# Inversion of Morality in Erewhon

> Theme guide for Erewhon by Samuel Butler.

The Erewhonians treat physical illness as a crime punishable by law, while moral failings like theft or fraud are treated as illnesses requiring medical care, satirizing Victorian society's arbitrary moral codes.

## Where it surfaces

- [Erewhon](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/erewhon_se/chapters/erewhon): Erewhonian society treats illness as a crime and crime as a misfortune, inverting conventional moral judgments.
- [VII: First Impressions](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/erewhon_se/chapters/vii-first-impressions): The Erewhonians treat possession of a watch as a crime, inverting the European moral framework where such objects are valued.
- [VIII: In Prison](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/erewhon_se/chapters/viii-in-prison): Illness is treated as a crime, while moral failings like embezzlement are seen as recoverable ailments.
- [To the Metropolis](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/erewhon_se/chapters/ix-to-the-metropolis): Embezzlement is socially acceptable while poverty is criminalized, highlighting the topsy-turvy moral code of Erewhon.
- [Current Opinions](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/erewhon_se/chapters/x-current-opinions): Erewhon inverts Victorian morality: crime is treated as illness requiring medical treatment, while physical illness is hidden and stigmatized.
- [XI: Some Erewhonian Trials](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/erewhon_se/chapters/xi-some-erewhonian-trials): Erewhonian law punishes misfortune and illness as crimes, while rewarding luck and health, reversing conventional moral judgments.
- [XII: Malcontents](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/erewhon_se/chapters/xii-malcontents): Erewhon punishes illness as a crime, inverting conventional moral judgments about health and disease.
- [XIII: The Views of the Erewhonians Concerning Death](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/erewhon_se/chapters/xiii-the-views-of-the-erewhonians-concerning-death): Erewhonians invert conventional moral attitudes: death is less abhorrent than disease, childbirth is treated as a shameful illness, and statues are destroyed after fifty years.
- [XIV: Mahaina](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/erewhon_se/chapters/xiv-mahaina): Erewhon's inversion of moral and physical responsibility is highlighted: illness is treated as a crime, while moral failings like dipsomania are discussed as if they were physical ailments.
- [XIX: The World of the Unborn](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/erewhon_se/chapters/xix-the-world-of-the-unborn): Erewhon inverts conventional morality by treating birth as a capital crime and suicide as the means to enter life, challenging the reader's assumptions about good and evil.
- [The Colleges of Unreason](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/erewhon_se/chapters/xxi-the-colleges-of-unreason): The society values unreason as a complement to reason, inverting the typical moral and intellectual priorities, and justifying inconsistency and evasion as necessary for daily life.
- [XXIII: The Book of the Machines](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/erewhon_se/chapters/xxiii-the-book-of-the-machines): The argument inverts typical moral assumptions by suggesting machines might be a threat requiring preemptive destruction.
- [XXIV: The Machines—Continued](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/erewhon_se/chapters/xxiv-the-machines-continued): The Erewhonian text inverts the typical view of machines as servants, arguing they are actually masters that enslave humanity.
- [XXV: The Machines—Concluded](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/erewhon_se/chapters/xxv-the-machines-concluded): Erewhonian society inverts moral values by treating mechanical progress as a threat worthy of destruction, while illness is criminalized.
- [XXVI: The Views of an Erewhonian Prophet Concerning the Rights of Animals](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/erewhon_se/chapters/xxvi-the-views-of-an-erewhonian-prophet-concerning-the-rights-of-animals): The prophet's teachings invert conventional morality by making the killing of animals for food a crime, while common sense and nature are portrayed as the true guides.
- [The Views of an Erewhonian Prophet Concerning the Rights of Vegetables](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/erewhon_se/chapters/xxvii-the-views-of-an-erewhonian-prophet-concerning-the-rights-of-vegetables): The philosopher inverts conventional morality by arguing that eating vegetables is as sinful as eating meat, leading to absurd dietary restrictions.
- [Escape](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/erewhon_se/chapters/xxviii-escape): The narrator is to be prosecuted for 'measles' while his deceitful escape plan is seen as legitimate by the Erewhonians.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/erewhon_se/themes/inversion_of_morality
- Themes index: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/erewhon_se/themes