The Island of Dr. Moreau Primitivity Quotes Page 1
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| Quote #1 I say luckily for us he did not reach us, and I might also add luckily for himself, for there [was] only a small beaker of water and some soddened ship's biscuits with us […]. (1.3) |
Put any person in an extreme situation, and our primitive side will show. Prendick tries to be reasonable about being lucky that a man died, and maybe he's right. Still, you've got to admit, that's pretty cold. Primitive and coldblooded.
| Quote #2 The black hesitated before them, and this gave the red-haired man time to come up with him and deliver a tremendous blow between the shoulder-blades. (3.14) |
M'ling is a Beast Folk and supposedly more primitive than a tried-and-true human. So, it's interesting that the primal act in this scene is performed by the oh-so pleasant Captain Davis.
| Quote #3 I refused to go aboard her, and flung myself full-length on the deck. In the end they swung me into her by a rope—for they had no stern ladder—and cut me adrift. (5.25) |
In theory, civilization has rules, and by following them, we'll stay civilized instead of primitive. However, Davis's men are only following the rules, but we'd qualify trying to throw a man into the middle of the Pacific a pretty weak thing to do. Guess it's less about just following rules and more about which rules to follow.
