The Time Machine
by H.G. Wells
Rating: **** (4 stars)
Book Length: 128 pages
Genre: Science Fiction, Classic
H.G. Wells is a classic science fiction writer. His works are well known and have been transcribed into any sort of framework imaginable. Yet, nothing compares to the original work.
Wells' works are short and to the point. In The Time Machine we meet a man who builds a time machine and goes into the future where there are two versions of humans.
On one hand there is the meek and pampered Eloi who are fair and childlike. Below ground there is the ugly and aggressive Morlocks who's use the Eloi as substance.
The writing is a short and interesting story. However, beyond the tale it is a story exploring the upper class and labor class. The Eloi are the upper class who depend on the Morlocks for their basic necessities. They forget to how to take care of themselves yet they maintain some semblance of culture. They congregate together and have a simple language. The Morlocks are the labors. The language of the Morlocks has been reduced to grunts and screeching. Yet they have kept some of the intellect by maintaining the machinery and continuing to provide for the needs of the Eloi.
It is an interesting tale of classism. I wonder what Wells was truly trying to say. In the end neither class ruled the other. Both were dependent on each other for their existence. This codependency resulted in the downfall of both aspects of society.
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