The Island of Dr. Moreau: Chapter 21 Summary & Analysis

Prendick, by his own description, becomes one of the Beast Folk. Although he has one loyal subject who believes in his authority, the Dog Man, the rest have become indifferent, saying, “We have no Master, no Whips, no House of Pain anymore. There is an end. We love the Law, and will keep it; but there is no pain, no Master, no Whips for ever again.” Although Prendick arrives with the Dog Man and tries to assert that Moreau still watches and the House of Pain will come again, the Beast Folk are largely unconvinced.

This point marks the start of the majority of Prendick’s life on the island, most of which he does not wish to recall. The Dog Man is a close companion and valuable asset, since the island’s new hierarchy of power becomes dependent on one’s ability to fight and kill, and thus Prendick has protection. The Hyena-Swine still lives, but seems to avoid Prendick and the Dog Man.

In the first month of this period, the Beast Folk retain much of the Law. The Ape Man comes to believe that he is Prendick’s equal, and prides himself on repeating any word or idea Prendick says that the Ape Man is unfamiliar with. He calls these “big thinks” and goes about repeating them to all the other supposedly lesser Beast Folk, though they are often nonsense.

However, this decorum and observance of the Law fades. The Beast Folk gradually regress back to embracing animal behaviors. They lose their ability to speak, begin walking on all fours, sucking water, and gnawing on animal flesh, neglecting to wear clothes. The females seem to be the first to throw off the mores of “decency.” The Dog Man regresses so much that Prendick comes to regard it not as Dog Man, but as his St. Bernard Brute, and even Prendick begins to change—his clothes become rags, his hair gets long and snarled, and to this day he is told that his eyes move so quickly as to suggest an “animal alertness.”

Prendick initially spends his days watching for passing ships, and though he sees five, he never manages to attract their attention. For some months he sets himself to building a raft, quickly realizing that he has no practical skill in construction. After several tries, he manages to put one together but accidentally destroys it trying to get it to the ocean.

One day, Prendick is lying next to the ruins of the enclosure when the pink sloth creature, now almost completely animalistic like the others, approaches him. Prendick follows him into the forest where he finds the Hyena-Swine eating the corpse of the Dog Man. The beast leaps at Prendick and knocks him over, but Prendick manages to shoot the Hyena-Swine between the eyes and kill it.

Prendick knows that he will likely be attacked again, as many of the Beast Folk have regressed as far as the Hyena-Swine had. Though there are only twenty or so Beast Folk left, most have made dens for themselves in the forest and now prowl at night. Prendick considers killing all of them by trapping or with a knife, and had he enough bullets, would shoot every single one of them with no hesitation. However, he does not have the bullets and his success in hunting by other means seems implausible, so he returns to raft-building.

Another day, Prendick spies a small sail on the horizon and eventually a little boat comes into view with two people in it. He builds a signal fire, yells, and waves, but when the boat lands he realizes that both the men in it are dead. Prendick dumps the corpses out, which to his horror are eaten by several Beast Folk, gathers some food, and sets sail into the ocean.