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The Stolen Bacillus by H.G. Wells Essay

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The Stolen Bacillus by H.G. Wells

This is a story set in the 19th century people had dress codes which reflected your status in society. The dress code was formal and quite severe it was almost as if the longer your top hat the higher up the rank you are in importance in society. In this story we meet a man who wants to help the society and quality of living whereas the other wants to destroy order as he is what’s known as an anarchist. This is someone who is feels that people should be responsible for there own actions and decisions meaning they govern their own lives. In the 19th century anarchists were seen as political agitators and sometimes violent. As in this story where we will see a man desperate and willing to go to …show more content…

The anarchist is very absurd into thinking that by drinking the potion that he would be able to infect the whole population in the story it says, “He went walking down Waterloo Bridge jostling as many people as possible trying to infect them”. The real blow must have come to the anarchist when he realises that that was the wrong phial. We know that this is true as the scientist says,” it is a phial which turns things blue so that is the only thing he will achieve”.

The two characters in the story who are set on big ideas are the
Scientist and the anarchist. The scientist is pompous and idealistic and likes the sound of his own voice, as he kept on talking about the bacillus. The anarchist is high flown and self-important, there is a bit of self pity and neglect but then again he is pathetic and can’t seek attention in any other way. There is definitely an element of frustration in his life as no-one listens to his ideas or what he has to say this is partly the reason why he wants to cause chaos with the stolen bacillus. We know this as it says, “The world shall hear of him at last. All those people who laughed neglected him and preferred other people to him will consider him now”.

The characters in the story who show reality are the wife of the scientist and the cabbies.

The wife is very down to earth she is more concerned about the way

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