English- Animals and Literature

Psychoanalytic Ramifications of Animal Cruelty in Literature

Animal cruelty as a theme is one not widely chosen in literature . With it comes the direct refusal of society 's mores and ideals , and the writer who chooses this path does so with the knowledge that his or her work might not only be shunned , but criticized endlessly for its controversial . There are , however , four main works in literature that demonstrate the usage and cruelty of animals in their presentation of various themes . With that said , a close analysis will be taken of The

Island of Doctor Moreau ' by H .G . Wells , The Life of Pi ' by Yann Martel , The Fly ' by Katherine Mansfield , and Strider : the Story of a Horse ' by Count Leo Tolstoy . From these target works , an analysis will follow as to the psychoanalytic ramifications of animal cruelty as a theme in literature , and its affect on modern society and culture

To begin with , a look will now be taken into the four target works to analyze and contrast their representations of direct animal cruelty . In the first work , The Island of Doctor Moreau ' by H .G . Wells , a man named Edward Pendrick finds himself shipwrecked and saved by a doctor named Montgomery and his very-odd and horribly bestial manservant M 'ling . Pendrick finds himself the guest of Doctor Moreau and is endlessly curious about his locked paddocks and enclosures , remembering too , that he has heard of Doctor Moreau for his insidious and gruesome experiments . The next day...