Sunday, July 1, 2007

THE INVISIBLE MAN by H. G. Wells


The Invisible Man really isn't sci-fi, in spite of Wells' good efforts to explain it as such. Even so, it's a perfectly enjoyable fantasy. It takes the whole "what would you do if you were invisible" idea and turns it on its ear. Most of us think being invisible would be all fun and games. Well, maybe not.

The main character ranges in personality from jerk to raving psychopath. And it works. We're no less interested in the outcome because of it.

The suspenseful climax, where the doctor is barricaded in the house, is great. One realizes that if that were to actually happen, it would be utterly terrifying.

To raise a point I've raised before, how can you see if your eyes are invisible? How can these various parts of your eyes refract any light? Invisible people should be blind.

If you were invisible, wouldn't your whole digestive process be visible? How would that food turn invisible? In this novel, it does after a little while, but no explanation is given. Wells conveniently avoids a rather nasty situation. I, for one, would like to see somebody write a book about a Digestive Man.

And why are albinos always bad guys?

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