H.G. Wells: The Invisible Man

Not only is HG Wells´s The Invisible Man one of the author´s best narrations, the ones he wrote in his youthful years. Those fantasias of possibility, as he himself called them (not science-fiction), and published between 1895 and 1901. The invisible man is a good read, an absorbing adventure, a tale of solitude and alienation, of an ambition wrongly (wickedly) directed. It is also, one fiction work that clearly casts a shadow on Science.

By the late 19th century, Science was a positive force, inextricably linked to progress and improvement of life and civilization. The treatment of Science in literature, essays, treatises or papers was mostly, if not unanimously, positive. Let´s recall Jules Verne and his novels, for instance: a positivist feast, and Science and Technology as radiant deities. That was the norm, rather than the opposite.

From 1945 on, however, the tale would change dramatically, even if there had been some previous warnings like A. Huxley´s 1932 Brave new world. Hiroshima and nuclear devastation would darken the social image of Science since mid 20th century. Books and movies would start off invariably providing scenarios of apocalyse.

But in 1897, when The invisible man was published, it was still another story, and the suggestion of science and scientists as evil was relatively scarce, madscientist stuff aside. In the novel, Griffith, a chemist, discovers a way to render matter invisible, through a scientific process whose plausibility Wells does not explain in the same technical detail as Verne used to. The author is more concerned with the social implications of Science and its moral impact. Griffith is, like Victor Frankenstein, a guy passionate for the wonders (waiting to be discovered) of the natural world. He studies and researches tiressly, determined to pull out secrets from matter.

Finally, he establishes the process of invisibility. He is even capable of aplying it to himself. He becomes completely invisible, except when dressed, or after lunch. What happens next? Well, he is unable to manage his new condition, the potential of his new power,  in a valid moral way. Once power is in his hands, he abandons all moral constriction. Knowledge without morality, science withouth conscience, leads to disaster. The topic has become a cliche, obviously, but it was not in 1897.

The psychological study of the characters in Wells´s narration is not great, to be sure. They appear to be a little like cardboard pieces. Even the plot could be perceived as a bit commonplace, after one century of piles of novels written on a similar topic. But that is not fair. It would be like accusing Ford´s Stagecoach of the same charge. Its theme has become a cliche, but it was simply the first to treat it.

So, apart from a nice reading, and its clear status as an old-SF classic, The invisible man makes us also wonder if our morality is not just a question of the fact that we are beeing watched at all times. By the others, by Society, by the State. Un uneasy thought. But if our morality truly depends on that, let us not worry too much. We cannot certainly complain of not being monitorized enough, these days.

The invisible man, 1897. HG Wells.