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The Empire of the Future: Imperialism and Modernism in H.G Wells By: Paul A. Cantor and Peter Hufnagel. Brought to You Wonderful People by:. Nick Fetter Jon King Jessi Drayer Ariana Reed. Wells’ is a Fraud!!. Wells is noted as one of the first science fiction writers
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The Empire of the Future: Imperialism and Modernism in H.G Wells By: Paul A. Cantor and Peter Hufnagel
Brought to You Wonderful People by: • Nick Fetter • Jon King • JessiDrayer • Ariana Reed
Wells’ is a Fraud!! • Wells is noted as one of the first science fiction writers • Candor and Hufnagel reveal that Wells copies ideas from writers such as H. Rider Haggard and Robert Louis Stevenson. • “It is therefore understandable that when he was trying to imagine a journey into the future, he ended up modeling it on something more familiar, a journey to the imperial frontier. (pg. 229)
Wells’ and British Society • Wells’ based his novel on the fears and trends of the British Societies at the time.
Space =Time • In novels of his time they traveled to prehistoric ages of the past • Wells’ reversed this prospective and travelled into the future. • Wells’ theory of time travel is that “time is only a kind of space.” (pg.7) • He took the idea of the fourth dimension from Einstein and Minkowski. (A physicist and Mathematician.)
Social Classes • Wells’ took the idea of the social classes of the Eloi and Morlocks from the imperialism he saw from his time. • He has the two most prominent classes in The Time Machine that portray the Upper and Middle Classes.
The author referred to the two classes as being good vs. evil. • The Eloi were described as child-like, friendly, and lived a simplistic lifestyle. • The Morlocks were hostile and cannibalistic. • He related it to the two tribes of modern novels.
The Time Traveler • Wells depicts the Time Traveler as a classic Victorian explorer. • He is superior to the Eloi and thinks he can learn their way of life. • “I feel like a Schoolmaster amongst children.” (pg.24)
Fall of the British Empire • Wells’ favorite book was the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire by Edward Gibbons. • The Sunset • “The sun never sets on the British Empire. (pg 238) • Museum • The Morlocks get revenge on the Eloi.
Additional Themes • Weena portrayed as Pocahontas- The Time Traveler uses her as a source of information. • Her Death- The author notes that in stories of the time the woman subject usually died. • The Sphinx- A symbol of the east. (Europe) • Orientalism- West vs. East