save mankind, a theme
which is developed i n t h e important Star-%,?otten of the same year, a
f a n t a s y t o be r e f e r r e d t o b r i e f l y i n a concluding commentary.
With h i s fill length f i c t i o n of t h i s period t h e r e i s l i t t l e t o
remark upon of any significance, save t o draw a t t e n t i o n t o Wells's continued
reduction o f t h e f a s c i s t m e n t a l i t y i n The Holy Terror (1939), an occasionally
e f f e c t i v e lifo-study of a world d i c t a t o y , a product of t h e home shores.
The CToquet Player remains a s i n g u l a r work.
It i s not easy t o be
exact about i t s i n s p i r a t i o n , nor about i l o l l s l s p o l i t i c a l stand at t h e time,
o t h e r than t o a c l a o w l e d ~ eh i s hatred of fascism.
The d a t e of i t s
appearance i s mdoubtedly a key, as Armand P i e r h a l made c l e a r when he
introduced t h e book t o French readersr
r6fare
ItDat6e k dessein, de 1936, e l l e - s e
h c e t t e f u r e u r qui semblo s ' h r o empar60 de n o t r e monde e t qui r i s q u e
David Garnett, who s a w t h e manuscript
de l a pre'cipiter d a m llab?meett
and took i t t o Chatto and Windus on l i o l l s l s behalf, f e l t s u r e t h a t i t w a s
"inspired by t h e horror which R.G.
f e l t f o r what was going on
i n Germany
under t h e ~ a z i s . @ ~ k g a r l i t s k i , on t h e o t h e r hand, i s assured of i t s
relevance t o t h e Spanish c o n f l i c t t
"?%is work, w r i t t e n i n t n e years of t h e
l?ells
Spanish C i v i l T.Ta.r, l a i d bare t h e cowardly p o l i c y of non-intervention.
appealed t o a l l honest people t o f i g h t t h e g & o s t s of Cainls swamp1
-
Spain i s r e f e r r e d t o once
t h e barbarism of Fascism and
when Finchatton r e c a l l s h i s interview with LIortover, t h e high An&icml
p r i e s t , when the l a t t e r proclaimed h i s f i e r c e i n t e n t i o n of overconing t h e
e v i l s of t h e Refornstionr
and i n t h a t i n s t a n t I understood why men a r e
k i l l e d i n Belfast, Liverpool and Spain."
(55)
The vicious r e l i g i o u s and
p o l i t i c a l battleground of Spain i s brought i n t o t h e same context as t h e
more obscure scenes of theological r i v a l r y , Belfast and Liverpool.
Tlie
e s s e n t i a l problem i s not Spain's alono, and t h e degree of t h e s t r i f e t h e r e
must not obscure o t h e r c o n f l i c t s nor t h e i d e n t i c a l causes l y i n g benoatn
these c o n f l i c t s .
all
Frobisher, the croquet player, cannot s e e t h e connection
between t h e s e t h r e e geographical names and t n e Gainmarsh haunting, and i t i s
h i s kind of llnon-ii~tervention"
ness t o f a c e r o a l i l y
-- an ignorance,
- which Tilells
an apathy, an unprepared-
i s h i t t i n g a t , r a t h e r than any national
p o l i c y he may o r may not f i n d f a u l t with.
The u c l y s p e c t r e of European
fascism operating i n various places and under various names undoubtedly
provides an almost d e f i n i t i v e v i s i o n f o r !lells, and i t i s a v i s i o n which
has t o be explained i n terms of a human, not a mere p o l i t i c a l , condition,
and of t h e 0 r i ~ i . nof~ t h a t condition; thus i t i s anthropological i n essence.
The f i r s t of t h e f o u r chapters, V h e Croquet Player Introduces
Himself", f o l l o w i ~a b r i e f mention of t h e two people he has been t a l l r i q t o ,
and t h e 'ghost' s t o r y r e l a t e d t o him, demonstrates c l e a r l y enough t h e 'oackgrounc t o and t h e nature of a r e p r e s e n t a t i v e 'non-interveners, probably t h e
most severely l i m i t e d of a l l l t e l l s ' s n a r r a t o r s .
9e describes himself as
"having had an exceptionally uneventful l i f e u (12), m i s s i n g t h e experience
of t h e Great !tar (which a t l e a s t Slettsrrorthy did n o t ) , thus placing himself
i n a generation unaware of t h e r e a l i t y of a p a s t w a r , and by implication
ignorant o f tho p o s s i b i l i t i e s of futum s t r i f e .
So h a d does Yells t r y t o
put everything which i s w r o w i n t o t h i s n a r r a t o r , t h a t t h e l a t t e r seens t o
show at times an almost u n c h a r a c t e r i s t i c self-awareness i n revealing t h e s e
wedmesses; "I have l e d a l i f e l a r g e l y of negatives and avoidances.
I
have been t r a i n e d t o keep calm and c i v i l and not r e a c t e x c i t e d l y t o
surprises.
And above a l l t o regard only ordinary decent e v e q d a y t h i n p
seriously."
(12)
and
...
And yet t h e voice
ineffective w i l l "
- for
t h e "floatin;: cream of hwnanity",
somehow convincing
the voico
is t h a t
- the
" s o f t hancls
of a generation, p a r t of
(14) those used t o m a t e r i a l s e c u r i t y , and
i s i n a sense choric i n i t s function, as w e l l as f u l f i l l i n g t h e b a r e s t of
i n d i v i d u a l r o l e s , t h a t of t h e l i s t e n e r rrho scarcely
understands, and i s not
s t i n u l a t o d t o ask any questions p~irposoi'llllyand c o n s i s t e n t l y himself.
IIavil?~.identified himself
- and Tlclls having i d e n t i f i e d t h e kind
- tho
of audience he i s t q i n g t o reach
n a r r a t o r s l i p s i n t o t h e backpound
and prepares t o ~ e l a t oh i s f i r s t e n c o u n t o ~ ,with Dr. Finchatton, i n t h e
relaxed l t v e ~ l o u t hand s o l t zor" world of Los Xoupets.
"Tho IIa.untin; Pear i n C a i m m s h " i s t h e core of t h e ghost s t o r y ,
and a d e s c r i p t i v e a d atmospheric t o u r de force.
It i s t h i s chapter which
i n i t s e l f i s a s h o r t s t o r y of t j ~ i c a ls t r u c t u r e :
two men, one t n e n a r r a t o r ,
e x a g e i n conversation ( i n a post-prandial kind of s i t u a t i o n ) , and t h e
second man f o r m s h i s particular
n a r r a t i o n on t h e a t t e n t i o n of t h e
n a r r a t o r , who a f t e r a b r i e f d e s c r i p t i o n of t h i s i n t e r l o c u t o r , allows t h e
l a t t e r ' s n a r r a t i v e t o c o n s t i t u t e t h e s t o r y from t h i s p o i n t f o r t h , w i t h
l i t t l e i n t e r r u p t i o n . 183
D r . P i n c h a t t o n t s account of h i s e a r l y breakdown and r e t i r e n e n t
from c i t y h o s p i t a l r ~ o r kr e c a l l s t h e i n a b i l i t y of Blettsworthy t o cope w i t h
t h e f a c t of a harsh worlds
"A time came when t h e morning paper could upset
(26)
me s o as t o s p o i l ny work f o r tho day."
He runs away t o the v i l l a g e of
Cailmarsh, Sccmsa ho cannot f a c e tho 1;2odern world, which speaks t o hin i n
t e r n s or" % a f t an? % o r n b i n ~ ~and
~ , t h i n k s t h a t country peace w i l l e f f e c t a
cure:
''1 would have laughed i f you had t o l d me t h a t I had cone i n t o a
haunted land.tt (27)
Xe has as l i t t l e hope as 3 l e t t s w o r t h y of escape.
Cainnush was n o t , he r e l a t o s , t h e most l i k e l y area f o r any psychic
disturbance t o t a b placo, and yot
atmosphere perhaps
- translucent,
"...
i t i s i n j u s t such a f l a t , s t i l l
gentle-coloured
- that
thixs l y i q
be lot^ t h e s u r f a c e , t h i n p a l t o g e t h e r hidc?cn i n more e v e n t f u l and c o l o u r f u l
surrountlirxp., crccp on our perceptions
...
.It
(23)
The p l a c e has a s t r w e
s t i l l n e s s , but f o r "tilo sound of t h e srind and tho s e a
~~
breathing i n i t s s l c ~ p .(30)
...
l i k e t h e world
The sane i n a z c s fount? i n I1o-rea.u a r e
repeated here w i t h t h e same connotations, 'out as V a g a says, this i s on a
S t o r i e s of murder and f r a t r i c i d e
v i l l a g e ' s name i s r e a d i l y apparent
-- co:no
- the
s i m f i c a n c e of t h e
t o l i g h t , and t h e f i r s t
personal r e a c t i o n s t o t h e l o c a l atmosphere, Finchatton r e c o r d s , "insomniau
and " e v i l dream".
Xis d e s c r i p t i o n s a r e Poesque i n t h e i r i n s i n u a t i n g sonse
of a man trappod i n awful r e a l i t y :
?car p u ~ s u e dme out of those itrem.s. The
n i ~ h ; n a r e q u a l i t y 'nun,- about ne and could not
be shaken o f f . 1: vas x.!T~:ca c l s t i l l dreamins.
;:ever have I seen suc5 sinisJ;er s k i e s as I d i d
o n .those n i g h t excursions. I f e l t such a dread
of u n f m i l i a r shcldm~sa s I had not known even
i n childhood. 'There wcrc times on those
nocturnal d r i v e s when I could have shouted aloud
f o r da;rlil;ht as a man s u f f o c a t i n g i n a closed
chanbcr n i g h t shout f o r air. (32)
';he v i l l a g e r s b e d n t o show s i g n s of a sinilar persecution; t h e r e i s t h e o l d
woman who f l u n g t h e clock a t "dreadful nothingness1f (35) and t h e r e i s t h e
fanner who b l a s t e d h i s own scarecrow t o b i t s with h i s shot-,we
No one goes
out a f t e r sundown.
F e c l i n ~ , "not simply exposed t o i n c a l c u l a b l e e v i l e , but
threatened by thcmIf
(37), Finchatton seeks an explanation of t L i s apparent
c o l l e c t i v e psychosis from Rawdon, t h e o l d v i c a r .
superbly conccivet?.
and g e t t i n g worse.
...
The v i c a r speaks of
"...
This interview i s
something
- w r o q - *won(;.
S o n o t h i w e v i l t f f (37) and a l l tho while t h e evidence of
h i s grotosquo a20 and t h e manner of t ' n o i ~huddled f u r t i v e conversation,
"like men who cover i n a cavott (40), su;.sest
t h e 'explanationt of t h e t e r r o r confirmst
p h y s i c a l l y t h e atavism which
"1 remember those opening trordo
very p l a i n l y an6 h i s S l c a r y old eyes and t h c bad tooth i n h i 3 s a ~ c i n , -mouth.
He came anti s a t dorm q u i t e c l o s e t o me with ono l o w bony hand cuppin;: his
h a i r y ear.
It
(37 )
The e v i l he i d e n t i f i e s as "below the surface
....
underpound"
( 4 0 ) ~t h e lecacy of n primeval p a s t , disturbed and unearthed by t h e plou*
and by archeologists, stones of "abominablc shapestt (41), weapons and
"murder stonestt (42).
Tho v i c a r beconcs h y s t e r i c a l and launches i n t o a
d i a t r i b e a g a i n s t high-church blasphemy, judginll; t h e c o l l e c t i v e obsession t o
be "the punislment of Cainett (43)
A t t h i s point, where an ctC;e of cave-men
and e x t i n c t c r e a t u r e s i s mixed with Old Tcstanent h i s t o r y , Finchatton
remembers he w a s forced t o p r o t e s t t h e d i s t o r t i o n , y e t t h e r e was an
unanswered question1
It&t
i t was t h e su,-,restion t h a t t h i s haunting somethirq
..."(45)
was something renote, archaic, b e s t i a l ,
Finchatton r e t u r n s home from t h i s interview, and h i s f e a r s r o t u r n
anew.
Tnis i s why
I t i t
i s not an ordinary ghost s t o r y u ; tho i d e n t i t y of tho
ghost i s the i d e n t i t y of man's ancestry, and t h e i d e a i s too novel and too
macabre t o bear.
they seer
Tho i n f e c t i o n grows, and h i s eyes even metamorphose rihat
V h e r e was an o l d man bending dorm i n a d i t c h d o i w something t o
a f a l l e n sheep and he became a hunched, bent, and heavy-jawed savage." (46)
The tk,ligna,nt presencett (47 ) of t h e marshes i s everywhere.
It i s Prendickls
perspective on his r e t u r n t o c i v i l i a n t i o n , but r n a w f i e d ten-fold,
U
/ i n s p i r e d by no l e w t h y i s o l a t i o n from t h e world of men. f( A(Uf
m!
a,nd
Hero zho n a r r a t i v e breaks; tho proposition has been s e t w i t h i n
t h i s v i v i d metaphor and t h e whole ima;finative s t r u c t u r e tightened t o an
almost unbearable pitch.
Vith a b r i o f
-- and uncannily unreal
t o t h e h o t e l t e r r a c e , ' k i t h everything bri:;ht
- return
and clear and d e f i n i t e u (51),
t h e doctor continues h i s s t o r y with "The Sliull i n t h e I I u s e ~ l ~ ~ .
Before he visits t h e & s t f o l k museum Finchatton s e e s t h e
Reverend Xortover, tho Anglican whom t h e e l d e r l y vicar had regarded as an
enemy opposed t o tho s t r u g g l i n g f o r c e s of coed. iiortover o f f e r s d i f f e r e n t
reasons f o r t h e phenomonon of tho marshes, seeing only "diabolic p o s ~ o s s i o n ~ ~ ,
d e v i l s which have t o be exorcized.
Xhatever the theological i n t e r p r e t a t i o n ,
t h e doctor a t l e a s t recognizes common s p p t o m s , i n t h e s e p r i e s t s , i n t h e
v i l l a g e r s , and himself -- "endemic panicu.
I n a f i n a l a t t e n p t t o wrest a
r a t i o n a l explanation f o r t h i s nightmare, E n c h a t t o n v i s i t s t h e museum and
i t s curator.
k p r i z e e x h i b i t , proudly displayed, i s t h e almost complete
skeleton of t h e a n c e s t r a l ape.
The doctor n o t i c e s "the s n a r l i n g p i n of
its upper jaw and t h c shadowy v i t a l i t y t h a t s t i l l lurked i n t h e caverns
whence i t s eyes had once g l a r e d upon t h e rrorld."
(59) Even t h e earnest
archeologist knows o f t h e m p t e r y of Cainmarsh, a d what i s more b e l i e v e s i n
i t , seeing a metaphysical t r u t h hidden i n t h e bones and remains he has
collected.
Ee describes t h e v i c a r ' s and t h e p r i e s t ' s i n s t i n c t i v e though
u n s c i e n t i f i c grasp of t h i s t r u t h , and rephrases t h e problem;
'Tie have broken
t h e frame of t h e present and t h e p a s t , t h e l o w black p a s t of f e a r and h a t e
t h a t our grandfathers never knew o f , never suspected, is pouring back upon
us.
The aniroal f e a s again and t h e animal r w e s w i n and t h e o l d f a i t h s no
l o w e r r e s t r a i n it.
have returned .lf (64)
Tho cave man, t h e a n c e s t r a l ape, t h e a n c e s t r a l brute,
I
I
The prosonce ha3 t o be fought, but Finchatton's last day and n i g h t
i n Cainmarsh d i s a b l e him almost entirely.
A savagely beaten dog, and f i n a l l y
t h e breakdown of Iiaridon t h e v i c a r and h i s attempted muyder of h i s wife,
i n s p i r e one last apocalyptic drear,, a v i s i o n of t h e "primordial AdarnitoI1,
which makes t h e unbreakable connection between t h e v o r l d of 1936 and t h e preh i s t o r i c p a s t buried bcnoath t h a t worldla surface:
It bocame a s v a s t as a c l i f f , a mountainous
....
s k u l l i n which t h e o r b i t s and h o l l m s of t h e
j a r werc huge caves
I n t h e foreground
I sair h i s innuncrablo (Iescendants, swarming
l i k e a n t s , swarns of 'numan b e i n ~ sl s a r f i n g t o
and f r o , rnaking h e l p l e s s g e s t u r e s of submission
o r deference, resistin(; an overpowerin; impulse
t o Lhrov thenselves under h i s all-devourin5
shadow. P r e s e n t l y theso m m s began t o f a l l
i n t o l i n e s and columns, were c l d i n uniforms,
forned up and bef;an marching and t r o t t i n g
towards t h e black shado~rsunder those worn and
r u s t - s t a i n e d t e e t h . *on which darkness t h e r e
p r e s e n t l y oozed something
something winding
and t r i c k l i n g , and something t h a t m a n i f e s t l y
t a s t e d very agreeable t o him. 3lood. (69-70)
-
Cainmarsh
- tine world - i s
d e s t r u c t i o n , s a c r i f i c e and death.
defined.
I:Iants d u a l i t y l e a d s t o s e l f -
Finchatton t a k e s t h e advice of t h e museum
c u r a t o r , and seeks t h e h e l p o f a mental s p e c i a l i s t
Blettsworthy had done
- a Dr.
- as Prendick
and
Norbert who has a c l i n i c at Les Xoupets and
t h u s t h e n a r r a t i v e r e t u r n s t o t h e franeworlc of t h e whole s t o r y .
The remainder c o n s i s t s of an i n i t i a l encounter w i t h Dr. Xorbert,
a break u n t i l tho next day, and a f i n a l harangue of t h e croquet p l a y e r b y
IJorbert.
The move from metaphor t o d i s c o u r s e is again apparent, and had t h e
e f f e c t of tho o r i z i n a l n a r r a t i v e i m e r s i o n i n tho Cainmarsh nightmare
not been so tinoro@
and s o c o n v i n c i ~ l yd e l i n e a t e d , t h e e f f e c t of t h e
netaphor would d i o s i p a t e a l t o g e t h e r i n t h i s f i n a l chapter, "The I n t o l e r a b l o P s y c h i a t r i s t".
Tho croquot p l a y e r ' s imagination i s indeed hold 5 y tho s t o r y he
has heard; ho clotlios t h e slcull i n a Ifphan-Lon l i p
blood-shot
exos and b e e t l i n g brows (81)
h i s croquet l o s e s sone of i t s s t y l e .
....
...
dark aggressive
a brutish revenant",
(82) and
IIowever, he i s not t o be e n t i r e l y
l i f t e d f'rom tho e s s e n t i a l apa.thy of h i s kind of world, t h e s o r t of world
which
- as Dr.
Xorbert exacts from him i n confession
-- r a t e s
The Tines
crossword and ill0 s p o r t s columns abovo "-the t h i r q s t h a t have made
Finchatton madn. (85)
3r. Norbert reduces the r e a l i t y of Cainmarsh t o an hallucination,
but draws t h e same lessons:
'%an i s s t i l l what he was.
Invincibly bestial,
envious, malicious, t ~ ~ e d y ;Ian,
.
S i r , uniasked and d i s i l l u s i o n e d , is t h e
same f e a r i n c , snazling, fightin;. beast he was a iiunrired thousand years a20
....
J u s t a c ~ v enan, more o r l e s s t r a i n e d .
no r e a l escapeOtf(89)
There has been no r e a l change,
And so he raves on, -victimizin~;t h e croquet player
with h i s fevered oratory, p r o c l a i m i q personal r e s p o n s i b i l i t y f o r everyone
t o s t r i v e f o r , "that t r u e c i v i l i z a t i o n , t h a t d i s c i p l i n e d c i v i l i z a t i o n , that
has never y e t been achieved.
means you!
I say ii t o
you!
Victim o r Vigilante.
&!
....If
And that, n y f r i e n d ,
(95)
But Ire havc learned t h a t ITorbert i s i n f e c t e d too, and t h a t he i s
display in^ somethin, approaching the kind of panic and aggressive h y s t e r i a
t h a t Finchatton rritnossed.
There i s t h e d i s t i n c t p o s s i b i l i t y t h a t !:ells,
as
i n the l i g h t e r s a t i r i c lJ1 Aboard f o r I c c a z i z (1940), i s indulging i n s e l f parody.
incivive.
I n A l l Abo_ard, with IJells as iTodl h i i l o c k , t h i s i s g e n t l e yet
zero, with t h e chazacter of i)r. Xorbort, the self-parody is bolder,
more self-lacoratin;. and cynical.
Xqar i d o n t i f i e s Norbert as a l l e l l s ' s
mouthpiece, but i n t h i s c a s e t h e r e may be another example of what David Lo&@
i u e n t i f i e d i n -Tono-3.mr;clylr
1"J'ono-3un~
i o not t h e only one of h i s
imaginative works which d i s t u r b i n ~ l yqucs-lions t h e meliorisn of h i s p u b l i c
.
s e l f 1,184
romftx-1cs: Vhey have t o rack
Of i.Tollsls c h a r a c t e r s lh.p.rlitsl.:i
t h e i r brains thmsclvcs.
They hazard Luozsos, sometimes they guess
c o r r e c t l y , somotines not, but they cone t o r e a l knowledge only throuzh t h e i r
own experience.
11185
Both Prendick and Dlottsworthy s t r i v e f a r toward t h i s
knowledge with t h c i r shatterin,- experience, but a f t e r only a f a i n t spark
of recognition tho croquet player s t o p s ,yessin:
and t r y i n g t o learn.
Eis
attempt t o f a c e r e a l i t y i s feeble, and ho eventually gives up, p r e f e r r i n z
t o keep h i s croquet appointments.
harsh an attack.
,Fls
Yet h i s weakness cannot c o m under too
he s l i p s back i n t o h i s own ethos of croquet hoops,
t e n n i s lawns, maiden aunts, and crossvord puzzles, s o the mental s p e c i a l i s t
r a n t s on i n t o a f u t u r e which, represented by t h e p o l a r i t y "Victim, Vigilanto",
o f f e r s no s a n i t y o r r e a l s e c u r i t y e i t h e r .
As Darid Garnett defines V e l l s s s vision:
f a r t h e r than other men.
He cared
"He saw quicker ane
f o r mankind and he w a s i n t e n s e l y
aware of t h e speed with which man i s i n c r e a s i n g h i s powers over nature, and
aware t h a t whilo more i n t e l l i g e n c e i s u r p m t l y needed, t h e cave man i s i n our
midst
, unchanged
and perhaps unchangeable.
I'
186
The i d e a of "unchangeable" human nature l e d \Tolls t o r e c a s t t h e
lfartian invasion of 1898 i n Star-Reco"Uen (1937), sub-titled "A Biolo@cal
FantasiaH.
Tilo : h r t i a n s a r e now N t u t o r s l l , not Minvaders'l, i n an e a r l i e r ,
behind t h e p1a;rful 3 i b l i c a l parody i n naming t h e parents of the c e n t r a l
'star-begotten'
Joaoph and r a y , behind t n e s a t i r e of contemporary affairs;
l i e s what Fie X a r SJ~atosnanand r a t i o n c a l l e d "the most mature of h i s
and i Ls admisoion of t h a t tl;~aceleos d r i f t towards a dead
end", t h e f a i l u r o of t h e evolutionary process i n t h e human species on tinis
Joseph Davis, a roman-tic h i s t o ~ i a nof t h e old school, i s forced by
planet.
opus, "The Grand Parade of
t h e pressure of h i s own doubt t o abandon h i s
- a symbolic
Rumanity"
farewell.
Professor Ibppel d e f i n e s f a i l i w c i v i l i s -
a t i o n , t h e stalemate s i t u a t i o n where n e i t h e r the Norberts nor t h e croquet
player can e f f e c t a rescue, i n these t e r n s ;
....
188
brutality
"...war,
p e r v a d i w and i n c r e a s i n g
t h e e n t i r e dominance of t h e v i o l e n t , common mind, t h e base
mind. d 8 9
Vhere t h e world cannot help i t s e l f , evolution i s r e i n s p i r e d by
I v h t i a n cosmic influence.
lis Ydppel explains;
":hat I am t a l k i n g about i s
not a revolution; i t i s a new kind of behaviour; i t i s day-break. t1190 !here
- and t h i s echoes I:k. Preemby's symbolic experience i n Christina
Alberta's Father - "a l u n a t i c asylum cro~rdedwith p a t i e n t s prevented from
t h e world i s
knowledge and a f r a i d t o go
t h e only answer is e x t r a - t e r r e s t r i a l a i d ,
o r "planetary psycho-therapeutics. ,1192
The dark f o r c e s of Xoreau r e c e i v e a new d e f i n i t i o n .
!
'Phe danger and
I
I
t h e t h r e a t , t h e pursuing s p e c t r e of t h e p a s t , a l l dominate t h e present hman
condition.
The Second B ~ r l dV a r which broke two years l a t e r discouraged him
t o t h e p o i n t of cuttin;. away a l l literazy
elaboration upon this f i n a l state-
ment, and i n 1945 t n e r e i s very l i t t l e nore he can s a y than this;
The w r i t e r i s convinced t h a t t h e r e i s no way
out o r round o r through t h e impasse. It i s
t h e end. 193
m u c a t i o n has f a i l e d .
There has been no miracle.
I
I
-
*Tne pre-historical t a l e appeared s e r i a l i s e d i n t h e I d l e r , :hg
S e p t e x b x , 1897, an2 t h e s t o r y of t h e f u t u r e i n t h e P a l l :!all ::ar;azine,
i n t h e sax~cy e a . :lore than once, i n the sequel, t h e stone x e i s
r e c a l l e d , and by implication, n a n t s profless c r i t i c a l l y reviewed:
" L i t t l e b e a s t s t h a t snapped and snarled, s m p p i w and snarling,
s n a p p i x and snarl in^, generation a f t e r generationbtl The Short
S t o r i e s of R.G. 17ells (London, 1952), @. 1927, p. 384.
Christmas Xumber, 1894.
l h n e l y t ttlTo &ropean i s known t o have seen a l i v e Aepyornis, with
t h e doubtful exception of blacer, who v i s i t e d Idadagascar in.1745."
Short S t o r i e s , p. 303.
As h i s p e r s o n a l i t y emerges through h i s narration, he may be compared
with "the sunburnt mantt who t e l l s h i s s t o r y i n ItJimny Goggles t h e
God" (1898), another ' c i v i l i s e d ' westerner who t a n g l e s with a
'primitivet culture.
3utcher r e c a l l s h i s admiration f o r t h e v i s i o n of t h e swamp under tine
a beautif'ul
sunsets l f A l l black and blood-red i t was, i n s t r e a k s
s i g h t . And up 'oeyond t h e land r o s e grey and hazy t o the h i l l s , and
t h e sky behind them red, l i k e a furnace mouth.It Snort Stories, 262-3.
-
Subsequent references t o t h i s and o t h e r s h o r t s t o r i e s w i l l be given
parenthetically.
The episode i n Tono-3unw r e f e r r e d t o here demands more d e t a i l e d
discussion. See t h e appendix.
I n r e p l y t o Anthony Jackson's a s t i c l o , ltScience and Literaturet1,
The Tines Lit c r a r y Supplement ( ~ u 27,
l ~1967 ) where Jackson r e f e r r e d
h a s t i l y t o Tlellss s ttnaive optimisntt, 3rim A l l d i s had t h i s t o say;
Illhen i n h i s most jocular s h o r t s t o r i e s ( " ~ e ~ ~ o r Ins li asn d t t f o r
The Times
exanple) Yells was more i r o n i c a l t h m casual. c r i t i c s allow."
L i t e r a r y Supplement u up st 3, l967), 707.
,
Yeekl:;
Sun L i t e r a r y Suppleaent
, 3ecember
1, 1895.
The murder of b u t by Horrocks i n V n e Cone" (1895), a crime of
jealousy and p i t i l e s s savagery, played out a g a i n s t a symbolic background oZ r o a r i n s b l a s t furnaces, nay be considered i n t h e same
l i g h t . =c t r u e h o r r o r of both s t o r i e s i s i n t h e timelessness of
t h e a c t s ; t h e y have t h e q u a l i t y of r i t u a l .
F i r s t published as "The G r i s l y Folk and t h e i r War w i t h Men1',
S t o r . y t e l l c r ;hy:azine, April, 1921.
Henkin, pp. 176-7.
The Hot Gates, pp. 61-70.
See G01ciin:~s q u o t a t i o n from Y e l l s l s Outline prefacing h i s own novel,
Tne I n h e r i t o r s . The d i f f e r e n c e i n vimrpoint becomes c l e a r enough
t h a t 7 e l l s r e g a r d s homo sapiens as t h e necessary successor t o t h e
savage neanderthal, and G o l d i w s e e s t h e former as b r i n g i n g c o r r u p t i o n
and c a s t i n g out innocence
but, perhaps more important, t h e b a s i c
s i m i l a r i t y has a l r e a d y been pointed o u t w i t h r e f e r e n c e t o Wagarts
analysis.
-
-
The Croquet Player ( ~ e wYork, 1937), p . 63.
t h i s t e x t w i l l be given p a r e n t h e t i c a l l y .
Subsequent r e f e r e n c e s t o
"Some V r i t e r s I have knowna Galsworthy, F o r s t e r , Irloore, and
Texas Quarterly, vol. 4, no. 3 (1961), 202.
As Dr. Norbert e x p l a i n s F i n c h a t t o n 1 s l i l l n e s s l r "He i s troubled
beyond reason by c e r t a i n t h i n g s and t h e only way i n which he can
express them even t o himself i s by a fable." (pp. 8 3 - 8 ~ l ) ~
This is eiphasised even more i n t h e t i t l e of t h e F'rench t r a n s l a t i o n
by Armand P i e r h a l , Fr\ere Rouge e t Frkre Slanc. The novel i s introduced
t o French r e a d e r s by blartine Renier i n Les Annales ( ~ u g u s t25, 1938),
201-5.
Ronald Lowin, London I:Iercurx, 38 ( ~ l m c h1938),
555.
The Brothers ( B ~ WYork, 1938), p . 61.
There is. a memorable demonstration of s a t i r i c power i n t h e d e l i n e a t i o n
of t h r e e representative i n f l u e n c e s i n t h i s c i v i l s t r u g g l e ; Istom,
''the Big IIoney of t h e conspirators", t h e Duke o f Carnavera Credora,
and Faylc, t h e p r i e s t .
The Camford V i s i t a t i o n (London,
Annales ( ~ u n e10,
1937), p. 68.
1937), 578.
The n a r r a t i v e technique of llTho Triumphs of a TaxidermistI1
"A Deal i n Ostriches" (1894), and "The Flying Ikn1' (1893).
(1894),
K a t p r l i t s k i , pp. 66-7.
V.S.
P r i t c h e t t , Wew Statesman and Nation ( ~ u n e19,
Star-Be,yotten ( ~ e wYork,
Ibid.,
p. 166.
Ibid.,
p . 184.
1937), p. 164.
1937), 1007.
192
George Roppen, i n ~ o l u t i o nand P o e t i c Belief: A Study i n Some
Victorian and ;Iodern ! l r i t e r ~ , i s very i l l u m i n a t i n g i n h i s commentary
on t h i s work. I n i t i a l l y , harevcr, h i s renarks on Shaw provide a
u s e f u l lead i n t o an understantiin;; of t h e theme; ttShaw's apotheosis
of man
represents an i d o a l which i s not so much a f u l f i l l m e n t
of human m t u r o as a l i b e r a t i o n from i t
397). This is what
Volls i s movinc towards i n St=-Secotten.
As Roppen says a t a l a t e r
p o i n t , i t i s tt...not a Utopia, but, something i n t h e manner of t h e
middle plays of Back t o I:ethuselahtt. (p. 440) The Ancient's v i s i o n
of a t h e when t h e r e a r e Itno people, only thoughttt, does not seem
v e r y f a r removed.
...
."
'?Jells ceases t o i n s i s t on e t h i c a l e f f o r t t t , concludes Roppen, and
q u e r i e s with some j u s t i f i c a t i o n :
Itperhaps i t amounts t o a r e j e c t i o n
of t h e hmm baing."
442)
193
-, a n d a t t h e 2nd of Its Tether ondo don, l945), p. 4. See a l s o
':he Las-k kolcs of 1i.G. ! J e l l s t T11e %,,v Turninr:: and Xind a t t h e
2nd
of I t s Tether
(London, 1968), a p u b l i c a t i o n of t h o H.G. l!ells
-- - - Society, e d i t e d , w i t h an i n t r o d u c t i o n and appendix,- by G.P. Wells.
The tw6-parts of Mind a t t h e Xnd of I t s ether a r e placed here f o r
t h e first time i n c o r r e c t chronological order thereby g i v i n g a
c l e a r e r i d e a of t h e last s t a g e s o f - b l e l l s l s thought. 1n t h e I n t r o d u c t i o n , G.P. Tlells i s concerned t o d i s p u t e t h e "alleged chance
of h e a r t " (p. 7 ) and t o s t r e s s t h a t h i s f a t h e r ' s s p i r i t never broke
u t t e r l y . EIarever, he does not attempt t o g l o s s over h i s f a t h e r ' s
continued dread of mankind's f a i l u r e .
e.
--
-
--
-
3.
Conclusion
This study has concentrated s e l e c t i v e l y on Wells's f a n t a s i e s , and
with t h e main t e x t s chosen, has daqonstrated a c e r t a i n thematic c o n t i n u i t y
over t h e whole period of h i s writiw career.
I n these, a l l e g o r y and myth
a r e employed t o b r i n g i n t o focus t h e r e a l i t y of man's i n s t i n c t u a l l i f e , and
t h i s r e a l i t y may be dramatised i n t h e i s o l a t e d environment o f the i s l a n d ,
e i t h e r a ' r e a l ' l o c a t i o n as i n Xoreau o r a mental landscape as i n Blettsworthy,
o r a niehtmare t e r r i t o r y such as t h e v i l l a g e of Cainmarsh i n The Croquet
Player.
A t i t s most v i v i d and memorable, t h e theme of man's shadow s i d e ,
h i s i r r e f u t a b l e o r i g i n s i n t h e animal world, receives d e f i n i t i o n i n writings
of this kind.
Here man's anthropological p a s t haunts t h e present, o f t e n
breaking "the frame of t h e presentss dramatically, and t u r n s t h e r e a l ,
contemporary world upside down, undercutting t h e concepts of progress and
virtue.
The o t h e r end of t h e "spectrum of i n s t i n c t u a l l i f e " , where s o c i a l
man, r a t h e r than man as an anthropological exemplum, f i g h t s f o r but fails t o
win a b e t t e r world f o r mankind, i s represented by t h e group of novels a l r e a d y
l i s t e d i n t h e Introduction.
This w i l l not be t h e place f o r an extended
examination of the p a r t i c u l a r kind of "experiment i n statement" which i s found
i n The Xew Xachiavelli o r The Research iJa,mificent, t o name t h e two most
c e n t r a l examples.
However, at l e a s t p a s s i n e reference t o them w i l l help, i n
t h e s e concluding remarks, t o confirm !.Tells's ever present concern with t h e
dangerous imperatives i n human nature.
I n such works as these they t h r e a t e n
and block t h e pioneer, reformin& s p i r i t of man b a t t l i n g with t h e problems
of a contemporar;r rrorld.
Both lieminzton and Eenham a r e involved i n personal
quests f o r t h e f i n e r l i f e ; Xemington, more s p e c i f i c a l l y a p o l i t i c a l
reformer, and i3en22amYmore of a metaphysician, a remoter f i g u r e whose
thaw-hts
and l i f e h i s t o r y a r o ordered and arranged i n a complex n a r r a t i v e
s t r u c t u r e194 by a f r i e n d and biographer.
Remirgton speaks d i r e c t l y t o us of
a l i f e which "shows no consequence but f a i l u r e , no promise but p a i n
.... ,195
11
and d e s c r i b e s t h e downfall of h i s c a r e e r , and t h e d e s t r u c t i o n of h i s personal
l i f e by u n c o n t r o l l a b l e f o r c e s w i t h i n him.
A personal and p o l i t i c a l dream
becomes a melancholy e x i l e i n I t a l y , and a t times he records t h e g r i m
persuasions of a nightmare which extends beyond h i s own s t o r y of eventual
failure.
The i n d u s t r i a l and c o m e r c i a 1 g i a n t which Eemington t r i e s t o tame
and l e a d forward t o j u s t i c e and a more meaningfil s t r e n g t h , one dark n i g h t
on a walk between Vauxhall and Lambeth 3ridges, suddenly l o s e s i t s immediate
and f u t u r e s i g n i f i c a n c e :
I9'These t h i n g s come, t h e s e t h i n g s go', a
whispering voice urced upon me,
Ias
once t h o s e v a s t unmeaning Saurians whose
bones encumber museums cane and went r e j o i c i n g i n f r u i t l e s s l i v e s
....1,1196
This I s a u r i a n nightmare' i s constant w i t h l.Jells, and i n t h e s t o r y of
Bemingtont s c o l l a p s o we have t h e same i n t i m a t i o n s of p r e - h i s t o r i c emzipla.
And as t h e t h o o r i e s and t h e plans break one by one, we can begin t o s e e how
t h e f l i m s y s t r u c t u r e of " e t h i c a l naturelt i s placed s o p r e c a r i o u s l y over an
unchan$ng
sub-structure of human n a t u r e and human passions.
Remington
provides a v i v i d metaphor f o r t h i s c e n t r a l condition of l i f e when he r e c a l l s
his Cambridge philosophy t e a c h e r , Codaer;
It rras a wonclorful web he 1md spun out of t h a t
quew b i g a c t i v e c h i l d i s h b r a i n t h a t had never
l u s t c d no7 hated nor p i c v c d nor f e a r e d nor
p a s s i o n a t e l y loved,
a web of i r i d e s c e n t threads.
I!e had luminous f i n a l t h e o r i e s about Love and
Bcath and Immortality
And a l l h i s woven
thou;hts l a y a c r o s s my porccption o f t h e r e a l i t y
of t h i n z s , a s f l i m s y and i r r e l e v a n t and c l e v e r
as a dm-wet s p i d e r ' s web
and beautiful, oh!
slung i n t h e morning sunshine a c r o s s t h e b l a c k
mouth of a gun.
197
-
....
-
The i r o n y i s that Rcmington, who "lusts",
"hates",
"@eves",
" f e a r s f 1 and
.
f'loves" i n f u l l measure, i s t o be an o b j e c t l e s s o n i n human v u l n e r a b i l i t y
himself.
Another such vulnerable hero i s Benham i n The Research K w i f i c e n t ,
with p l a n s %omprehensive but e n t i r e l y vape"198
t o e r a d i c a t e Fear,
Indulgence, Jealousy and P r e j u d i c e from t h e human psyche:
Ifonly by t h e
conquest of f o u r natural l i m i t a t i o n s i s t h e a r i s t o c r a t i c l i f e t o be
achieved
.
,llg9
Ruman n o b i l i t y of t h i s kind i s remote i n experience as Benhan
discovers time and time again, and e s p e c i a l l y on h i s journeying i n t h e strifet o r n Balkans.
I n t h e r e a l world of Xacedonia, Benhan's p a r t y discovers
t h e s i l e n c e of a massacred v i l l a g e r
"Tho s u n l i g h t had become t h e l i g h t of
There w a s no a i r but horror.
Across Benhamss s k i e s t h e s e fly-blown
hell.
t r o p h i e s of d e v i l r y dangled mockingly i n t h e p l a c e of God.
but t o g e t away." 201
He had no thou&t
Benham can g e t away from s p e c i f i c geographical l o c a t i o n s ,
but he cannot remove himself from what t h i s scene s p b o l i s e s , however far
h e develops h i s m e l i o r i s t t h e o r i e s , nor can he s e p a r a t e h i s own n a t u r e from
t h e evidence of general human n a t u r e made obvious t o him on numerous
occasions and i n numerous circumstances.
His death, caught absurdly between
- "He s t a r e d i n f r o n t of h i n w i t h
c r o s a ' f i r e i n a labour r i o t i n J o h a n n e s b u r ~
a doubtful expression, l i k e a man who i s going t o be s i c k
....
132
-
b r i n g s t o an end tho 'Qesearch 11ia~;nificent"and, d e s p i t e t h e extent t o
which t h e ttresearchtt i s o u t l i n e d i n t h i s l o w work, t h e h e r o ' s
' s r i s t o c r a c y ' appears such a f u t i l e g e s t u r e , and w i t h t h e d e v i l r y u l t i m a t e l y
triumphant, t h e s t r u g g l e and t h e quest seom s e t , r e t r o s p e c t i v e l y , i n an
almost Nanichean context,
Van Vyck Brooks comments on t h o Wells h e r e of t h i s type, and
i d e n t i f i e s t h e a u t h o r ' s motives and f e r n s , w i t h an a p p l i c a t i o n which supports
t h e view I have been developing of a t h e o r y of m a n ' s i n s t i n c t u a l l i f e ,
i r r e v o c a b l e and p i m a
Xost of h i s heroes ( t y p i f i e d i n T3e Itew
IIachiavelli ) come t o g r i e f through t h e b l i n d
i r r a t i o n a l impulses w i t h i n themselves. And he
i s e q u a l l y haunted by what he has c a l l e d t h e
"Possible Collapse of C i v i l i z a t i o n t t . I do not
h o w horr much t h i s i s due t o an evangelical
childhood, i n which Time, Death and Judgement
a r e always imminent; how much t o an overbalancing
s t u d y of s c i e n c e a t t h e expense of t h e humanities;
hmr much t o an overdeveloped sense of t h e hazard
t h a t l i f e i s ; and how much t o p l a i n f a c t s . 3ut
t h e r e i t is: it has alrrays been a f i x e d convict i o n with Wells t h a t man personal and man s o c i a l
i s dancing on a volcano.
203
-
One can imagine TiJells c r y i n g l i k e Benham, "'Oh,
v i s i o n s 1 Give me back my v i s i o n s 1
Godt
Give me back my
Give me back my v i s i o n s '.I
ltm4
But t h e
v i s i o n s and t h e dreams evaporate, t h e t t s i l e n c e s " do not respond t o t h e
prayer, and a nightmare can r e t u r n i n s t e a d .
The volcano i s always there.
Wells's response t o t h i s Iturgency within" t a k e s forms as v a r i o u s as
The Nsw iJachiavelli and The I s l a n d o f Dr. Xoreau.
His e a r l i e r "experiments
i n statement" as represented by such works as Xoreau a r e i n t r i n s i c a l l y more
rewarding t o readers, as they a r e more c l e a r l y experiments i n metaphorical
statement and a r e timeless i n t h e i r appeal.
Some o f those t e x t s which
r e t a i n t h e metaphor t o a s t r i k i n g extent have been discussed i n t h i s study,
and they demonstrate t h e p e r s i s t e n t energy of N e l l s ' s a l l e g o r i c a l and
mythic techniques.
But t h e trend towards discourse is t h e r e , and t h e reasons
f o r i t , as e x p ~ e s s e dhere by Wells i n t h e Preface t o Seven Famous Rovols
(1934), c u r y a nag&% and distur'oing relevance f o r our generation:
Tno world i n t h e presence of cataclysmic
r e a l i t i o s has no need f o r f r e s h cataclysmic
What
f a n t a s i e s . That game i s over
human invention can p i t i t s e l f q a i n s t t h e
? R e a l i t y has
f a n t a s t i c fun of the F a t e s
taken a l e a f from my book and s e t i t s e l f t o
205
supersede me.
....
...
To r e p e a t Dr. Norbert's a s s e r t i o n :
bIan, S i r , unmasked and d i s i l l u s i o n e d , i s the
same f e a r i n g , snarling, f i g h t i n g beast he
was a hundred thousand years ago. These a r e
no metaphors b y i t a l i c g , S i r . What I t e l l
you i s t h e monstrous r e a l i t y . (89)
194
The I i c s c n s c ~ i i n - n i f i c e n t A t l a n t i c Zdition, v o l e ;CTX (New York,
1926, @ 1915~='
I1ii*nis c o l l e c t i o n of papers was not a
s t o r y , not an essay, not a conffossion, not a diary. It was
no thin^ definable. It went i n t o no conceivable covers. It was
j u s t , ?hit e decided, a p r o l i f e r a t i ~ n . ~The
~ narrator, i n
c o m e n t i n ~on :i'hitels task as an e d i t o r and compiler of 3enham1s
work, draws a t t e n t i o n t o V e l l s l s own problem i n c o n t x o l l i ~t h e
t o t a l construct.
196
Ibid., p. 215.
197
Ibid.,
198
T'ne Research X a q i f i c e n t , p . 267.
199
Ibid., p. 336.
200
l b e violence and puesome evidence of ingrained hunan barbaxity i s
reminiscent a t times of some of t h e bloody sensations encountered on
Candidets t r a v e l s . This is i n response, i n p a r t no doubt, t o t h e
contemporary a c t u a l i t y o f t h e h l k a n k e s , and t h e running s o r e o f
Balkan brigandage.
201
Ibid., p. 260.
p. 88.
Ibid., p . 439. !Phis i s an i r o n i c p a r a l l e l t o t h e e a r l y incident i n
b n h a n l s l i f o , when as a schoolboy he had d e l i b e r a t e l y c h a l l e q c d t h e
t e r r i t o r i a l i t y of a b u l l i n order t o take a s h o r t c u t $ "Then he had
sat on t h e fence and declared h i s i n t e n t i o n of always c r o s s i w t h e
f i e l d so long as t h e b u l l remained there. i-Ie had s a i d t h i s with white
i n t e n s i t y , he had stopped a b r u p t l y i n mid-sentence, and then sudiienly
dropped t o tine ground, clutched t h e fence, s t r u ~ g l e dwith h e a v i w
shoulders, and Seen s i c k e l f (pp. 10-11) Ifis %tout h e a r t t ' and %eak
stonachIt r e f l e c t =sin t h e unease of dual man. His nother had
4), and i n t h i s
r e f e r r e d t o him as " j u s t a l i t t l e unbalanced1'
r e s p e c t hc i s r e p r e s e n t a t i v e of t h e trasedy of man's dual s t a t e .
i%nhtu;lls s t r u g g l e a g a i n s t t h e d e v i l i s h powers of atavism, f'rom t h e
s t r a w e standpoint of the %i,-htoousness of the S t o i c who has road
Supplement reviewer described i t
lu"ietzschel', as ae Times Literaq
( ~ e ~ t e n h e30,
r 1915, 329), f a i l s because it seems t h e "limitationstt he
t r i e d t o r o o t out were "naturalgt.
'Xdou~~~d
Guyot, i n B.G. TTcIls ( p a r i s , 1920) has an e x c e l l e n t chapter
on t h i s book, "A La Recherche btunc I l r i s t o c r a t i e 1 I , pp. 193-235.
He
concludcsr "2t l a v i e prend s u r Bonham l a revanche absurde e t
pue'rile q u t c l l c s t a s s u r c r a t o u j o u r s sur ceux qui veulent l e dominer.
Cette a r i n t o c r a t i e meurt d'une n o ~ at c c i d e n t e l l e e t vul@rs.
L t i r o n i c (?LI s o r t veut que ce p a c i f i c a t e u r de peuples, c e t
annonciatcur clu Royaume de Dieu, qui s e r a en n h e temps l a ZGpublique
de l t l h . a n i t c ' , p 6 r i s s e dans une r i x e , au c o i n d t u n e r u e , d t u n e b a l l e
perdue." (p. 235).
203
The TJorld o f T1.G.
205
Preface, p. x;
? ? e l l s (>~ewYorlr, 1915), p. 48.
The Quap &isode i n Tono-1hn:o:ayi
"An expedition i n t o t h e realms of
undisciplined nature".
David Lodge, whose chapter on 'i'ono-Wm::ay
i n Lanma,?e of F i c t i o n
i s t h e most persuasive and searching of t h e recent c r i t i c a l re-examinations
of t h i s novelYm6 i d e n t i f i e s t h e t r a d i t i o n i n which Wells wrote as t h e
'Condition of a ~ l a n dnovel'.
Lodge mentions i n an i n i t i a l survey207
D i s r a e l i l s Conin.:sb:~, where t h e term i s first used. 208 Re adds t h e
subsequent most important works of t h i s genre r
Sybil (1845), Irks. Gaskellt s
I k r y Barton (18.48) and North and South (1855), Dickensl Fmd Times (1854),
-
Charles Kingsleyls N t o n Locke (1850) and Yeast (1851), and George X l i o t l s
F e l i x Rolt (1886).
!Elis is, broadly, t h e " i n d u s t r i a l novel", so naned and so
l i s t e d i n a chapier synopsis by Raymond ITilliams i n Culture and Society. 209
The theme of Tono-Bun,~ag c l e a r l y draws upon t h i s t r a d i t i o n , and an understanding of the novel i n t o t o begins with an awareness of t h e s e sources.
i s a metaphorical study, b u i l t on t h e p a t t e r n s of a bilduncsroman,
phenomenon of economic growth and decay.
It
of t h e
England becomes t h e c e n t r a l
' c h a r a c t e r t , .a ' p a t i e n t 1 suffering from tho d e b i l i t a t i n g e f f e c t s of such
'Napoleons1 of commerce and i n d u s t r y as Uncle Ponderevo.
The n a r r a t i v e follows
t h e s i g n s of sickness and d i s e a s e from t h e decay of t h e Bladesover system t o
t h e ugly p r o l i f e r a t i o n of London, and tho "huge and abandoned masses of tho
a b~l y g r o s s epitaph t o t h e llenterprise and promise"
Crest H i l l ~ o u s o l a~ s, u~i t ~
of an age.
The adventure which i s undercono i n an attempt t o avoid t h i s ruin
i s a d i s a s t r o u s expedition t o t h e west coast of Africa t o r e t r i e v e markot-
a b l e q u a n t i t i e s of a m p t e r i o u s mineral c a l l e d ttquaplt, a " f e s t e r i n g mass of
e a r t h s and hoavy n o t a l s " (183), which Gordon-IuSsrnyth a s s u r e s then provides a
key t o greater wealth and power.
This episode, long f e l t t o be a readable,
e x c i t i w but appliqud s e c t i o n of n a r r a t i v e , i s now more g e n e r a l l y appreciated
as an i n t e g r a l parJ6 of t h e novel's synbolic s t r u c t u r e . 211
The substance
~ t a motley commercial expedition, a s e c r e t a f f a i r
c a l l e d quap i s s o u ~ l by
d i r e c t e d from t h e plush executive s u i t e i n t h e !iardingham Botel, i n
twentieth century business London.
S i @ i f i c a n t l y , i t i s sought "in one of
t h e dark p l a c e s of -the earth", and i t s e n t i r e s t o r y i s constructed around
t h e d i s e a s e syndrone, which dominates t h e n a r r a t i v e .
Gordon-IJasnyth describes tho region as "a f o r g o t t e n kink i n t h e
world's l i t t o r a l , of t h e long meanderiw channels t h a t spread and d i v a r i c a t e
and spend t h e i r burthon of mud and silt w i t h i n t h e thunderbelt of A t l a n t i c
surf, o f t h e dense tangled vegetation t h a t creeps i n t o t h e shimmering water
212
with r o o t and sucker." (183) This i s 11lordet I s l a n d , t h e hone of quap
as George i s l a t e r t o f i n d and describe it.
Nothing l i v e s here; even t h e
vegetation is bleached and dead; nothing, t h a t is, except t h e quap:
-
t h e only word t h a t
But t h e r e i s something
and t h a t i s not
comes near i t is cancerous
very near, about t h e wholo of quap, something
t h a t creeps and l i v e s as a d i s e a s e l i v e s by
destroying; an elemental s t i r r i n g and disarrangement, i n c a l c u l a b l y maleficent and strange. (268)
--
This 'cancer1 a f f e c t s the minds and bodies of t n e Skud i h r y ' s crew, spreads
'disease1 among then, and eventually on the r e t u r n voyage, o f f t h e Cape V e r b
I s l a n d s , i t e a t s through t h e h u l l of t h e s h i p , sending h e r t o t h e botton,
along with "tho last chance of Business Orp,nisationsl' (275).
The
c o n d i t i o n of Uncle Ponderevo's England has been one of d i s e a s e , a d i s e a s e
which " l i v e s by destroying".
' h e journcy t o t h e dark c o n t i n e n t r e v e a l s
f i n a l l y t h e s i n i s t e r underside of commercial empire.
a l l t h a t i s revealed.
The "elemental stirrirq
...
This, however, i s not
maleficent and stran;;eN,
t h e d e s t r u c t i v e energy of quap, i s more t h a n a symbol f o r a s o c i a l condition.
It r e p r e s e n t s what l h y e r t s and C m l i e r discover i n themselves i n Conrad's
Outpost of P r o , ~ e s s ,t h e r e h e a r s a l f o r I h r l o r r ' s and K u r t z l s d i s c o v e r i e s i n
George Ponderevo's s e a journey t o t h e mythic l i t t o r a l of
E e a t of Darkness.
Mordet I s l a n d is r o l a t o d t o t h e journeys made by 3d1irard Prendick and
Arnold B l e t tsworthy
.
Tney a r e p e n e t r a t i o n s Yinto t h e realms of u n d i s c i p l i n e d
nature" (264), revealing t h e f o r c e and a c t i v i t y of i n s t i n c t u a l l i f e
processes, t h e shadow s i d e of h m a n nature.
As George says i n r e t r o s p e c t :
"I found out many t h i n g s about myself and humanity i n those weeks of e f f o r t
behind Xordet I s l a n d v 1(270).
He learned
under him, and t o h a t e them;
"But I hated a l l humanity during t h e time that
t h e quap w a s near
me
t o be r u t h l e s s w i t h those who worked
...." knil he k i l l e d a m a n ,
with Ifthe malaria of t h e
quapl' (267) a l r e a d y i n h i s veins.
The n a r r a t o r r e c a l l s Gordon-lTasmythts o r i g i n a l business p r o p o s i t i o n
p u t t o h i s uncle and himself i n t h e Hardinghm Hotel, and t h e adventurer's
graphic d e s c r i p t i o n of t h e e x o t i c p l a c e s which helped f e e d western business
concerns w i t h ral? m a t e r i a l s .
To h i s l i s t e n e r s , t h e s e l o c a t i o n s had
p r e v i o u s l y seemed "as remote as f a i r y l a n d o r t h e Forest of Arden"
Nasmy-thls t e l l i w brought them c l o s e r ,
ll...
(185), y e t
l i k e something seen and f o r g o t t e n
and now again rerncnbcred" (185).
Thc r e a l i t y of quap grows, i t s
metaphorical si,ynificmce a l r e a d y emer;fin,y
slowly from t h e dimness of a
memory which both ,&endick and 3letts;fo:thy
taps
"So i t w a s quap cano
i n t o our a f f a i r s , carnc i n as a f a i r y - t a l e and became r e a l
,... at
last I
saw with my eyes the heaps my imagination had seen f o r s o l o w and f e l t
between my f i m e r s again t h e half-grity,
half-soft t e x t u r e of quap, l i k e
sanded moist sugar mixod with c l a y i n which t h e r e stirs something
One n u s t f e e l i t t o understand
The journey begins at Gravesend.
."(187)
-
L h r y t h i n g about t h e town and
t h e docked vessel is d i r t y and sordid; everything i s Itunder d i x y s k i e s , i n
narrow d i r t y s t r e e t s " , (255)
conditions, George can say,
man". (255)
I n t h i s s e t t i n g , i n these new and demoralising
"I r e a l i s e d t h a t I was a modern and c i v i l i s e d
';?re journey ahead w i l l demonstrate t h e inadequacy o f these
presumptions.
The :kud :k.rg provides w a i n a. microcosm o f an ailing and
vulnerable society.
The Roumanian c a p t a i n comments d i r e c t l y , and frequently,
on what i s wron;. with %-gland's
llI.iiane Grundy!
conditiont
l i m i t e d and computing and self-seeking.
S t is all
Dat i s why your art i s so limited,
youra f i c t i o n , your philosophia, why you a s e a l l s o i n a r t i s t i c .
nothing but p r o f i t .
:hat w i l l pay!
...."
(262)
You want
kt t h e f o u l weather, t h e
d a k n e s s , and tho oblique references of t h e n a r r a t o r t e l l us more of t h e r e a l
character o f t h i s journey, of t h e r e a l c h a r a c t e r of t h e human condition which
t h e journey i s t o explore.
it i s timeless:
It i s an experience which has no normal dimensions;
"You must not imagine thoy were ordinary days, days I mean of
an average 1enC;th; they were not s o much days as long damp s l a b s of time t h a t
s t r e t c h e d each on0 t o t h e horizon, and much of t h a t l e n g t h was nicht.I1
(262)
The old world now becones remote, and t h e new i s soen i n a
d i s t o r t e d perspective:
"I l i v e d a strango concentrated l i f e through a l l
t h a t time, such a life as a oreature must do t h a t has f a l l e n i n a woll.
A l l my former w a y s coasod, a l l ny old vistas becane memories .I1 (264)
This
Ikellfl i s Ponderevots own p e c u l i a r hades, y e t i s a t once a common hades
representing a common condition.
The elements themselves provide almost
the c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s of a nether world:
Throu$l a l l these days t h e weather w a s
v a r i o u s l y v i l e , f i r s t a furnace heat under
a sky of scowling i n t e n s i t y of blue, then a
hot f o g t h a t stuck i n oneto t h r o a t l i k e wool
and turned t h e men on t h e planks i n t o colourl e s s f i t y r e s o f g i a n t s , then a wild b u r s t of
t n u n d o r s t o n s , mad elemental uproar and r a i n . (269)
But t h e nether world i s w i t h i n George, too, manifested i n t n e
dangerous s p i r a l l i n g of h a t r e d f o r a l l those around him, i n h i s "inflamed
imagination" which brings him nightmares of h i s uncle's v i o l e n t death, and,
decisively, i n t h e s l a u g h t e r of a native, l i k e "the k i l l i n g of a b i r d o r a
r a b b i t n , (272)
The deed, though committed with a detachment r a n i n i s c e n t of
Xersault i n Camus' The stranger213 -- "I went t o him not as one goes t o
something one has made o r done, but as one approaches something foundu (272)
- leaves f i n a l l y t h e impression of p r i m i t i v e savagery,
with the I1swollen and
mangled carcassN (273) worried by some f o r e s t animal, and f i n a l l y dragged from
t h e shallow grave by t h e man's own people.
The murder i s t h e defining a c t i o n i n this episode.
George, t h e
*'modern and c i v i l i a e d man1', confronts the primitive, and t h e p r i m i t i v e i n
h i s own n a t u r e triumphs,
The e n t i r e episode, though maintaining t h e
metaphorical demonstration
definition
- of
%land's
-- i n f a c t ,
oxtonding i t , g i v i n g i t a nar
s o c i a l condition, primarily reminds us of t h e
unchanging r e a l i t y of t h e human condition beneath, upon which t h e 'modern'
world r e s t s s o precariously.
The "bankruptcytt of h i s u n c l e ' s empire which George discovers on
h i s r e t u r n t o c i v i l i s d i i o n can be s a i d t o d e f i n e man's moral sense, a n o r a l
sense which provides a g r i m v i s i o n i n t h e f i n a l pages of t h e novel:
ttFar
out t o t h e north-oast t h e r e came t h e f l i c k e r of a squadron of war-ships
waving white swords of l i g h t about t h e sky.
I kept them hull-down, and
p r e s e n t l y they were mere summer l i g h t n i n g over t h e watery edge of the
globe
...."(317)
There i s at once a f l e e t i n g prophecy of f u t u r e c o n f l i c t ,
representing t h e uneasy years of w a r s c a r e and p r o l i f e r a t i o n of m i l i t a r y
s t r e n g t h , and a reminder of a permanent condition, under t h e guise of
"summer lightningt1, a permanent i n s t i n c t u a l and elemental d r i v e which
u l t i m a t e l y mocks George's a s p i r a t i o n s , as h i s own invention, t h e destroyer
X2, undercuts h i s f a i t h i n soience and progress. 214
206
?he c r i t i c i n n rrhich can be s a i d t o have broken new p o u n d i n
broadly, i n a d e n o n s t r a t i o n o f i t s
e v a l u a t i o n o f t h i s major woYk
thematic u n i t y and s y x b o l i c s t n l c t u r e
began
w i t h %nneth 13.
X e w e l l t s c~~.';iclc,"The S t r u c t u r e o f ii.G. i T c l l s l s Tono-3m::aztt,
,2ry.lis!l T i c t i o n i n Tmmi tion, i v . ii ( l 9 6 l ) , 1-8.
i?ericllto
unpublished d o c t o r a l d i s s e r t a t i o n , " S t r u c t u r e i n Z.G. S l e l l s l s
Dickensian Xovelstt Penn., 1964, has an appendix on Tono-3unL-= as
w e l l as a h i e f c h a p t e r devoted t o i t , but t h e o r i g i n a l a r t i c l e is
t h e more v a l u a b l e source. 2cwn.11 war,~ c l l r ~ ~ rb:r
e- dLIa.ncnce Ponton
t 1 r ? ~ n o - 3 m r a ~ ~7ae l l s s U x o n s t r u c t c d Talett. Colle.:e S n ~ l i r , h(:;arch,
i - 3 j 4 3 8 who appears to have m i t t e n i n complete i ~ m o r a n c e
of iTewellls riork, b u t n e v e r t h e l e s s extends h i s s u r v e y u s e f u l l y i n
p l a c e s , i n p z r t i c u l a r w i t h h i s comrcen-ts on t h e quap e x p e d i t i o n as
n e a r f'Comadian a l l e g o r y M . 3ernard 3 e r s o n z i t s c r i t i c a l i n t r o d u c t i o n
t o t h e 2iversicie e d i t i o n ( ~ o s t o n ,Ihss., 1966), l e a n s h e a v i l y on
Lodzet s s t u d y , "'i'ono-3u-nx and t h e Condition of %:landtf
La-,e
oof Xctio",:
S s s a ,i n C r i t i c i s m and Verbal Analysis o f t h e
% , ? l : l i s hFovcl ondo don, 1
214-242, b u t , of s p e c i f i c i n t e r e s t ,
e x p l o r e s t h c q u e s t i o n o f Wells and Conrad and t h e account o f t h e
..aud ;IU;.~S A f r i c a n adventure.
-
-
,
-
-
-
.
,
The b r i e f h i s t o r y of t h i s c r i t i c a l concern i s p u t i n p e r s p e c t i v e b y
: ~ e k e w - o fi I e ~ Richard Hauer Costa i n "H.G. l ? c l l s l s
Studiesft, 3 y ; l i s h Literature i n
1967), 89-96.
207
L a n m ~ a , ~of
e F i c t i o n , pp. 216-17.
208
G.F.C.
::asternan borrowed t h e p h r a s e f o r h i s s o c i o l o ~ c a lt d i a p o s i s l ,
T'ne Condition o f 2n.yland (London, 1 9 0 9 ) ~a work which acknow1ed;;cd
V e l l s t s f i c t i o n a l s t u d y . T o n o - 3 u n [ s was first p u b l i s h e d i n s e r i a l
form bjr Ford Iiadox Hueffer i n the first i s s u e of t h e 2h::lish 2evieir
( ~ e c e n b e r , 1908), b u t blasterman had been a b l e t o r e a d t h e page p r o o f s
o f t h e e n t i r e novel b e f o r e t h e g e n e r a l p u b l i c had t h e o p p o r t u n i t y ,
and i n h i s own book quoted f r e e l y from Wells.
209
(London, 1958), p.
210
T o n o - % . ( ~ e t o n ,&ss.,
l 9 6 6 ) , p. 284.
t h i s text w i l l be given p a r e n t h e t i c a l l y .
,99.
Subsequent r e f e r e n c e s t o
211
See Lad-e, p. 234 n. r ftr9monly c r i t i c B h a t is, o t h e r than hd,-e
himselfl iiho, t o ny knowled~e, has reco;nized t h e thematic connection
bcttiecn t h e 'qcap' episode and thc r e s t of t h e novel, i s Gordon A.
Ray, "R.G. :lclls T r i e s t o be a i ? o v e l i s t l , Zrlsrardians and h t e
V i c t o r i m k L-lish
I n s t i t u t e I s s a p , 1953, e d i t e d by Eichard Ellman
'(Nar;, 1960), p. 147.If
Bergonzi p r a i s e s L o d ~ o l sevaluation i n h i s i n t r o d u c t i o n t o t h e t c x t ,
but s t i l l f c s l s t h a t reaciers mu3t accept t h e p o s s i b i l i t y t h a t t h e
episode i s a " b r i l l i a n t improvisationf1, d e s p i t e i t s maintained
metaphorical significance. Costa concurs with Bergonzits q u a l i f i c ations.
212
Possibly, t h e n m e 'Xordet1 i s derived from t h e french mord-ro, t o e a t
i n t o , t o corrode.
I n t h e sane context i t i s i n t e r e s t i n g t o examine t h e p o s s i b l e sourcos
There i s t h e scatalo,-ical sense of ' c r a p l and t h e
of 'qua?'.
v a r i a t i o n crop ' meaning tfswollen protuberance o r excrescenceff
(o.c.D.).
Closer t o Mells's use i s 'quabl, a "bog o r marshy s g o t f f
(o.Z.D.),
and t h e c l e a r l y r e l a t e d verlo, 'quap', t o "beat, throb,
p a l p i t a t e , quiveru (o.E.D.).
E l e sense of t h e word can be seen t o
r a w e from excremental undertones t o t h e suggestion of s i n i s t e r
energy contained and thriving i n t h i s strange substance. It i s t h i s
i d e a of energy, hidden yet ever present and a c t i v e which has most
bearing on t h i s episode i n particular.
,
213
Ikrgonzi c o m e n t s thus i n h i s introduction; "It seems t o me p o s s i b l e
t h a t i n t h i s scene 'ilells was bein,- more than merely sensationa; it
looks forward t o c h a r a c t e r i s t i c modes of experience of t h e l a t e r
decades of t h i s contury, when violence was t o become i n e x t r i c a b l y
p a r t of tho t e x t u r e of human l i f e i n many s o c i e t i e s . " ( x v i i i )
214
The ambi;%ity of t h e destroyer spnbol i s b e s t discussed by Lodce,
pp. 2 ~ l 1 - 2 ~ IIe begins by t a c k l i n ~I h r k Schorer's e a r l y i n t e r p r e t a t i o n
i n "Technique as Discoveryff, Euilson Reviw, i , i (1948), which views
t h e s e f i n a l pages as a n undermining of t h e e n t i r e novel's s o c i a l
perspective, and concludes decisively: "By choosing a destroyer as
h i s s p b o l , !Jells i n d i c a t e s t h a t i n a s o c i a l order given over t o
decay and death, even t h e impersonal achievements of science w i l l be
i r o n i c a l l y double-edged; and they w i l l hasten and confirm, r a t h e r than
a l l e v i a t e , t h e incurable condition o f England."
242)
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