Raiding the Stacks: The Invisible Man, by H.G. Wells

Once again we return the origins of science fiction with another novel by Mr. Wells, The Invisible Man. Again, much like The Time Machine this story is rather short compared to much of my regular reading, but remains a frequently referenced classic of the science fiction genre. However, I must state that unlike The Time Machine, The Invisible Man hasn't had as wide an influence on the science-fiction genre and remains overshadowed by Wells's other works.

The plot follows the titular Invisible Man who enters the village of Iping one February day and takes up rooms at a local inn. He remains extremely aloof and becomes a subject of much curiosity and discussion among the people of Iping. Eventually the fact that the Invisible Man is, well, invisible comes to light and the Invisible Man (aka Griffin) goes on a crime spree. Eventually he flees further south in Sussex and the law is faced with the question of how to arrest an invisible man, if he even exists at all.

Overall I'd say the main problem with The Invisible Man is that our main character, Griffin, is pretty much an asshole, if not a clinical psychopath. Griffin only cares about his own needs and desires, constantly resorting to petty theft and intimidation to meet his needs of food, clothing, and shelter. Griffin goes so far as to plan a reign of terror which he will enforce by personally executing people who oppose him. Any sympathy for Griffin, as unlikely as that seems, is well and truly gone by the second half of the novel. I found it rather difficult to continue at points in the story simply because of Griffin's personality.

An argument could definitely be made that Wells is exploring how a lack of consequences affects people in his novel. Unfortunately if this was the goal of his novel it does not convey very well at all. What little glimpses we get of Griffin's personality before he takes the invisibility formula are not flattering. While the invisibility formula may have exacerbated Griffin's psychopathy, I think if he knew he could escape the consequences (invisible or not) he would have engaged in criminal acts anyway. We are left with an ambiguous ending where another character is slowly working on decoding Griffin's notes and he could use the information within for good or ill. However, the fact that this character keeps the fact that he has the notes a secret bodes poorly for future uses of Griffin's discoveries.

Overall I think The Invisible Man is one of the mediocre works of Wells. While it explores an (even then) old concept in a new way, any message on the ethical application of such a technology remains overshadowed by Griffin's psychopathy. Furthermore its influence on the genre is nowhere near the proportions of The Time Machine or  War of the Worlds. I'd say even the more dedicated science-fiction readers can afford to skip this novel.

- Kalpar

Raiding the Stacks: The Time Machine, by H.G. Wells

Once again I have decided to visit the (public domain) works of H.G. Wells and will be talking about The Time Machine. I would definitely say that The Time Machine is a landmark story in the history of science fiction because it introduced the idea of time travel and the ability to use a machine to travel forward or backward through time at will. An entire genre of wonderful stories, such as Back to the Future and Doctor Who were only made possible through Wells introducing the idea of a time machine, and I'd hate to live in a world where neither of those bodies of work happened. I highly recommend you read this story, even for nothing more than nerd cred.

One thing that really surprised me about The Time Machine was its relative brevity as a novel. The book is extremely concise, but I don't think it suffers at all because of its brevity. Wells does an excellent job of telling the story in a precise manner and doesn't introduce subjects without adequate explanation. There is definitely an open ended feeling to the conclusion of this story, but it serves as a call to action for the reader in the hope that maybe the future the Time Traveller faced in 807,201 CE can be avoided. I would say that many of my readers could easily finish The Time Machine in a day and I highly recommend you find a copy.

Perhaps the most important thing about The Time Machine is the fact that its overarching message is incredibly relevant to the current economic and social anxieties, despite being written over a hundred years ago. As you probably know, the world of 802,701 CE consists of two races, the Eloi and the Morlocks. The Eloi live on the surface world and enjoy a life of leisure, while the Morlocks live beneath the surface and are responsible for maintaining the Eloi's lifestyle through a lifetime of hard work. What is interesting, though, is that the Eloi are little more than cattle for the Morlocks, and while it may be a good life while you're alive, at the end of the day you're still hamburger. Wells explicitly states that the Morlocks are the eventual descendants of the Have-nots, the oppressed working classes who manned the factories of Wells's era. The Eloi, on the other hand, are the descendants of the elite Haves, who eventually have little more mental facilities than children as a result of their idle lifestyle. In our current era of the 99% vs. 1%, The Time Machine remains a highly relevant social commentary as well as a warning to the 1% that the oppressed masses don't always stay that way.

Overall The Time Machine is a short, very easy read and an excellent commentary on the growing economic gap between the rich and poor. Although written over a century ago, Wells's work has once again become a relevant social commentary on our economic structure. Although it offers no solutions for avoiding the future of 802,701 CE, The Time Machine leaves the reader wondering if perhaps the future can be changed by our actions in the present.

- Kalpar

Raiding the Stacks: The War of the Worlds, by H.G. Wells

Ah yes, the long-awaited return of Kalpar's Raiding the Stacks feature, where this week we look at The War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells.  War of the Worlds is a landmark science-fiction book which pioneered some science fiction tropes while at the same time being very thoroughly a product of its era. And while the book itself is extremely dated, reflecting the prejudices of the late 19th century, it remains a timeless story that taps into our primal fears as a species. The War of the Worlds offers a tantalizing glimpse into the heart of the British Empire at its height, as well as showing that even after a century people are in some respects the same.

The War of the Worlds was originally published in 1898 and is actually part of a larger literary movement that was popular in Britain at the time. From the 1870's up until the First World War an entire genre of "invasion literature" existed in which the British Isles, heart of the greatest empire on earth at the time, were invaded by some malicious enemy. Traditionally these enemies would be Germans or French or some other rival empire, but Wells chose to make his invaders from Mars, adding a new dimension to the invasion narrative. Furthermore Wells created many science-fiction themes about Mars that would last for many years in the genre: the idea that Mars was an arid and dying world, inhabited by an ancient and technologically advanced culture. Fleeing an increasingly unsustainable home, the Martians launch an invasion fleet to prepare Earth for Martian colonization. From War of the Worlds to Independence Day the idea of aliens needing the resources of our planet remains a persistent science-fiction trope which will probably be used in future stories.

An interesting note is that War of the Worlds also tapped into a common belief that the world would end at midnight on 31 December, 1899, and apparently there were numerous stories written at the time about such an Armageddon. If current trends such as Y2K and Mayan Calendar panics are any indication, humanity's fascination with its own destruction is nothing new.

Now I do have on major complaint about War of the Worlds, specifically the fact that all of the Martian space capsules land in southern England and I think that really displays the provincial bias of the author. Was Britain a powerful empire in 1898? Well of course, but that's not to say that other nations such as France, Germany, Japan, and the United States wouldn't present a threat for Martian invaders. Also, you know what, let's look at the map.

Yeah, I use Gall-Peters Projection. What of it?

Now if you'll notice, the British Isles are a little itty bitty piece of land up there in the top of the map. If you were an invading army from space trying to safely land your soldiers where would you send them? I don't know about you, but my first choice is smack dab in the middle of the Sahara in Africa. Especially since the Martian plan hinges on not landing in water. I mean, maybe I'm being picky with geography, but even North America makes a more attractive target than trying to hit the south of England.

Complaints aside, The War of the Worlds actually offers some chilling insights into twentieth century warfare. For example, the Martians use a poisonous gas known only as Black Smoke to kill large numbers of humans, which weirdly predicts the use of poison gas in World War I. In addition the Martians' primary targets are stores of ammunition, telegraph lines, and railroad tracks, which severely hamstrings the humans' defense and disrupts their lines of communication, standard military strategies even today. The Martians also adopt a campaign of fear and intimidation to break human morale and gain a quick victory, tactics utilized by both sides during World War II. Finally, the chapters dedicated to the description of the plight of refugees fleeing the Martian advance seemed incredibly real to me and could easily be about refugees in any of the countless conflicts, both great and small, that have occurred over the past century. I don't know how Wells managed to predict many of the tactics and consequences of twentieth century warfare, but it's an interesting harbinger of industrial warfare.

Perhaps the most influential aspect of War of the Worlds is that it codified the alien invasion for countless science-fiction stories for over a hundred years. The aliens arrive, determined to conquer our planet (or simply use its resources), and initially all of humanity's military forces are powerless to stop them. All hope is lost and it appears the age of humanity has come to an end. However, through some small miracle, whether the common cold in The War of the Worlds, a computer virus in Independence Day, or the simple fact that 70% of the world is covered in something deadly to the aliens in Signs, humanity manages to exploit this small advantage and defeat the alien invaders. (Granted, in War of the Worlds human agency is entirely irrelevant.)

It may be dated, it may be verbose, and it may utilize outdated science, but The War of the Worlds is the alien invasion story, in many ways the literal grandfather of countless science-fiction tropes we know and love today. If you're interested in exploring the history of sci-fi, as well as an interesting view at the late nineteenth century. I'd definitely recommend this book for history nerds and hard-core sci-fi fans but casual readers might be less interested.

- Kalpar