The Time Machine - H.G. Wells

cutelilduckie077 · Post by **cutelilduckie077** » Sat Jul 09, 2005 10:34 pm

There is a quote from "The Time Machine" by H.G. Wells that I don't quite get "Nature never appeals to intelligence until habit and instinct are useless." Please help!
Thanks,
-me

haro · Post by **haro** » Sun Jul 10, 2005 12:59 am

Duckie, the two sentences just following your quote may help making things clear: "There is no intelligence where there is no change and no need of change. Only those animals partake of intelligence that have to meet a huge variety of needs and dangers." In this context, 'to appeal' is not used in the sense of 'to please' (for instance in "Such films appeal to the masses") but in the sense of 'to resort to something' Maybe it was this ambiguity of the verb 'to appeal' that confused you.

Needless to say this doesn't make the quote much more comprehensible. Nature has often been able to cope with changes and and new demands without the slightest trace of intelligence. So, apart from the choice of words, H.G. Wells probably was downright wrong.

cutelilduckie077 · Post by **cutelilduckie077** » Sun Jul 10, 2005 4:34 pm

Thanks,I needed that for september...and it was the use of the word appeal that confused me. Thanks again!
-me

russcable · Post by **russcable** » Sun Jul 10, 2005 4:55 pm

IMHO, "appeal" here means "to ask for the aid of". The paragraph is saying that animals don't develop intelligence unless there is no other mechanism such as instinct that will allow them to cope with their environment. Seeing as there are very few (if any ^_^) intelligent organisms, this does make sense.

cutelilduckie077 · Post by **cutelilduckie077** » Sun Jul 10, 2005 5:51 pm

Thanks