Throughout history, there has been a conflict between the capitalist economy and the communist economy. In his novel, The Invisible Man, H.G. Wells shows the flaws in capitalism. He portrays Griffin as a pure consumer, and uses the humor that invisibility causes to show why communism is a more perfect system. Wells demonstrates the shortcomings of capitalism by using symbolism and irony.
Wells uses Griffin and his invisibility to symbolize capitalism. Wells can easily accomplish this idea because he is writing science fiction. The idea of science fiction is that of things that exist only in imagination. Therefore, Wells decides to make invisibility represent capitalism. For this, he chooses the main character, Griffin. Paul A. Cantor believes that, “Griffin's invisibility… largely has economic effects- above all, on the movement and transfer of money” (Cantor 101). Invisibility grants Griffin the ability to transfer money that is not only harder to track, but without limits, and without structure. Capitalism shares many of these characteristics, as there are no limits in capitalism and the flow of money is unpredictable. Cantor goes on to explicitly state, “Wells calls attention to the difficulty of tracing the movement of money” (Cantor 101). Griffin's invisibility facilitates the straightforward way of moving money without anyone noticing. This is something that happens easily in capitalism as well. People report seeing “flying money” when Griffin walks through Iping holding money because they cannot see Griffin holding it. “The story of the flying money was true. And all about the neighborhood…money had been quietly and dexterously making off that day in handfuls…floating along by walls…dodging quickly from the eyes of approaching men” (Wells 122-123). It is hard to trace money when an invisible person is running around with it, just as it is in capitalism, where cash is nearly untraceable. Cantor also says, “Thus Griffin serves Well's representation of homo economicus, the man who pursues his rational self interest… in particular, the Invisible Man becomes Well's symbol of the pure consumer” ( Cantor 104). Griffin focuses much of his attention on acquiring money, as seen when he steals from his dad and the vicar. Therefore he represents what Wells apparently feels is a pure consumer. It is clear that Wells uses Griffin to represent capitalism
Wells also shows the symbolism in a way that is more abstract. When Griffin removes his bandages, Wells says, “They were prepared for scars… horrors, but nothing!” (Wells 63). One cannot see Griffin, and the people of Iping therefore believe that he has no heart or soul and in an unusual way, neither does capitalism. There is no room for a conscience in capitalism, as people are only concerned with their own well-being. This shows another way Wells connects Griffin and capitalism.
Wells goes further to highlight the ways in which Griffin is symbolic of capitalism. Wells makes Griffin's flaws represent capitalism's flaws. Cantor believes that, “Griffin's invisibility oddly comes to symbolize the weakness and vulnerability of modern man, the way he becomes a non entity under the pressure of mass society, the way he gets lost in the shuffle of the urban crowd” (Cantor 103). This is most notable in London, where Griffin is not only invisible due to his scientific experiments, but also just due to the size of the city, where people do not notice him, and neighbors can go on living without knowing each other. He is also invisible in the way that he is loner, a social outcast. He does not fit in with “normal society” because not only is he invisible but also because he stood out physically before he was invisible. This is revealed to the reader at Kemp's house when Griffin describes himself during his college years as, “A younger student, almost albino, six feet high, and broad, with a pink and white face and red eyes” (Griffin 143). Robert Sirabian wrote, “His whiteness symbolically suggests the effects of invisibility, but more pointedly underscores his outcast status, and individual who looks different, not normal” (Sirabian 95). A six-foot tall albino would stand out physically, but in Griffin's case, would also be a loner, and become invisible to people in the emotional sense. Therefore, Griffin is both figuratively and literally invisible.
Wells characterizes Griffin early on as easily agitated and confrontational. He frequently gets into fights and always seems to cause confusion. When he was caught after stealing from the vicar, a fight broke out between him and the cop. “In another second there was a simultaneous rush upon the struggle, and a stranger coming into the road suddenly might have thought an exceptionally savage game of rugby football was in process” (Wells 104). People often think of the stock market, a major symbol of the free market, as a confusing place, with many different things going on at once. Griffin causes confusion and fighting and so does capitalism. This is why Griffin represents capitalism, because Wells believes they share so many similar qualities. Griffin also causes confusion when he reveals to the citizens of Iping that he is invisible and can avoid their pursuit. The citizens consequently became very nervous. “There were excited cries of "Hold him"…and then came to a panic” (Wells 72). Everyone realized that it would be very hard to hold Griffin when he is Invisible and that they just let him get away by allowing him to remove his clothes. It is also hard to “hold” capitalism, meaning hard to control. Capitalism can also cause panic, as there is no guaranteed income or job security. The flaws of capitalism are related to Griffin's flaws. His unpredictability, mercurial temperament, difficulty to see and control, are all characteristics shared by capitalism. This proves that Wells uses Griffin's shortcomings to represents capitalism's.
