Griffin

Griffin is the model of science without humanity. He begins his road to decline in college when he
becomes so obsessed with his experiments that he hides his work lest anyone else should receive
credit. When he runs out of money, he kills his own father-a crime that makes the rest of his crimes
pale in comparison. He goes from scientist to fanatic when he begins to focus all of his attention
merely on the concept of invisibility and neglects to think about the consequences of such a condition.
He may not have had any intention initially of trying the potion on himself, but the interference of his
landlord and prying neighbor lady motivate him to cover his work and remove himself from further
confrontation. The evil that he could commit does not occur to him until after he has swallowed the
potion and seen the reaction of the landlord and others. The irony is, that his invisibility is good only
for approaching unseen and for getting away. Any gains from his crimes are useless to him. He cannot
enjoy any of the normal comforts of life-such as food, clothes, and money. He cannot eat without
hiding the action, as the food in his system will render him visible. Clothes, when he is able to wear
them, must be used to cover him from head to foot in order to conceal his real concealment--hardly
a comfortable state in the heat of the summer. He can steal money, but cannot spend it on his own
accord. Thus the condition that would make him invulnerable also renders him helpless.

In spite of his predicament, Griffin at no time expresses any remorse for his behavior or for the
crimes, which he merely describes as necessary. His only regret is frustration over not having
thought about the drawbacks of invisibility. For nearly a year, he works on trying to perfect an
antidote; when time runs out for that activity, he first tries to leave the country, and then, that plan
failing, tries to find an accomplice for himself so he can enjoy his invisibility and have all the comforts
of life as well. He goes from obsession to fanaticism to insanity.

Marvel

Mr. Marvel is the local tramp. He is harmless, eccentric, fat, but not nearly as stupid as Griffin thinks

he is. He is smart enough to know when a good thing has happened to him; the stories he tells to the

press bring him much attention and sympathy. In the end, he gets to keep all the money Griffin stole,

and he contrives on his own to keep the books of Griffins experiments. He becomes the owner of an

inn as well as the village bard, as it is to him that people come when they want to know the stories of

the Invisible Man. In spite of his earlier torment, he is the only one who actually benefits from Griffins

presence.

Kemp

Kemp is referred to as the doctor, but his degree seems to be an academic one rather than a medical
one. He continues his own study in hopes of being admitted to the Royal Fellows. His own
experiments and fascination with science enable him to listen sensibly to Griffin, but in spite of being
rather contemptuous of his fellow citizens, his common sense and decency prevent him from being a
part of Griffins schemes. Kemp is also the only cool headed person in the town once the final attack
begins. He runs to escape Griffin, but as soon as Griffin catches him, he has the presence of mind to
turn the capture around. He is also the first to realize that even though Griffin is invisible, he is
injured, and, ultimately, dead.

THEMES - THEME ANALYSIS

Corruption of Morals in the Absence of Social Restriction

The narrator uses the Invisible Man to experiment with the depth to which a person can sink when

there are no social restrictions to suppress his behavior. When Griffin first kills his father, he excuses it

away by saying that the man was a sentimental fool. When he takes the potion himself, he endures

such pain that he understands why the cat howled so much in the process of becoming invisible.

Nevertheless he has no compassion for the cat, for his father or for any of the people he takes

advantage of in the course of trying to survive invisibility. On the contrary, he descends from

committing atrocities because they are necessary to his survival to committing them simply because

he enjoys doing so.

This theme of corruption in the absence of social law has become a motif that is explored in other

literary works. H. G. Well created his story with very little psychological elaboration or character

development. Other writers, however, have taken the idea much farther; we are thus blessed with

novels such as Lord of the Flies, and Heart of Darkness, along with short stories by Poe and Melville.

Science without Humanity

Although Wells does not have his characters elaborate on this idea, the concept is represented in the

character of Kemp as well as in Griffin himself. Kemp wants to stop Griffin more out of fear for himself

than out of concern for the community, but he is nonetheless fascinated by the accomplishment of this

misguided college student. The problem with the entire experiment is that Griffin pursued the idea of

invisibility without regard to whether or not there would be any real benefit to society because of it.

STUDY QUESTIONS - BOOK REPORT / ESSAY IDEAS

1.) Why does Mrs. Hall tolerate the Invisible Man as long as she does?

2.) Why do you think Griffin smashes bottles and swears behind the locked door of his room?

3.) How do the speculations of the people in town exemplify human nature?

4.) Which characters have realistic reactions to the Invisible Man? Which ones have unrealistic

reactions?

5.) Explain why Teddy Henfry decides the Man is trying to hide something from the police.

6.) What do Huxters actions say about him as a member of the town?
7.) At what point is Griffin truly insane?

8.) How do you think you would react if you saw your money disappear in front of you, but couldnt

see who was taking it?

9.) Marvel ends up with all the money because the lawyers couldnt tell definitively whom it belonged

to. How is this similar to our court systems today?

10.) Marvel is introduced as a tramp and ends up a business owner. How realistic is this? What does it

say about Marvel himself?