『모로 박사의 섬』과 제국주의적 시각

The Island of Doctor Moreau and the Viewpoint of Imperialism

Though The Island of Doctor Moreau is a science fiction which depicts an imaginary island, the book implies imperialistic aspects in its narrative technique. In this book, Dr. Moreau, a scientist expelled from England because of unknown cruel experiments, constructs a laboratory on an isolated island to vivisect animals transferred from the civilized world. Dr. Moreau tried to create new species of animals to serve human beings. However, the escape of a puma during its vivisection leads to the failure of the experiment and the death of the doctor. In this novel, we notice similarities between evolution and vivisection. According to evolutionary theories and particularly those of Darwin's, all living plants and animals modify their features to adjust to changes in their environment. Even though Darwin does not mention the existence of God in nature, Darwin's depiction of nature evokes Godlike or divine guidance. In The Island of Doctor Moreau, Dr. Moreau plays God, changing the structure of his animals according to his wishes. The experiment of Dr. Moreau, a cruel tyrant, evokes British imperial policies toward her colonies, only serving the interest of the British Empire. The British Empire tried to change the mental, physical and institutional structures of its colonies for her self-interest. Even though Wells does not explicitly describe imperialistic viewpoints in his novel, if we remember the author had attended Huxley's school, we may conclude that his vivisected animals are a metaphor for colonized people and countries.