The Readers Review: Literature from 1714 to 1910 discussion

This week we learn how the Invisible Man became invisible. I think this would be a completely different story had we learned this information upfront, what about you?

So far, how do you feel about Griffin? Do you think he is misunderstood or is there a more sinister side to him? How does his invisibility contribute to his perspective? Does the invisibility change him or simply highlight the characteristics he already has? How do you feel about what you've learned (his stealing his father's money, making the cat invisible, setting fire to the house he was living in) about Griffin?

Kemp is a new character this week. Do you agree with/understand his reaction to Griffin so far? Do you foresee Kemp becoming Griffin's ally?

Any predictions about what will happen at the end of the story?

Griffin seems very coldblooded even before becoming invisible, the way he treated his father, for instance. It is hard to have sympathy for him. Scientifically, it sounds like the reason he was able to become invisible is because he is albino, like the white cat, so the rest of us "should not try this at home".

Kemp may be forced to become Griffin's ally, the way the tramp was. I don't foresee a happy ending for Griffin. No one knows if there are longterm effects of being invisible, or maybe there will be a dramatic showdown where someone will die.

I agree with Robin that Griffin was very coldblooded even before he was invisible. I really don't like him and find most of his actions reprehensible. He seems incredibly selfish. If I found out that a cat was trapped, I would try to rescue it, not leave it to its fate. Of course, I wouldn't be experimenting on one either. He just doesn't care about anything except himself and his goals. You'd think that Kemp would want to get as far away as possible from Griffin after hearing the story, but he stayed.

Having the book start the way it did makes the reader curious, and also makes the invisible man a somewhat sympathetic character, since we see everyone is afraid of him and no one is willing to help him. Once we get to this section, of course, we see he doesn't really deserve much sympathy, so Wells was wise to start the way he did. The part with the cat didn't surprise me much, as back then no one would have thought twice about using an animal that way, and even now many people wouldn't mind (the reason we have the expression "guinea pig" in the first place). But robbing his father, not being sorry for his death, and setting someone's house on fire were inexcusable.

I wonder why the tramp is keeping Griffin's books. They can't be worth anything to him. The money, I understand, but it seems he should know he's painting a target on his back by keeping the books.

I'm not sure what Kemp has in mind or why he wanted Griffin away from the window. I don't think he wants to be involved in anything criminal, but I'm sure he's curious about the process and might want to help his old colleague (or may have wanted to before he heard the whole story).

Before this i had felt like irrespective of his rude behaviour, the invisible man could have been a victim of the situation, but no more!

There is no doubt that he has a sinister side. He always had a way of justifying his wrongdoings and claiming that he had been the victim all along. He had no remorse for his father's death or for that matter, experimenting on someone else's cat or firing his "insured" rented lodging.

Now that he can't be seen by anyone, Invisibility has amplified his dark side, enforcing the primal instincts.

So far, Kemp sounds like a reasonable wise man. He is helping an acquaintance and at the same time curious about the entire "invisibility" process. But as he learns about Griffin's past, I don't think he would be remain Griffin's ally in the long run.

My thoughts exactly. He is definitely leaning to the dark side in his personality.
I recently read The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde and Other Tales of Terror and it is interesting to compare the effects of scientific experiments on the scientists.
The outcome in that book isn't good either.