Although it is less often read than such Wells" novelsas The War of the Worlds,the basic
story of The Island o fDr Moreau is very well known through several extremelyloose film
adaptations (改编 ). Prendick, aBritishscientist,has an accident at sea and by chance finds
himself on amysterious island where Dr Moreau and his assistant Montgomery are engaged
in strange experiments of turninganimals into humans.
Wells was a social reformer,and his novels reflect(反映) his thoughts and theories about
human society. Much of Wells"writing concerns ( either directly or indirectly) socialclass,
but Moreau deals with the then-newly advanced theoryof evolution (进化)-and then works
to relate how that theory influences man" s belief in God. Wells sometimes mentioned this in
his novels,but nowhere in his work i.s this line of thought more clearly and specifically seen
than here.
Sometimes Wells tries to influence his readers strongly, while on other occasions,he does
it gently. But in The Island of Dr Moreau,Wells achieves a perfect balance of the twoextremes.
It is an impressive achievement,and in this sense I consider Moreau possibly the best of
Wells" works. The novel is as interesting for the story it tells as it is for its themes that are still
very important today.
Moreau is not as horrific as Wells" many other novels--- he often included horror and
cruelty in his science fiction. Still,this is not a book that you can read and then put away: it
stays in your mind in a most disturbing way. Stronglyrecommended.
A. an official document
B. a scientific article
C. a newspaper report
D. a book review
She is widely seen as proof that good looks can lastforever. But,at over 500 years of age,
time is catching up with the Mona Lisa.
The health of the famous picture,painted by LeonardoDa Vinci(莱昂纳多·达·芬奇)in
1505,is getting worse bythe year,according to the Louvre Museum(卢浮宫博物馆)where
it is housed. "The thin, woodenpanel on which the Mona Lisa is paintedin oil has changed
shape since expertschecked it two years ago. "the museumsaid. Visitors have noticed the
changesbut repairing the world"s most famous
painting is not easy. Experts are not sure about the materialsthe
Italian artist used and their currentc现在的) chemicalstate.
Nearly 6 million people go to see the Mona Lisa everyyear,and many are attracted by the
mystery of her smile. "It is very interesting that when you"re not looking at her,sheseems to be
smiling, and then you look at her and shestops." said Professor Margaret Livingstone of
HarvardUniversity. "It"s because direct visionc视觉) is excellent atpicking up details,but tess
suited to look at shadows. DaVinci painted the smile in shadows. "
However,the actual history of the Mona Lisa is just asmysterious as the smile. Da Vinci
himself loved it so muchthat he always carried it with him, until it was eventuallysold to
France"s King Francis I in 1519.
In 1911,the painting was stolen from the Louvre by aformer employee, who took it out
of the museum hiddenunder his coat. He said he planned to return it to Italy. The painting
was sent back to France two years later.
During World Warll ,French hid the painting in smalltowns to keep it out of the hands
of German forces.
Like many old ladies, the Mona Lisa has someinteresting stories to tell.
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