The Invisible Man by HG Wells chronicles one man's descent into madness as a result of his scientific feat, invisibility. Griffin, the Invisible Man, initially appears as a mysterious stranger, blindfolded and seeking refuge and recluse, but gradually transforms into a lawless individual with the aim of starting a reign of terror. The change in Griffin's character occurs because of his invisibility and the power it provides him because "there is no one, from this point of view, who has an iron will enough to maintain his morality and find strength on purpose to keep your hands off what doesn't." belong to him, when he can take what he wants from the market stalls without fear of discovery, enter houses and sleep with whomever he wants, kill and release from prison whomever he wants, and generally behave like a god among men" (Plato) . The transition to the maniacal anarchist is caused by the dangerous allure of scientific knowledge along with the power it provides and the lack of an identity. The pursuit of scientific knowledge is a dangerous pursuit as every endeavor and advancement approaches ambiguous boundaries that are usually best left uncrossed. Griffin is not the first to fall victim to the allure of knowledge as "Victor Frankenstein's life was ruined when he gained the power to create life, Dorian Gray's immortality came at a terrible cost, and Dr. Jekyll's ability to separate the good and bad parts of his body" nature ultimately destroyed them both" (D'Ammassa). Like his fellow scientists of fantastic feats, Griffin's discovery leads to his destruction. Before Griffin achieves his goal of invisibility, his pursuit of knowledge corrodes his morality. To finance his first experiments, Griffin robs his father justif... middle of paper... sees his humanity. Wells offers a powerful parable about the damage done to morality by the abuse of power and isolation for power is a corrosive agent and no one can do it all alone. Works Cited Beiderwell, Bruce. "The Grotesque in Wells's The Invisible Man." Bloom's literature. Facts on File, Inc. Network. January 20, 2014 http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE54&WID+101204&SID=5&iPin=MCVHGW03&SingleRecord=TrueBrackett, Virginia. “The Invisible Man”. Bloom's literature. File Web Facts, Inc.. January 20, 2014 http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE547wid=101204&sid=5&iPin=CBN186&SingleRecord=True D'Ammassa, Don. “The Invisible Man”. Bloom's literature. File Web Facts, Inc.. January 23, 2014 http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE54&WI=101204&SID=5&iPin=ESF242&SingleRecord=True Wells, HG. The invisible man. London: Penguin, 2005. Print.