The Mind of Mr Soames by Maine Charles Eric

Author:Maine, Charles Eric [Maine, Charles Eric]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fiction.Sci-Fi, Adapted into Film
ISBN: 9780450030055
Goodreads: 1330871
Publisher: New English Library
Published: 1961-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

10

‘I’m afraid our Mr Soames exploded like an A-bomb,’ Conway was saying. Ann Henderson, reclining on her narrow bed and smoking a cigarette, eyed him with absorbed interest.

‘It’s difficult to understand just why he reacted so positively and violently,’ he went on. ‘The girl herself acted as the trigger, of course. She could hardly have had more basic sex appeal. I suppose poor old Mr Soames found himself responding without knowing why and without realising what it was all about.’

‘At least it’s a healthy sign,’ she commented. ‘It means that in spite of his monastic environment, his instincts are uncompromisingly heterosexual.’

‘He’s always been very single-minded about what he likes and what he doesn’t like,’ Conway observed. ‘There seems little doubt that he found Toni’s nearness pleasurable in an irresistible way. It’s interesting to speculate what he would have done about it if we hadn’t intervened.’

‘He’d have learned the hard way, but he’d have learned sooner or later.’

Conway frowned. ‘I’m not so sure. Instincts are vague and generalised. As it is we shall never know, and Mr Soames himself will wake up in complete ignorance of the real reason for the chain reaction that took place.’

‘But he’s learned something.’

‘Quite. He’s learned that there are certain types of human beings who have a different shape, who look different and feel different, who are tremendously exciting in some indefinable way. I’m afraid we can’t just leave it at that.’

‘What can anyone do about it, apart from providing him with another girl for experimental purposes?’

He shrugged helplessly. ‘I don’t know. We had a long conference in Dr Breuer’s office immediately after the event. There were some harsh exchanges between Breuer and Takaito, and I’m not at all sure that Takaito isn’t right.’

‘What did he say?’

‘Well, Takaito feels that Mr Soames ought to be released forthwith—that in keeping him here at the Institute we are destroying his chances of ever achieving a normal life. He thinks Soames should have been allowed to live a normal life from the first, with a certain degree of supervision to prevent him from coming into conflict with the law. He would learn by experience, and attend a special school in a kind of communal training scheme as a member of a class of about a dozen people, men and women mixed, of the same age group.’

He paused for a moment to light a cigarette. Ann was watching him solemnly, thoughtfully.

‘This morning Takaito made a series of unofficial tests on Mr Soames using drugs and some electrical equipment he brought with him. He estimates that Soames has an exceptionally high I.Q.-around one twenty.’

‘Then why does he learn things so slowly?’

‘That’s just the point,’ Conway emphasised. ‘He learns quickly. He has a great capacity for learning, but he stubbornly refuses to use it. He is actively rejecting the instruction that is offered to him. His alert mind is busy acquiring attitudes and prejudices instead of academic knowledge.’

‘Yes, I see what you mean,’ she murmured. ‘He is virtually a prisoner and he associates learning with the general pattern of discipline and restriction.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.