Text analysis

Contextualization
Period
And context
Which period does the author, text belong to?
Genre:
Narrative, fiction, poetry, drama
Genres/subgenres, authors techniques specific to it
How the genre has developed through different periods?
Themes
Which are the universal themes used? How are the themes dealt with by the
author? Could be more than one in a text
Mode of discourse
First person narrator, third person narrator, omniscient, obtrusive- gets into
the narration, fallible narrator.
Type of narrator, point of view
Literary and Stylistic techniques
Style
Style in literature in the literary element that describes the ways author
uses words
Word choice, figures of speech, sentence structure, figurative language,
sentence arrangement, that give the mood, images, meaning of the text.
How the author describes events, objects, ideas.
Other elements of literary style:
Tone, character development, imagery, symbols, setting, form, figures of
speech, register, vocabulary sentence structure and semantic fields.
To analyse, The stolen bacillus
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

State the plot

Character development
Tone
Setting
Register, vocabulary, sentence structure and semantic fields. For
higher mark.

Analysis of the story The stolen bacillus

1. State the plot

The story is about an anarchist who steals a bacillus from a

bacteriologist. The anarchist thinks that he has stolen the bacteria of
the cholera, which he wanted to use to infect the while of London.
Under pressure he consumes the bacteria, however he stole the
wrong bacillus, which only turns his skin purple and hence does not
have any effect on the rest of London. Wells includes both comical
elements and tension in the story.
H.G. Wells's "The Stolen Bacillus" is a satirical short story about the
potential role of science and scientists in facilitating bio-terrorism.
This is done by having a very intelligent bacteriologist being ignorant
about the consequences of his work.
How an anarchist is visiting a bacteriologists laboratory in London.
He steals a vial containing the cholera bacteria and tries to poison the
water supply of the city.
1. Character development
How are the character portrayed in the text:
The Bacteriologist
The Bacteriologist is so pleased with his own work that he gives the
Anarchist access to it, and in and mentions the power of the cholera
bacillus (which he feels he has in his own power). He gives the Anarchist
the information he needs to recognize bio-forms as an effective
weapon.
Fortuitously, the scientist has been dishonest about the bacteria he was
showing off, so that the epidemic will be not cholera but something
presumably less lethal and comically visible. Disturbingly, though, we
realize that the scientist's motivation for chasing the thief was not to
prevent a deadly outbreak, but to avoid the trouble of making another
culture of his interesting new bacterium.
The scientist is revealed, in his lack of concern for ethics, as being an
unwitting agent of anarchy himself. In the final paragraph, he submits to the
civilizing influence of his wife, and puts on his coat, not because he cares
about appearing decent but because he couldn't be bothered to resist her.
He just wants to get back to his lab.
The bacteriologist is portrayed as intelligent. He wants to show off, shown as
a boastful person towards the end of the story this is described.

Wells has thrown light on the character sketches too. The

bacteriologist can be summed up as an obsessed scientist,
philanthropist, and a submissive husband. His boastful nature plays
a crucial role in advocating terrorism. His human side is shown as
he wishes to kill and stain' every bacterium in the world. However,
his unethical side is shown as he doesn't bother to stop the anarchist and
intends, is thinks of returning to the laboratory and carrying on with his
research. He is least concerned about the after effects of letting him loose.

The Anarchist
When his first plan fails and he swallows the vial's contents himself,
the Anarchist becomes a suicidal martyr to his cause and no longer
needs to escape his pursuers. He triumphantly confronts them and then
wanders off into the city, "carefully jostling his infected body against as
many people as possible".
Thanks to the Anarchist, London has now become the scientist's laboratory:
"things might look blue for this civilised city," he says. He jokes on the
behalf of this matter.
The anarchist is portrayed to be an unappealing character. He is
described as lank black hair and deep grey eyes, the haggard
expression adjectives such as haggard and lank gives an
unpleasant impression of the anarchist. The unattractive
description may also indicate the anarchists personality and
intentions.
Looking exhausted and unwell, especially from fatigue, worry, or
suffering.
The anarchist is a misanthrope. Desperate to earn some fame and upheaval
among common people he takes to this route. He is conspiring and aims to
do bad to mankind. He has little knowledge and readily falls for the
bacteriologist's trick. The anarchist calls others of his kind 'blind fools' to use
bombshells when such a thing is attainable. This highlight the blind faith the
anarchist had that the microbe was fatal. He is antagonist and through him
Wells shows the end all anarchists meet.
Minnie, the wife
As the bacteriologist chases the anarchist, his wife Minnie. When Minnie,
chases after him, concerned with preserving his him dignity of traveling
without formal clothes. Meanwhile the bacteriologist is concerned with a far
more important matter: to save London and possibly England. There is a
distinct contrast between the prospects of these two characters. This
creates a farcical kind of humour. The woman can almost be perceived as
unintelligent as she does not understand the danger of the virus, which both
the male characters clearly recognize. She does not grasp the fact that her
husband is trying to save the entire city, so she could also be discerned as
being quite nave or vain.

Minnie adds to the satirical humour of the story and illuminates the
character of the scientist. It is her who makes the bacteriologist a laughing
stock. She illustrates the eccentricities of the bacteriologist who is
acquiesces to her demands. She plays a minimal role and imposes her idea
of a civilised society on her husband.
2. Tone
The predominant emotion that the text is creating, suggesting.
Tensional tone
Ironic tone, sarcastic tone almost satirical sometimes
The irony is also emphasized through the comical elements in the story

Informal tone
There is a great build-up of the danger of the virus throughout the story
as well as a great deal of emphasis on the trouble the anarchist went
through to obtain the virus. In the end when the reader finds that the
anarchist did not have the cholera virus, it completely demeans the extent
to which the anarchist has gone through to destroy London.
Emphasis on the obsession the Anarchist develops of the virus these
mere atomies, might multiply and devastate a city! Wonderful!
and devouring the little tubes with his eyes
The bacteriologist who misleads the readers and the anarchist
into thinking that the vial contains cholera emphasized by the
metaphor Yes, here is the pestilence imprisoned making a reference
to the biblical four horsemen (Revelations)
Wells observes the three unities of time, place and action and maintains an
element of suspense till the little twist in the tale. He has used irony
to accent the message of the story. A sense of aversion is felt towards
the disillusioned anarchist who is an enemy of the humanitarian race,
whilst one pities Minnie who is married to a crazy scientist. He evokes
emotions like surprise and panic and enthrals, captivates, and excites
the readers.
The Stolen Bacillus' is a thrilling satire on the probable role scientists play
in promoting bio-terrorism and expresses his gloomy outlook on the
future human race.
3. Setting

The story takes place in London, towards the end of the XIX century.
The deus ex machina of the bacteriologist's mistakes, while perhaps leaving
an unsatisfying ending, does prove anxiogenic.

In a time before public health was tied to national security, the story asked
Victorian readers to consider what kind of people are responsible for
containing these newly discovered life forms. Hopefully, no one can be as
careless as the protagonist in this story.
More interesting, however, is the story's description of the foreigner, who is
not Teutonic or Latin, which suggests he is perhaps Eastern in origin.
Furthermore, his description is indicative of degeneracy--a prevalent
anxiety at the fin de sicle: the foreigner is pale "pale" and possess a "limp
white hand."
The story conflates political, biological, and foreign threats to social order,
suggests that British technological developments are perhaps becoming as
much a danger as they are aids to the safety of the empire.
H.G Wells was a prominent English author and futurist. He was well ahead of
his time. He is known for his significant contribution to the literary genre of
science fiction. Wells promoted disarmament and peace throughout his life,
depicting the dark side of human nature and warning about the misuse of
science and technology.
The story exposes the theme of bio-terrorism and anarchism. It conveys the
effects and da ages the abuse of science could have on the humans by
starkly contrasting anarchism with humanitarianism. He has taught that
scientists should lend a helping hand to prevent such nefarious use of
research and should pursue it to advance of well being and comprehension
of the universe. It should be done with a sense of responsibility and
recognition of the immense power of knowledge.
4. Register, vocabulary, sentence structure and semantic fields.
Literary Techniques
Personification
Seeking his victims
The use of personification emphasizes; how deadly the bacillus is by
comparing it to a murderer.
Colloquial Language
Strike me giddy!
The use of speech creates a contrast to the tension created in the story
Repetition
Death, death, death!- Rule of three that emphasizes how deadly the virus
is and what a devastating the effect it would have on London.
Onomatopoeic words slam, swish, whipped etc.
There is a twist in the plot at the end of the story, the virus is not actually
that of the cholera, but turns his skin purple.

The writer greatly describes the danger of the virus through various literary
techniques building the tension.
- He would follow the water mains picking out and punishing a house here
and a house there The writer uses personification to describe how lethal
the virus is and it also foreshadows, a possible tragic ending.
H.G Wells gives a vivid description of the effects of the bacteria, making
the reader anxious, anticipating the end the end of the story.