Title: The Surgeon’s Experiment (renamed “The Monster-Maker”)
Author: W.C. Morrow
Date of First Publication: October 1887
Place of Publication: The Argonaut (renamed for collection The Ape, The Idiot, & Other People in 1897)
Type: Short story
Characters: No Character
Themes: ANDROID; MAD SCIENTIST/MONSTER; BYRONIC HERO; POSTHUMAN
Critical Summary: “The Surgeon’s Experiment” begins with a young man coming to the home of a surgeon who is known for vivisection. He presents an offer to the surgeon: $5000 to kill him. The surgeon denies the young man and is verbally assaulted until he is persuaded to be compliant. The surgeon went around, shutting blinds and locking doors to ensure complete secrecy and privacy. The surgeon gave the young man a liquid that slowly caused him to lose hearing, vision, and eventually consciousness. Surprised at the events that occurred and somewhat inspired, the surgeon began to plan experiments on the body of the young man. Three years later, the wife notifies the police about her husband’s actions. When the police begin investigating, notes are found in the surgeon’s handwriting. They talk about strange topics dealing with the nerves and muscles and how something had super strength beyond that of human capacity. With a need for more information, the captain plans for a raid of the surgeon’s estate. A few days later, the raid commences, and a team of officers finds themselves in the home of the surgeon during the middle of the night. While there, they find the surgeon and a monstrosity of a large figure and a metal ball replacing its head. A fight breaks out. The ruckus causes a fire within the estate, burning everything to a cinder, save the team of officers who escaped the estate in time.
Morrow’s story is strikingly similar to Frankenstein, seeing as there is the figure of the mad scientist who parallels Victor Frankenstein. Both characters end up sharing a dislike for their creation. Like Victor, the surgeon in the story realizes he cannot control his creature and is obligated to destroy it. Additionally, the surgeon’s wife serves as a parallel for Elizabeth Frankenstein, who is also eventually murdered by Victor’s creature.
In addition to the theme of the mad scientist, the story also exhibits the theme of the Android; this creature is not only decapitated, but transformed into a robotic creature with the addition of a metal head.
Administrative Notes: Aristy Inguanzo, CSUF; Travis Asis, CSUF; Alexis Shanley, CSUF (editing)