The War of the Worlds

by Wells, H. G.; Danahay, Martin A.

• ISBN13: 9781551113531
• ISBN10: 1551113538
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2003-03-01
• Publisher: Broadview Pr

Summary

H. G. Wells's The War of the Worlds, the first story to speculate about the consequences of aliens (from Mars) with superior technology landing on earth, is one of the most influential science fiction books ever written. The novel is both a thrilling narrative and an elaboration of Wells's socio-political thought on the subjects of imperialism, humankind's treatment of other animals, and unquestioning faith in military technology and the continuation of the human species.This edition's appendices include other related writings by Wells; selected correspondence; contemporary reviews; excerpts from works that influenced the novel and from contemporary invasion narratives; and photographs of examples of Victorian military technology.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	7	(9)
Introduction	9	(22)
A Brief Chronology	31	(4)
H.G. Wells
A Note on the Text	35	(2)
The War of the Worlds	37	(182)
Appendix A: H.G. Wells on The War of the Worlds
1. Strand Magazine (1920)	193	(1)
H.G. Wells
2. ``Preface to Volume III'' (1924)	194	(1)
H.G. Wells
Appendix B: Wells's Publications Related to The War of the Worlds
1. ``Zoological Retrogression'' (1891)	195	(2)
H.G. Wells
2. ``On Extinction'' (1893)	197	(4)
H.G. Wells
3. ``The Advent of the Flying Man: An Inevitable Occurrence'' (1893)	201	(2)
H.G. Wells
4. ``The Man of the Year Million'' (1893)	203	(3)
H.G. Wells
5. ``Another Basis for Life'' (1894)	206	(1)
H.G. Wells
6.``The Extinction of Man: Some Speculative Suggestions'' (1894)	207	(5)
H.G. Wells
7. ``The Stolen Bacillus'' (1894)	212	(1)
H.G. Wells
8. ``Intelligence on Mars'' (1896)	213	(3)
H.G. Wells
9. ``Through a Microscope'' (1897)	216	(3)
H.G. Wells
Appendix C: Extracts from Wells's Correspondence	219	(44)
Appendix D: Reviews of The War of the Worlds
1. Spectator (29 January 1898)	223	(4)
John St. Loe Strachey
2. Academy (29 January 1898)	227	(2)
3. Nature (10 February 1898)	229	(2)
R.A. Gregory
4. Athenaeum (5 February 1898)	231	(2)
Basil Williams
Appendix E: Influences on Wells
1. The Martyrdom of Man (1872, 1875)	233	(1)
Winwood Reade
2. Evolution and Ethics (1893)	234	(1)
T.H. Huxley
3. ``Huxley'' (1901)	235	(2)
H.G. Wells
Appendix F: Invasion Narratives
1. The Great War in England in 1897 (1894)	237	(3)
William Le Queux
2. ``Grip'' (pseudonym), from How John Bull Lost London (1882)	240	(3)
Appendix G: Mars in 1898
1. Nature (2 August 1894)	243	(1)
2. Mars (1895)	244	(5)
Percival Lowell
Appendix H: Woking and Surrey
1. Black's Guide to Surrey (1898)	249	(2)
A.R. Hope Moncrieff
2. Highways and Byways in Surrey (1908)	251	(3)
Eric Parker
Appendix I: The Victorian Military, 1890s
1. Field Artillery	254	(1)
2. Gunners of Field Artillery	255	(1)
3. High-Angle Firing	256	(1)
4. Machine Gun Detachment	257	(1)
5. Heliograph Operators	258	(1)
6. 1st Dragoons	259	(1)
7. H.M.S. Thunderer	260	(1)
8. H.M.S. Ramilles	261	(2)
Selected Bibliography	263