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In great literature, no scene of violence exists for its own sake. Either from your own reading or from the list below, choose a work of fiction in which the reader is confronted with a scene or scenes of violence
Then, in a well-written essay, analyze how the scene or scenes contribute(s) to an interpretation of the work as a whole. Do not merely summarize the plot.
In the book “The War of the Worlds,” H.G. Wells employs descriptive word choice and devastating dialogue in order to convey the amount of destruction and chaos the Martians caused, ultimately illustrating how humans accept their fate when faced with adversity.
H.G. Wells utilizes descriptive word choice to describe the enormous and deathly machines controlled by the Martians. He describes the appearance of the Martians to put the reader in the narrator's shoes. Towering over humans and even buildings, the machines controlled by the Martians are capable of things humans can’t imagine. Because these machines have such a scary appearance and unimaginable capabilities, the humans feel powerless. Consequently human retaliation against the Martians is futile. Therefore the humans accept the fate of the Martians due to the unmatched power of their technology. Wells also uses descriptive word choice on the setting to describe the amount of damage the Martians have caused on the Earth. The description of the city ruins demonstrates the capabilities of the Martians and their machinery. Broken down buildings, fire, and massive craters are in place of the city that was perfect a few days prior. The citizens are in chaos because their homes were demolished within seconds of the Martians’ laser beam. Since the Martians were able to overpower the humans and destroy their city, the humans have acknowledged there is nothing they can do to interfere with the Martians. Thus H.G Wells descriptive word choice on the destruction of the city demonstrates humans accepting their fate when faced with adversity.
H.G. Wells not only utilizes descriptive word choice, but he also uses devastating dialogue. He makes use of devastating dialogue to reveal the character’s hope dwindling throughout the attacks. Throughout the Martian raids, the narrator and other characters begin to become less hopeful. Their word choice, tone, and foreshadowing reveal how they are beginning to forfeit to the Martians. In their dialogue the humans clearly begin to lose hope because they acknowledge the amount of chaos and destruction the Martians are capable of. Consequently the power of the Martians is unmatched in the humans’ eyes. Therefore humans forfeit to power when faced with adversity, due to their surrendering dialogue. Wells also applies dialogue in order to reveal the character’s pure shock of the Martians. As the Martians arrived on Earth, the humans were excited to explore these fascinating creatures. However, as the Martians began to act violently and wreak havoc on the city, the humans were shocked. Because their dialogue had less deep meaningful conversation and more short statements, the humans were stunned. Since they were shocked by the overpowering technology of the Martians, the humans couldn’t make out words. They were devastated. Thus, the humans’ dialogue in face of the Martians demonstrates their hopeless response to the Martians’ raids.
All in all, H.G Wells utilizes descriptive word choice and devastating dialogue to demonstrate the overwhelming destruction caused by the Martians and the collapse of humanity. Through terrifying descriptions of the Martians’ machinery and ruined cities, Well’s reveals humans’ backing down when faced with a powerful force. Wells’ use of literary elements shows humans’ dwindling confidence in face of a stronger and more advanced enemy. He reminds readers that humans’ have a sense of unlimited power, and nothing can come close to human power. Human control is fragile and can be easily stripped away from outside forces.
In great literature, no scene of violence exists for its own sake. Either from your own reading or from the list below, choose a work of fiction in which the reader is confronted with a scene or scenes of violence. Then, in a well-written essay, analyze how the scene or scenes contribute(s) to an interpretation of the work as a whole. Do not merely summarize the plot.
In the novel “The Island of Dr. Moreau,” H.G. Wells employs violent scenes and their effects in order to convey Prendick’s encounter with violence ultimately illustrating the dangers of scientific ambition without morality.
H.G. Wells utilizes violent scenes to encounter Prendick with violent scenes. Prendick finds many gory Beast People after their vivisections. As Dr. Moreau is attempting to change the animals into humans, the animals squirm and fight to save their lives. Because Wells described the bloody and gory scene of the vivisection, Prendick is faced with violence. Consequently Prendick is in deep shock of Dr. Moreau’s actions and goals with his actions. Moreau is able to continue performing the vivisection with all of the blood and resist. Therefore the violence scene described by Wells shows the dangers of scientific ambition without morals. H.G. Wells also employs the sound of the vivisections to employ violence. During the experiments the animals break many objects and cry out for help. The cries of the animals are displayed many times throughout the novel. Because Prendick hears all of the terrible sounds of the violent experiments, he is heartbroken. Consequently Dr. Moreau’s morals are not present. He is able to continue searching for a way to make an animal into a human even with all of the commotion and sacrifice. Therefore Wells’ audio imagery demonstrates how some experiments get out of hand and lose morality.
Wells also displays the effects of the Beast People after the experiments. He utilizes the Law in order to demonstrate the effects of Moreau’s violent vivisections. The Law is a set of rules created by Moreau to keep “his” Beast People away from their animal instincts. Because the animal-human variants are scared of Moreau and his power, they follow the Law and try to act like humans. Consequently Prendick encounters a group of Beast People in the forest and acknowledges Moreau's negative affect on the creatures. They are mentally stripped of their instincts and act very unnaturally. Therefore the Beast People’s obedience demonstrates the negative effects of a scientist abandoning morals in order to succeed. H.G. Wells also utilizes the chaos that erupts after Dr. Moreau dies. After Dr. Moreau dies in combat with one of the Beast People, the others slowly go back to their animal forms. Because the Beast People have faced violence and tyranny, they act out terribly. Their actions show the effects Dr. Moreau’s experiments had on their health. Consequently, Prendick fears for his life and traps himself in Moreau’s old laboratory with a revolver. Moreau’s scientific ambition led him to find an isolated island and bring different animals/humans in an attempt to make an animal-human variant. Therefore the violent scenes of chaos demonstrates the effects of scientific ambition with no boundaries set by morals.
In “The Island of Dr. Moreau” the violent scenes and their effects employed by H.G. Wells demonstrates the dangers of scientific ambition without morals. The vivid, gory scenes and their sounds show the horrors experienced by the Beast People and Prendick. Dr. Moreau is so invested in the task at hand he abandons all morals. He continues to perform horrifying vivisections in an attempt to succeed in his goal. The scenes of violence included have instantaneous and lost longing effects on all creatures inhabiting the island. Their mental state has been deeply affected through the horrors they have endured, demonstrating the danger of scientific ambition without morality.
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