1. THE WAR OF THE WORLDS
H.G. WELLS
“We have learned now that we cannot regard
this planet as being fenced in and a secure
abiding place for Man; we can never anticipate
the unseen good or evil that may come upon us
suddenly out of space.”

2. H.G. Wells
“The Father of Science Fiction”
 Herbert GeorgeWells (September
21st 1866-August 13th 1946);
British author.
 Best known was his work with
science fiction, but also
contributed contemporary
novels, history, politics, and social
commentary.
 Wells worked as a teacher and
studied the sciences before
embarking on his writing.

3. The Victorian Age -
Characteristics
 The discoveries of science were a HUGE factor in the
literature of theVictorian Age.
 Stories reflect normal, daily life and practical problems;
characters like you and I.
 There is a moral dilemma;Victorians did not make art
for art’s sake (beauty).They created art to send a moral
message.
 The concept of man in relation to the universe is major;
evolution and Darwinism were heavy influences.
 IDEALS! Great ideals like truth, justice, love, and
brotherhood are emphasized byVictorian writers.

4. GENRE: Science Fiction
 Definition: Fiction dealing with the
impact of imagined innovations in science
or technology, often in a futuristic
setting.
 Science Fiction is different from fantasy
in that its imaginary elements are largely
possible.
 Characteristics:
 Based on scientific principles and technology.
 May make predictions about life in the future.
 Often deals with aliens or with life on other
worlds.
 Comments on important issues in society.

5. Examples of Science Fiction…

6. SUBGENRE: Invasion Literature
 Invasion literature refers to
works produced between 1871
and the FirstWorld War.
 These stories aroused
imaginations and anxieties
about hypothetical invasions by
foreign powers.
 Invasion literature became
recognizable in Britain in 1871
with The Battle of Dorking, a
fictional account of an invasion
of England by Germany.
 H.G.Wells draws from The
Battle of Dorking, but the
invaders are aliens rather than
men.
“Promised Horrors of the French
Invasion” – a cartoon by Britain’s
James Gillray

7. The War of the Worlds
 First published in 1898
 Setting: small towns in the
English countryside. However,
there is a mass exodus from
London.
 Narrator: first-person narrator;
the story is told from the
perspective of the protagonist, a
philosopher whose writing is
interrupted by the arrival of the
Martians.
 Conflict: MARTIANS ARE
INVADING! 

8. Themes to Think About…
 The possible submission of men
 LITERALLY: Martian Invasion
 SYMBOLICALLY: Men submitting to
machines (think about it-
industrialization!!!!!)
 The inhumanity of Imperialism
 Britain by this point had obtained many
colonies and they did not treat the natives
as equals.
 The horrors of war
 Science vs. Religion

9. Making Connections
 Many of the minor themes in this book relate
toWells’s own time.
 Along with Empire and industry came hardships,
particularly for the working-class.
 Wells draws upon his background in science.
 Darwin’s idea of “natural selection”, or, survival of
the fittest.

10. Orson Welles’s Radio Show
 Orson Welles directed/narrated an adapted radio drama
of TheWar of theWorlds as a Halloween episode.
 The episode was presented as a series of simulated
“news bulletins” depicting a Martian Invasion
 Listeners who did not hearWelles’s introduction tuned
in and believed this was happening; hysterical panic
broke out.