Death of H. G. Wells... Writer of novel "War of the Worlds"...
Item # 728316
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THE DETROIT FREE PRESS, August 14, 1946
* H. G. Wells death (1st report)
* Science Fiction novalist
* "War of the Worlds" fame
* H. G. Wells death (1st report)
* Science Fiction novalist
* "War of the Worlds" fame
A two column heading near the bottom of the front page announces: "H. G. Wells Dead in London at 79; Forecast Atomic Age in 1914 Novel" Lengthy coverage continues on page 25 with photo of Wells.
Complete with all 24 pages, light toning and a little wear at the margins, generally good.
Background: The structural significance of H.G. Wells’s late 19th-century "scientific romances" lies in how they fundamentally shifted literature from fantastical folklore to a rigorous, speculative mirror of human anxiety and technological acceleration. By anchoring wild concepts like time travel, biological engineering, and extraterrestrial invasion in realistic, domestic English settings and plausible scientific frameworks, Wells created the blueprint for modern science fiction. However, these stories were far more than clever predictive tech exercises; they served as urgent, subversive socio-political critiques of his own era. For instance, The War of the Worlds functioned as a scathing subversion of British imperialism, forcing a Victorian public to experience the terror of being technologically outmatched and colonized by a ruthless, unsympathetic force. Similarly, The Time Machine weaponized the concept of deep time to expose the widening chasm of the British class system, warning that unchecked industrial exploitation could literally split humanity into two distinct, adversarial species. Ultimately, the profound significance of Wells's early literary milestones is that they transformed sci-fi into a vital intellectual tool, proving that by imagining the extreme future, we can diagnose the critical moral, ethical, and structural failures of our present.
Background: The structural significance of H.G. Wells’s late 19th-century "scientific romances" lies in how they fundamentally shifted literature from fantastical folklore to a rigorous, speculative mirror of human anxiety and technological acceleration. By anchoring wild concepts like time travel, biological engineering, and extraterrestrial invasion in realistic, domestic English settings and plausible scientific frameworks, Wells created the blueprint for modern science fiction. However, these stories were far more than clever predictive tech exercises; they served as urgent, subversive socio-political critiques of his own era. For instance, The War of the Worlds functioned as a scathing subversion of British imperialism, forcing a Victorian public to experience the terror of being technologically outmatched and colonized by a ruthless, unsympathetic force. Similarly, The Time Machine weaponized the concept of deep time to expose the widening chasm of the British class system, warning that unchecked industrial exploitation could literally split humanity into two distinct, adversarial species. Ultimately, the profound significance of Wells's early literary milestones is that they transformed sci-fi into a vital intellectual tool, proving that by imagining the extreme future, we can diagnose the critical moral, ethical, and structural failures of our present.
Category: The 20th Century
Price
$48
100% Authentic: Original printing, never a reproduction.
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