Topic Exploration Worksheet for Essay #1
1. Begin by copying and pasting your chosen prompt here so that you can easily refer to it while
completing this worksheet:
o Prompt:Consider how biology as a scientific practice is operating in The Island of Dr.
Moreau. What kinds of assumptions about nature does Dr. Moreau’s scientific practice
make? Is biology as it is practiced by Dr. Moreau, especially vivisection, a corruption of
nature or is it natural? Does the nature described in the setting confirm or reject these
assumptions in any way? Finally, are there any implications for how we think of nature
today?
2. Find three passages that you could use to talk about this question and answer the following:
Why is this passage important to the overall text? What do we learn about this prompt from
these passages? Use specific citations to indicate where each passage is in the text.
o "I saw them at last; the creatures, the horrid half-human forms, the things that Moreau
had made by his cruelty and his knowledge."
o Answers to questions for Passage 1: The appearance of Dr. Moreau’s creatures was so
vile and brutal that Prendick had no idea what he was looking at. Moreau wrongfully
tampered with the way the animals were created and how they were meant to
look/function.
o Passage 2:“They were men; what are they now?” (Wells 39)
o Answers to questions for Passage 2: The “creatures” that Dr. Moreau created were so
unrecognizable to a human (Prendick) because they were multiple animals combined into
one. Dr. Moreau changed the way these animals are supposed to live just because he
wanted to experiment and test to see what would happen.
o Passage 3:“These creatures that you have seen are animals carven and wrought into new
shapes” (Wells 42)
o Answers to questions for Passage 3: Dr. Moreau makes assumptions that it is man’s right
to change ways of nature and he can do what he wants with these animals.
3. Based on your three pieces of evidence, develop a draft thesis statement that responds to the
essay prompt that you’ve chosen. You should expect to edit this thesis statement many times
while working towards your final essay.
o Thesis statement:Dr. Moreau’s handling of animals in The Island of Dr. Moreau goes
against the laws of nature because he performs unnecessary surgery on them, completely
