The Time Machine

By H. G. Wells

In his quest to discover what the future holds for mankind, the Time Traveler creates an ingenious machine— a Time Machine that zips past sunsets, lands, oceans and centuries in the bat of an eyelid. However, instead of making pathbreaking discoveries, the Time Traveler encounters some harsh realities of life, both in the present and future. What happens when the Time Traveler gets stuck in the future? Will he choose to stay in this fantastical, unfamiliar world? Or will he come back home, to a place where no one believes him?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Wonder House Books
• Release date: Jul 25, 2020
• ISBN: 9789390183265

H. G. Wells

H.G. Wells is considered by many to be the father of science fiction. He was the author of numerous classics such as The Invisible Man, The Time Machine, The Island of Dr. Moreau, The War of the Worlds, and many more. 

Book preview

Chapter 1

A Class on Time Traveling

The Time Traveler was trying to explain a complicated issue to us. He was unusually excited and his pale gray eyes sparkled. The flames of the fires in the candles and lamps glowed deeply but softly. What added to the brightness was their reflection in the silverware and the bubbles of the drinks in our glass. It was post-dinner and our chairs felt extra soft and comfortable. We nursed our drinks and lazily admired his zest in telling us of his amusing ideas and theories.

‘I tell you one or two ideas that the whole world believes in except me. For example, geometry is a misunderstanding. A line of thickness equivalent to zero or even mathematical plane do not exist. Even a cube can’t exist with only length, breadth, and mass.’

‘That I don’t agree with. All real things exist…’ said Filby, a red-haired man with a quarrelsome personality.

‘A real body will extend in four directions: length, breadth, thickness, and duration. Three planes of Space, and the fourth dimension—Time.

There is no difference between Time and any of the three dimensions of Space except that our consciousness moves along it. Not everyone understands what this fourth dimension is. Space—with its three dimensions of length, breadth, and thickness—means three planes placed at right angles. But some want to know why not add another direction at right angles to the other three? Like how on a flat surface with two dimensions, one can showcase a three-dimensional figure, they assume that with objects of three dimensions, one can showcase four dimensions. Do you understand me?’

‘Yes, I can,’ whispered the Provincial Mayor; in deep thought, and moving his lips as if chanting a mantra.

‘I’ve been studying this geometry of four dimensions, and some of the things I have found are interesting,’ continued the Time Traveler. ‘Like, here is this man at age eight, then at 15, then 17, then 23… three-dimensions to his four-dimensioned being that is permanent and unchangeable. Time is one type of Space. Take this weather record. I’ll move my finger on the barometer to show you how it moves. See, yesterday it climbed so high, by night it fell, today morning it came up again. Mercury did not make that line in any of the three dimensions of space, but a line was made in what we can call Time-Dimension.’

‘Then, why can’t we move in Time as we do in the three dimensions of Space?’ asked the puzzled Medical Man, as he observed the coal in the fireplace.

‘Can we now? We can move right and left, step back and step ahead, but up and down? No! Gravity stops us.’

‘But you cannot move in time. You just can’t leave the present moment…’ said the Medical Man.

‘That is where everyone is wrong. We are always leaving the present moment with our thoughts. They don’t follow any dimension and in fact race through the Time Dimension from our birth to death,’ explained the Time Traveler. To remember an incident, all one had to do was go back in time to when it happened. ‘But though our time on earth is limited—and in that way we are just like any wild beast—a civilized man can cut through gravitation with his thoughts, as if in a balloon, where he can stop, increase the speed or even change direction and travel in the opposite direction.’

‘You can prove black is white by argument, but I won’t believe that,’ said Filby.

But the Time Traveler continued, ‘Long ago, I had thought of a machine that can move through Space and Time, in the direction its driver wants.’

A time machine?! exclaimed the Very Young Man. Filby started laughing.

‘I have experimental verification!’ said the Time Traveler in his defense.

‘A historian would love to travel back in time to confirm whether all that is written about the Battle of Hastings is right,’ observed the Psychologist.

Wouldn’t a time machine attract attention? asked the Medical Man. I don’t think our ancestors were very tolerant towards inconsistencies in things, people or events.

‘We will be able to understand the Greek that the philosophers, Homer and Plato, spoke,’ said the Very Young Man, adding, ‘We can save all our money, and can move ahead while its interest amount grows.’

‘Such crazy, lavish theories!’ exclaimed the Psychologist.

‘You are planning to verify this?’ I asked.

‘Show us the experiment, though it’s all humbug,’ said the Psychologist.

The Time Traveler smiled and slowly left the room. We heard him walk down the passage of his laboratory.

The Psychologist looked at us, unnerved, and asked, What do you think he’s got?

Chapter 2

Behold, It’s the Time Machine

‘This is just a trick,’ continued the Medical Man. Filby started telling us about a conjurer from Burslem, when the Time Traveler walked in again and we all grew quiet seeing the thing in his hand.

It was a shiny metal object, the size of a slightly large clock. It was filled with ivory and a see-through crystalline substance. He kept this object on an octagonal table in the room and sat on a chair next to it. A small lamp with shade stood on the table and its light lit up the mechanism. Overall, the room was well-lit with dozens of candles in brass candlesticks and in sconces. I pulled my low arm-chair closer to the Time Traveler. Filby was watching from behind him, the Medical Man and the Provincial Mayor were on his right, the Psychologist on his left, and the Very Young Man behind the Psychologist. I wondered how could any trick succeed in this situation where we all were on high alert, watching the Time Traveler’s every move.

‘This is my little machine to travel through time,’ said the Time Traveler, cupping it in his hands.

‘It has one white lever here and another, there. I took two years to make it. If you press this lever, the machine enters the future and the other one reverses the action. I am going to show you this, by pressing the lever. That will make the machine disappear into the future. So look at these closely. This is no trick.’

Then, he went to put his finger on the lever when he changed his mind and asked the Psychologist to press the lever instead. The lever turned and I realized this was no trick. There was a gust of wind; the table lamp and one of the mantelpiece candles went out. And the machine, with its shiny brass and ivory, vanished.

We all went quiet for a minute and then recovered. Filby said, ‘I’ll be damned,’ and the Psychologist searched for the machine below the table, while the Time Traveler laughed and began to fill his pipe with tobacco.

‘You actually believe that machine has gone to the future?’ blurted the Medical Man.

‘Yes,’ said the Time Traveler, as he lit his pipe and looked directly at the Psychologist who tried to light an uncut cigar to show that the vanishing act didn’t affect him at all. ‘I have almost completed working on a bigger machine in my laboratory. When it is ready, I plan to travel in it through time.’

‘So that machine has gone into the future?’ asked Filby.

‘Future or the past, I can’t be sure.’

‘It has to be the past,’ said the Psychologist, confidently. ‘If it had gone into the future, we would’ve still seen it here.’

‘But if it headed into the past, we would’ve seen it when we entered this room, or all the past Thursdays we’ve been here,’ I said.

‘Do you have an explanation for your claim?’ the Time Traveler asked the Psychologist.

‘I do. You see, it’s not possible to view or admire the machine, which like a spinning wheel or flying bullet, travels 50–100 times faster than us in time. Leaving us to see it only for 1/50th or 1/100th of the time than what we would’ve seen it if it wasn’t moving in time,’ explained the Psychologist, moving his hand where the machine was.

That

Reviews for The Time Machine

[kslade-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Great old time travel story.

[sjh4255 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A classic book that is still very relevant in todays world. This is a book of a time traveller who travels to the very distant future, and sees what humans evolve into. The result is a comparison to todays society and the differences between the classes to the extreme level. This is a short read, but definitely a recommended book. Mr Wells does a great job in making this book brief on the cultures and technology of the late 1800s so that it can still be read today without difficulty in relating to the main characters story.

[neil_luvs_books · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

This was somewhat disappointing. I have been wanting to read this book for decades and finally this week decided to pull it off the shelf and read it. I read Wells’ The Invisible Man and The War Of The Worlds way back when I was in grade school and remember being enthralled by TWOTW but finding TIM a little tedious. TTM was not tedious but not great as I was expecting it to be. I think the problem is two-fold. One, the writing style is from the 19th C and so not as captivating as contemporary writing. Second, I think I know the story too well from films that are based upon it that there was nothing new while I was reading - I knew what was going to happen before I turned the page. Which is unfortunate. I wonder if for these older classics they now need to be read while one is young before reading derivative material dims their impact. If I try to imagine what it must have been like to read this when first released at the turn of the last century, it must have been great. But reading now in my 5th decade in the 21st C, not so much.

[karlstar_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The time machine is still a scifi classic. While you have to take a leap of faith with regards to the science and technology, the story itself is fascinating. Are our descendants really destined to become morlocks?

[anniemod · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I was absolutely sure I had read this novel - it is an early classic, the first time travel story (which is one of my favorite genres) and yet it did not feel familiar when I read it. It is possible that I had read it either so early in my life that most of the story had disappeared from my head or that it was an abridgement. In either case, a planned reread turned into reading a new novel that I enjoyed very much. The story is simple - or at least appears to be - a guy invents a time machine, goes in the future and comes to tell his friends what he saw there. That part as novel as it was for the end of the 19th century is a known trope these days. And as much as that is an important development for the genre, it is also the part where Wells, in his normal style, does a lot of hand-waving so he can get to the real story - the story of the Earth in the future. I cannot not wonder what would have Verne done with this story -- I suspect that he would have turned it into a scientific novel with very little real future history - but then these were the styles of the two fathers of Science Fiction. But back to the story -- our traveler ends up in the year 802,701 and finds an idyllic world there - the sun is shining, people spend their time in leisure and pleasure. But something does not look right - he expected to see highly technological society and found a garden, almost like the garden of Eden - which very soon turns out to be everything but. Humanity had managed to do into two different species - one on the surface, living in leisure and one under the ground, supporting them. And somewhere along the long millennia, things had gone horribly wrong and the underworld people, the Morlocks, are not something that the traveler wants to believe the humanity can devolve into. The social commentary on this future world is writing itself - even in the parts that Wells does not mention. The traveler finds and loses a companion - despite the differences, the people above the ground are still people and he can flirt with Weena easily enough. And that opens other questions - because if we follow the logic, the people still in the open are the ones that caused the separation and exploited everyone else and yet... they seem to have kept their humanity - in some ways anyway. The Time Traveler does not stop there - he pushes ever further along. The next stop is more than distressing (but at least there are still some creatures that seem to be people) and the last one is the end of the world -- it a tide-locked world, humans are all gone (well... unless we somehow ended up in the water). The part with the second stop was cut from the first publication of the novel as a whole - although noone knows if it was by design or simply a mistake. I find the novel a lot more powerful because of it. And the end of the novel is as mysterious as the whole story - having told the story our traveler goes away again - and his friend is still waiting for him. He speculates on where he may be... but it is left to the reader to decide if he went away for love or for an adventure. And if someone does not believe the story, there are those two flowers that do not exist in our world -- the symbols of love and friendship and the proof if one needs one. There are a few eyebrow raising moments (who he compares the Eloi (the above ground people) to for example) but because the novel is mostly set in the future and the characters in the here and there are more of archetypes than people, the novel actually does not sound dated or worse. And considering when it was written, it sound more modern than a lot of novels written 50 years later. The edition I read had two introduction - one by George Zebrowski and one by Brian Aldiss (printed as an Afterword). Both are very good and neither should be read by someone who had not read the novel. One of those days someone will figure out how to write an introduction that does not spoil the complete novel...

[mike__m · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I've read this several times over the years, and come back to it now and then. Like all of Wells's famous tales, the "science fiction" is really just an excuse to create a space to explore his socio-political ideas. The Time machine works well for his purpose, and remains a favorite.For anyone who hasn't yet read this, and is wondering if they'd want to read it, just consider that some people like fiction written more than a century ago, and some people don't. If you like your science fiction with airbrushed covers showing people in tight-fitting space suits wielding futuristic weapons in heroic poses, you might prefer to pass this one by. If you're OK with fiction employing Nineteenth Century conventions, check it out.I chose to listen to the story this time because Derek Jacobi was reading. He didn't disappoint.

[mbmackay · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Very early sci-fi from one of the writers credited with creating the genre.This is more of a short story/novella than a full book - only about 80 pages.The idea is good, and there are some interesting insights into the concept of time travel, but, sadly, it seems a little lacking by current standards. The "new world" seems very much to be limited to issues current in Wells' old world.

[gaillamontagne · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I chose this book because it was read by Scott Brick. Love his voice. I have seen the movie several times starring Rod Taylor. I wanted to know how it was originally written. Older authors like H.G. Wells have a wordy style of writing which can be difficult for the contemporary listener. To my surprise, Wells wasn't just writing a sensational sy-fy story, he is making a statement about the tendencies of man to degenerate as opposed to the Star Trek theory of man evolving up to a more civilized life form. The "time traveler", as the main character is referenced, returns to his own time from his journey into the future and relates to his listeners exactly what he saw. The traveler found man de-evolved into a split society where the stronger prey on the weak and ignorant. Worse yet, man denigrates into a species of animal that doesn't help its own and/ or, turns to cannibalism for a food source without any morality.This futuristic world has no God, no laws, no morals, and all of man has become a farmed animal in the ruins of old civilizations with "farmers" living below ground who eat those who live above ground . Wells' basic message is that man is de-evolving.He makes no mention of God. As he goes further into the future in his time machine, after escaping from the Morlocks, he is shocked when he sees the earth in a state of being, "null and void", giving a message of no hope. This is not the end- of- civilization message which I personally believe.( Revelation Chapter 22 is the real end of History.)

[pdcread · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Set very firmly in the Victorian age, the primary character is a English gentleman and scientist living in Richmond. It starts as a dinner part as he explains to his guests the concept of time and shows them a model of a time machine he has made, and reveals that he has a full size one.

A week later he regals them with his first adventure using the device when he travelled to the year 802,701. In this strange land he comes across the Eloi, a small race of humanoid people, who live in small communities. Their very modern building are looking shabby and they do no work. he concludes that they are peaceful and have adapted to an environment that poses no threats.

Concluding his investigations he returns to his machine and finds it has been stolen. Locating it within a structure nearby, it has been locked away. As night falls he is approached by the sinister Morlocks, an ape like race that live in the dark. He investigates and find that this race are the ones who operate the machinery that enable the Eloi to live as they do. As he tries to recover his machine he gets to know the Eloi better, and explores the locality, find a ancient museum where he finds materials to enable him to recover his machine.

The Morlocks open the structure to trap him, but he uses it to escape to 30 million years in the future, when he sees the last life forms on the earth. He returns to his time, and recounts his tale to the dinner guests. He still has the flowers from this world, which he shows them. One of the guests returns the following day and finds that he is getting ready to travel again. He bids farewell, with promises to return within the hour.

The concept of time travel hadn't really occurred to most people in the Victorian age, most people were still coming to terms with standard time that the railways brought in. Wells uses his vivid imagination to bring to life these new lands that he finds, but there is precious little as to the function and style of the time machine. One that has been on my to read list for a long time, it does show that Wells is an original and innovative writer.

[thetruebookaddict · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is a really short read, but no less impactful. Wells really was ahead of his time in the prediction of man's future on earth. Yes, certainly, what he predicted for our future has not happened...yet...and we will never know in our lifetimes (or our childrens' lifetimes) if it will happen this way. But I believe the future of our world is bound to end up similarly, especially if mankind doesn't start changing its ways now. And, of course, it's a question of evolution as well. Wells was an expert craftsman in his depiction of the starkly different characters of the Eloi and the Morlocks. Again, for a very short book, the story packs quite a punch. I listened to it on audio and it was very easy book to listen to in this way.

[arkrayder · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A classic for a reason. I believe this story has stood the test of time and will continue to do so. H.G. Wells was ahead of his time. I really need to read his other works.

[scottcholstad · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Wells was a true visionary, a man clearly ahead of his time, and this is merely one of his masterpieces and remains fresh and relevant even today. It's not necessarily the best sci fi novel ever written, but it was the first "best" ever written and remains very high on the list today. Strongly recommended!

[danielstj · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A good book, one that is an epitome of early science fiction. I enjoyed the journey, but it was altogether short- but still plentiful of interesting happenings. It was heavily description based with the only dialogue returning when the Time traveller returns and recounts his story. Still, a worthwhile tale.

[coach_of_alva · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I think this must have been one of the first novels to warn that the future might not be a Utopia. I found convincing because the unhappy future wasn’t caused by the establishment of an evil dictatorship or the destruction from a catastrophe. No, it came about as the logical climax of certain social trends, trends that are continuing in our time.What I have learned listening to audio versions of Wells’ classic science fiction novels, which I read when I was young, is that he not only an idea man but also a good novelist, with much skill at scene setting, world building, sharp characterizations, and sheer story telling.Scott Brick portrays the Time Traveler as an upper-class adventurer with a sneer in his voice that his terrible experiences do nothing to remove.

[jonfaith · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Regina Spektor was on NPR today speaking with Terry Gross. The NPR interviewer accomplished no favors. She asked woefully stupid questions about the Soviet Union and its relationship to WWII. this originated when Spektor noted that growing up in the USSR she always felt that the Great Patriotic War had happened recently, given its absorption into the collective consciousness. Emigrating to the Bronx, she was struck that such wasn't a universal condition. Such made me think of The Time Machine.

As with most archetypes of speculative fiction, the premise had been closeted in my brainpan before opening the book, yet, this one succeeded, especially as a treatise on species within or over time. I'm curious what Spengler thought of this?

[deltaqueen50 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I can’t say that I actually enjoyed The Time Machine by H. G. Wells but the fact that it was originally published in 1895 and is one of the first books to explore the theory of time travel gives this short novel a special place in history.The story is of a Victorian scientist who creates a time machine and travels to the year AD 802701, where he discovers a childlike race of humanoids called the Eloi. They live in a decaying city which leads the scientist to believe these are the remnants of a great civilization. He then must change his theory when he meets the Morlocks, who are threatening ape-like creatures that live in the dark underground. The narrative reads much like a critique of the class system that was prevalent in Britain at that time bringing together Wells love of both science and politics.The Time Machine paints a rather bleak future for mankind but it does have a very dated feel to it so I never took the story very seriously. The invented machine also had sounded quite dated and downright uncomfortable, having the traveller seated out in open exposed to the weather and other dangers. But before one writes off this story, one should remember the countless stories of time travel that have followed, and each story owes H. G. Wells a tip of the hat.

[booklove2 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I'm trying to read some of the books that have such an influential impact, and I figure this might be one of them. If you already have a vague idea of a book because pop culture has mentioned it so much, then yes, it's probably influential. Maybe it was the unique yet diverse ideas that Wells had for each of his early books that made them influential. Also, Wells as a scientist probably made these books important, influencing his ideas and giving him the motivation to write them. I liked 'The Time Machine' much better than I thought. I never knew there was more than the Morlocks in the plot before reading. I loved all of the time traveler's ruminations on what might have happened to the earth and human beings through time. I especially loved the visions while the time traveler is in the time machine. The book reminded me of 'At the Mountains of Madness' by Lovecraft. And it also seems like the yin to the yang of Journey to the Center of the Earth' by Jules Verne but I don't want to spoil the plots by saying why. I love all three of these books... they should all be on the shelf side by side.

[john257hopper · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I thought a re-read of this seminal science fiction work was long overdue, as I hadn't read it for nearly 20 years. It deserves all the accolades it has received. It is a taut and crisp narrative of only a little over 100 pages, but within it contains many of the basic science fiction and time travel ideas that have formed a huge part of subsequent literature, film and ŧelevision; plus reflective parallels on class divisions and hostility in contemporary late Victorian Britain. A novel of ideas par excellence; it is of no importance that we never find out the Time Traveller's name.

[catzkc · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A little thick with the social allegory, but an entertaining read

[theampersand · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I read this one as a teen, but it's different, and, in some ways, better than I remember it. "The Time Machine" is, in some ways, an efficiently composed manly-man adventure story that comes complete with monsters, cool machines, and a beautiful, playfully sexual female companion. But in other ways you its a profoundly Modernist text that ably reflects the intellectual currents of its time. Both Darwin and Marx loom large here. Wells's take on human intelligence and endeavor seem directly drawn from the more muscular, violent interpretations of Darwinism: his deceptively peaceful future seems to contain a lesson about the necessity of struggle and suffering in human lives. Meanwhile, the future that the time traveler glimpses might also be described one of the possible fates that might, in the very long run, await a class-stratified society. I don't know too much about the author's politics -- though his character seems to have a low opinion of communism -- so it's hard for me to tell if this aspect of "The Time Machine" has more to do with socialist critique or the author's Englishness. Perhaps it's the latter: there's something about the Eloi, for all their tropical fruits and brightly colored robes, also reminded me of the sort of gently pastoral little folk you sometimes meet in British fantasy literature. After that, the book gets really wild, as the time traveler rockets billions of years into a far future where Earth has become both uninhabitable and almost unrecognizable. The images that Wells presents here are both memorably bizarre and desolate, and it's here that the book really earns its place in the cannon of dystopian science fiction. Indeed, for all the future's beautiful novelty, loneliness seems to be the emotional chord struck most often here. From being the only man with any need of his wits among the Eloi to being the human left to witness an earth taken over by strange, monstrous creatures, to being the only man at his dinner party who really believes that he has traveled in time, the time traveler is very much by himself at almost every stage of this book. Recommended as both a well-written story and an artifact of sorts from another intellectual age. Be careful what you wish for, Wells seems to be telling his readers: human progress doesn't always come as advertised.

[madepercy-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

One should always read the original classics and not assume that the bastardised versions of stories we see in popular culture contain a glimpse of the true theme of the original. This I have always known but it still strikes me how arrogant one must be to think that the original is too boring to present it as it was intended!

[joshuamichail · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

'The Time Machine' is a classic science fiction from well over 100 years ago, in which a man is stuck travelling into the future after having invented a time travelling machine. In H.G. Wells's story we get a peek at what the could look like at several stages, including into the far future. In this story Wells helps establish the classic science-based speculative fiction nature of sci-fi. 'The Time Machine' is a must read classic for anyone interested in science fiction. Numerous works since have paid homage and hark back to 'The Time Machine'. The story is entertaining and captivating, and I recommend reading it.

[writertomg · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Obviously, The Time Machine is a well-known classic. And from the 4 (of 5) star review, it's clear that I enjoyed it. So I'll skip that and go to some random thoughts...

I could not believe how short of a story it was. Calling it a novella is, in my opinion, a stretch. Having seen two movie versions, I thought myself familiar with the ins and outs of the story and couldn't believe how much of both movies is made up for the screenplays. I understand that an 80-page short story would need to be fleshed-out to be made into full-length movie, but WOW so much of the movies was changed and molded by the filmmakers. For starters, none of the Eloi or Morlocks speak. To be honest, I still have no idea how the time traveling main character learned their names. And the relationship between the female Eloi (Weena, the only named character) is more of a parent/child or babysitter/child than a love affair and seen in several adaptions, like the Guy Pearce movie.

Overall, it is definitely a fantastic novel. And one can easily see how it shaped and changed science fiction forever. I think everyone should forget the story of The Time Machine that they know from TV and movies and read this novella. A game changer.

[p_s_patrick · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Though over a 120 years old now, this has aged very well for science fiction (which I don't usually like), particularly the central idea of time travel. Aside from this, the other main scientific concept explored - human evolution and speciation, is handled less convincingly in some of its details (speaking as a biologist), though the general idea works quite well. Further aspects of the plot revolve around the basis of society, class, and being human, and these work together with the scientific ideas to provide more for both the protagonist and reader to contemplate. Together this short novel is really very rich in its use of concepts, and these emerge naturally out of the events so that it can be appreciated on more than one level by either educated adults or younger readers.As a story it is told with a particular humour that I appreciated, and with an atmosphere that draws you right into the moment. There could have been slightly more action and edge-of-the-seat events, and a bit less predictability, but there was sufficient pace to maintain interest most of the time. As this is a relatively short novel at 102 pages, it would be difficult not to recommend this to most readers. It may alter how you see society and the world and the human condition, as well the historical and cosmic context of our time on earth.

[tysonadams · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I wonder if vegans object to the Morlocks' diet?

In what is now a classic of the Science Fiction genre, an un-named narrator has local dignitaries over to his place once a week to tell tall tales and show off his latest inventions to. On one of these evenings he limps in the worse for wear, in desperate need of a steak, and discusses his pocket flower collection.

When I was a kid I read a lot of the classic science fiction stories from the likes of HG Wells and Jules Verne. It has been so long since I've read them that I thought it was time to revisit these classics. While I can still fondly remember the 1960 movie - let us not speak of the 2002 adaptation ever - the book felt unfamiliar and akin to virgin reading material.

Whilst The Time Machine does deserve its place in history for influencing/creating Science Fiction as we know it (fantastical ideas explored, social issues analogised), as a novel it is lacking. One example of this is the lack of tension in scenes that are literally life or death struggles. Instead of fearing for the narrator's life and wondering how he'll survive, we are treated to a recounting of the events that could have instead been describing someone having a cup of tea while watching the rain out of the dining room window. A wondrous adventure told as though it was just another day at the office.

[ghr4 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

H.G. Wells's groundbreaking 1895 novel The Time Machine remains a highly captivating story of time travel to the distant year 802,701 and the de-evolution of mankind. The narrative style in which the Time Traveller recounts his adventure to his astonished friends works well, particularly as the pieces together the elements he encounters in that strange world of the future; with the gathering of new clues his thoughts and theories evolve until he ultimately realizes he horrifying truth of the Eloi and the Morlocks (although early on Wells does casually drop in a sly morsel of wry foreshadowing). One of the first and still one of the best of the science fiction genre. Wollheim's introduction in the Airmont Classics paperback edition provides fascinating insights into the Wells's earlier iterations of the story.

[nx74defiant · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Classic. An unnamed time traveler tells his tale. His listeners don't believe him of course. He skips from his time to the distant future. No stops in-between like the movie.

[brannonsg · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A surprisingly short enjoyable book that demonstrates changing vocabulary over time. Most of the book is narrative given as a first-hand report of the Time Traveller. He recounts his adventure exploring the future in riveting fashion to a group of mostly speculative listeners. He had me hanging on every word, looking and hoping for resolution and salvation. His narration is sprinkled with words no longer in common use, requiring the use of a dictionary from time to time, never a bad thing. Thoroughly enjoyable.

[lord_boris-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A strong three stars. Man travels in time to the year 802,701 and comes back with a thinly veiled warning to a rich and indolent society. A society that has perhaps succeeded in "ameliorating the conditions of life to a climax."

"There is no intelligence where there is no change and no need of change. Only those animals partake of intelligence that have to meet a huge variety of needs and dangers."

A short but enjoyable tale. My main criticism was the lack of vividness when describing the physical world of 802,701. The imagination could have done with a few more pointers to properly picture it. The chapter near the end where he goes even further into the future and finds himself on a desolate beach in front of the dying, red sun was brilliant.

[thefallingalice · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Der ZeitreisendeDie Erzählung beginnt zum Ende des 19. Jahrhunderts, wo es dem Protagonisten des Buches gelingt eine Maschine zu bauen, die ihn durch die vierte Dimension tragen soll: Die Zeit.Und das soll sein einziger Name werden: Der Zeitreisende. Von Euphorie erfüllt berichtet einer Versammlung ungläubiger Freunde und Bekannter von seiner Erfindung. Doch niemand nimmt sein Gerede wirklich ernst. Zeitreisen?Ihre Meinung soll sich jedoch ändern, als er eines Tages völlig zerkratzt und verschmutzt auftaucht. Noch aufgeregt berichtet er von seinem Abenteuer:Die Zeitmaschine brachte ihn ins Jahr 802.701. Kaum hatte er sich vom Schreck und von den Unannehmlichkeiten der Reise erholt, kam es auch schon zum Erstkontakt mit den Bewohnern. Was ihm berichtet wird, fasziniert ihn vollkommen. Die Erde wird von lediglich zwei Schichten bevölkert wird: Den Eloi und den Mordocks.Die Eloi bevölkern die Erdoberfläche. Sie scheinen glückliche und zufriedene Wesen zu sein, die ihrem Alltag fröhlich und naiv entgegensehen. Ihnen scheint es an nichts zu mangeln, sie müssen sich keine Sorgen machen. Nur die Angst vor der Dunkelheit lässt sie des Nachts nicht ruhig schlafen.Denn unterirdisch leben die Morlocks. Sie kommen nur in der Dunkelheit an die Oberfläche. Sie verbreiten Angst und Schrecken. Dort, wo sie herkommen gibt es keine Nahrung und oft verschleppen sie die unschuldigen Elois. Sie sind bösartig und grausam. So glaubt der Zeitreisende.Science Fiction als GesellschaftskritikWells´ Roman gilt als Pionierroman der Science Fiction insbesondere im Gebiet des Zeitreisens. Diesen Roman ordnet er selbst zu seinen „scientific romances“, die die ersten drei Romane seines Schaffens umfassen und heute in das Genre der Science Fiction eingeordnet werden können.In seinem Roman versucht Wells eine zukünftige Welt zu beschreiben, die zunächst als eine Art Utopie erscheint. Doch so oberflächlich der Zeitreisende im Roman zunächst das Jahr 802.701 betrachtet, muss auch er später feststellen, dass seine Vermutungen und die Schilderungen der Eloi nur wenig Wahrheit beinhalten.Denn geht man tiefer und nähert sich der eigentlichen Wahrheit, muss man feststellen, dass die Welt, die der Zeitreisende dort betreten hat, einem Schlachthaus ähnelt. Was früher Menschen waren, sind heute nur noch verschrumpelte Wesen. Die zu Zeiten des Zeitreisenden noch viel gelobte Technik und die ausgefeilte Sprache als Mittel zur Kommunikation sind verkümmert. All das entstand aus der immer größer werdenden Schere zwischen Arm und Reich. Die einen schwingen sich Herrschern über die anderen auf. Damit kritisiert der Autor auch zu seine Lebzeiten gesellschaftlichen britischen Verhältnisse.Jedoch hat seine Mahnung auch heute nicht viel an seiner Aktualität verloren.Ein zeitloser RomanDie Zeitmaschine ist ein durchaus zeitloser Roman.Wells wählte für seine Erzählung ein weit entferntes Jahr. Er verzichtet auf Beschreibungen von möglicher technischer Geräte in der Zukunft, die einen Roman oft unglaubwürdig machen – spätestens wenn seine Jahreszahl für die Menschen zur Wirklichkeit geworden ist.So schafft er es – nicht letztendlich auch durch eine großartige Sprache – die Glaubwürdigkeit des Romans auch über Jahrzehnte und Jahrhunderte aufrecht zu erhalten. Die Geschichte passt in jede Zeit, kann von jeder neuen Generation mit dem größten Vergnügen verschlungen werden und verliert nichts von seinem Charme und seiner Aktualität.So kann der Autor sich auf das konzentrieren, was wirklich im Vordergrund stehen soll: Der gesellschaftliche Wandel und die Probleme die damit einhergehen können. Und dadurch, dass der Autor nicht mit seiner Kritik spart und immer wieder Menschen zum Nachdenken anregen kann, gibt es vielleicht ein kleines Fünkchen Hoffnung auf eine bessere und verantwortungsvollere Zukunft. Aber nur vielleicht.