1,039 words (5–6 minutes)
Genre(s): Satirical fiction, Speculative fiction
Originally published posthumously in The Cornhill Magazine, February 1897

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In a clever satire set on a West Indian island, a curious ape escapes a vivisectionist’s lab and returns to his clan full of scientific zeal. Declaring apes must progress like humans—beginning with vivisection—he launches a campaign that challenges both simian and human ethics. What unfolds is a darkly humorous fable about science without morality, the misuse of reason, and the perilous mirroring of human folly in the animal kingdom. Stevenson delivers a sharp critique wrapped in playful prose, inviting readers to question where true civility lies.