Literature is a curious thing, it allows an author to express themselves in any way they what.
Whether they express themselves in a literal and direct way, or through indirect plot scenarios and ___ is up to the author. Herbert Gray Wells was an author who did just that. His works of science fiction resonated many common beliefs of his era. Not only that, but he had a way to express his own beliefs.
In terms of his famous work of science fiction “The Time Machine,” he presented many of the well known beliefs of his time such as a sense of imperialism and other Victorian values. With all of these elements of the Victorian Era there is a debate on whether racism was a theme in “The Time Machine.”
This was perhaps one of the least obvious …show more content…
In regards to race, the Victorian sentiment was that the British were superior to everyone else. “It was rather a consequence of changes within the social and political temper of English Society itself” that caused this change(2).This naturally led to racism in Britain, much of which was aimed towards the African American slaves. Wells however, was not an outright supporter of racism. At the time of writing “The Time Machine,” he did not speak against racism as if it were wrong, but he didn 't say it was correct either. However, when looking at the book one can see many instances of racism between the Time Traveler and the two future races. One can only wonder if those instances of racism in “The Time Machine” are Wells ' own beliefs or just reflections of the Victorian Era.
With background knowledge of Wells ' time, it is easier to understand the intentional or unintentional racism. From the start of the Time Traveler’s journey in the year 802,701 we can see moments of prejudice shown towards the newly found Eloi. When he first encounters the Eloi he expresses his disappointment towards the species that the humans evolve into. He does so by expressing how their stupidity
Whether they express themselves in a literal and direct way, or through indirect plot scenarios and ___ is up to the author. Herbert Gray Wells was an author who did just that. His works of science fiction resonated many common beliefs of his era. Not only that, but he had a way to express his own beliefs.
In terms of his famous work of science fiction “The Time Machine,” he presented many of the well known beliefs of his time such as a sense of imperialism and other Victorian values. With all of these elements of the Victorian Era there is a debate on whether racism was a theme in “The Time Machine.”
This was perhaps one of the least obvious …show more content…
In regards to race, the Victorian sentiment was that the British were superior to everyone else. “It was rather a consequence of changes within the social and political temper of English Society itself” that caused this change(2).This naturally led to racism in Britain, much of which was aimed towards the African American slaves. Wells however, was not an outright supporter of racism. At the time of writing “The Time Machine,” he did not speak against racism as if it were wrong, but he didn 't say it was correct either. However, when looking at the book one can see many instances of racism between the Time Traveler and the two future races. One can only wonder if those instances of racism in “The Time Machine” are Wells ' own beliefs or just reflections of the Victorian Era.
With background knowledge of Wells ' time, it is easier to understand the intentional or unintentional racism. From the start of the Time Traveler’s journey in the year 802,701 we can see moments of prejudice shown towards the newly found Eloi. When he first encounters the Eloi he expresses his disappointment towards the species that the humans evolve into. He does so by expressing how their stupidity