ENGLISH FINALBy Jordon Halter

Author Bio Herbert George Wells was born September 21, 1866. He was the son of Joseph Wells and Sarah Neal. He was

their fourth child and they were a lower middle class impoverished family. His father owned a small shop which sold sporting goods and fine china. The shop failed to prosper, due to a lack of the good being sold in poor condition as well as a poor location. In 1874, when wells was 8 years old he broke his leg. This left him bedridden for many months. Though the accident was unfortunate, many believe it to be a very important event in his life. Wells delved into the world of books to pass the time. His time spent reading is what was said to inspire him to begin writing. Later that year, he was enrolled in Thomas Morley’s Academy, a private school which was founded in 1849.

However, Joseph wells fractured his leg a short time later. His father was an amateur cricketer and that was their main source of income. With his father’s career ended, the family fell in to deeper poverty. For 3 years, from 1880-1883 Wells parents withdrew their children from school and placed them into various apprenticeships. Wells was unsuccessfully apprenticed as a draper, which he failed at. But in between his apprenticeships he was also a pupil to a teacher. He was known as a pupil-teacher, who teaches other younger students. In 1883 he was released from his apprenticeship and became a teacher. In 1891, wells married his cousin, Isabel Wells. However they separated shortly afterwards when he fell in love with a student of his, by the name of Jane Robbins.

In 1901, Wells released his first novel, a nonfiction book by the title of Anticipations of the Reaction of Mechanical and Scientific Progress Upon Human Life and Thought. The book described what the future might be like in the year 2000. His earliest novels include The Time Machine, The Island of Doctor Moreau, The Invisible Man, The War of the Worlds, When the Sleeper Wakes, and The First Men in the Moon. The themes that reign in Wells stories are Scientific Romance and the ideas of a Utopian/Dystopian world. Wells was a prominent figure in politics and world government. During the invasion of Britain in WWII he was deemed a “traitor” on the list of people the Nazis intended to capture and kill.

Wells novel, The War of the Worlds, was publically announced on a radio station by a fan of his, Orson Wells. The broadcast caused panic and pandemonium throughout the country in October 1940. Wells was deeply surprised by the trouble the excerpt caused.

6 years after the famous broadcast, Wells passed away. He died on August 16, 1946. No cause of death was specified, but many believe it to be either diabetes or liver cancer.

Novels

The Wonderful Visit Select Conversations With an Uncle1896Island of Dr. MoreauThe Wheels of Chance 1897The Invisible ManCertain Personal MattersThe Plattner Story and Others1898The War of the WorldsThe Story of Tommy and the Elephant (published later)1899

Plot Summary The War of the Worlds is divided into two separate books. Book one begins with several

explosions being spotted on the surface of Mars. A short while later, a “meteor” lands near the narrators home town. The narrator (whose name is never given) heads to the place of the crash. Martians emerge, but quickly retreat due to the fact they cannot sustain the earth’s atmosphere, and begin to assemble war-machines. Shortly afterward, a group of humans are incinerated by a heat ray. The narrator and his wife flee to Leatherhead. The Narrator returns to the site of the crash and finds enormous alien tripod war machines. While more meteors land across the world, the tripods begin to devastate England. As residents of London flee a naval warship defeats two tripods by ramming them and A third is brought down by artillery fire. This allows enough time for many to flee the country. As the first book ends, the Martians begin to spread vegetation known as “red weed”.

Book two begins with the Narrator and a man taking refuge in an abandoned house. As more Martian meteors land in England and destroys the house, trapping them in the basement for nearly two weeks. The man slowly loses his humanity and begins to see the events of the apocalypse unfolding. The Narrator and Mans relationship falls apart and he is forced to beat him unconscious. The Martians hear this, and grab the man, draining him of his blood which they use as sustenance. As the Martians depart, the Narrator travels to London. He learns in London, that the Martians have died off due to small infections. The Martians, lacking an immune system due to no microbial infections existing on Mars, were killed by bacteria. The remaining Martians flee to Mars. The Narrator falls extremely ill, ironically, and is nursed to health. He returns home and finds his wife alive and well. The end of the novel leaves us wondering on thoughts of the Narrators experience during the invasion.

The Time Machine The Time Machine begins with its protagonist, only known as The

Time Traveler, hosting a weekly dinner. At the dinner, he reveals that he has created a time machine. A week later, he returns and tells the tales of his time travels. He travels close to 1,000,000 years into the future. Landing in 802,701 A.D. he meets a small, midget like society of people. The people, known as the Eloi, are at war with the Morlocks. Coincidentally, the Morlocks have stolen his time machine and holding it captive. After saving an Eloi named Weena, whom he begins to fall in love with, he travels to a museum where he gains light sources and a crude light producing weapon. That night, the Morlocks chase The Traveler and Weena through the forest. Thanks to a small forest fire, the Morlocks perish in the flames, unfortunately so does Weena. The traveler makes it to his time machine and escapes 30 million years into the future. Here he discovers no humans. Only crabs, butterflies, and simple vegetation exist. He continues to jump, seeing the world slowly come to an end. Finally, he returns home, and interrupts his dinner guests. The Traveler begins to tell the tales of what happened…

The Island of Dr Moreau

This novel is about the story of a shipwrecked sailor. He is taken to an island in which animals are transformed into humans. Eventually, he grows accustomed to their grotesqueness. But as social order breaks down, the island inhabitants begin to kill one another. Their casualties include Montgomery, and Dr. Moreau (their creator). With the manbeasts reverting back to their normal state, the sailor flees the island on an abandoned dinghy. Unable to live among society, he moves to the country side and takes up education in chemistry. 

Book Review

 I feel the War of the Worlds was an excellent book. I feel the plot was well put together and that it blended the theme well. It was a consistent plot that did not jump back and forth. All in all i give it a 5/5.

                         The Time Machine also gets a 5/5. I feel the plot was interesting. My favorite part was the meeting of the Eloi and Murlocks. My reasoning is that it shows a class conflict. The conflict between the upper class (Eloi) and lower class (Murlocks). The Murlocks were opressed and turned into evil blind creatures. However the Eloi lived comfortably and were able to enjoy the lighter side of life. 

The Broadcast

http://history1900s.about.com/od/1930s/a/warofworlds.htm

Web Quest Sites

http://www.online-literature.com/wellshg/ Who is considered the father of science

fiction? What is one Wells' most popular novels? What is Wells' full name? What are his parents? Whom did he win a scholarship from?

http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/Jwells.htm

What was Wells' fathers profession? What was Wells first Job? What was Wells Second Job? Which School did he attend? Why did he leave?

http://www.kirjasto.sci.fi/hgwells.htm What was Wells love as a child? What are Wells Three best known Novels? What is the Time Machine about? What is the Invisble Man about? What genre did Wells right after WWI

http://www.enotes.com/time-machine/author-biography

When was Wells born? Where was he born? What was his first novel? When did Wells die? Where did he die?

http://www.online-literature.com/wellshg/warworlds/

What Genre is War of the Worlds? What is witnessed on the surface of

Mars? What lands near the Narrators home? What is in the capsule? Are the Martians hostile?

http://thebestnotes.com/booknotes/War_Of_The_Worlds/War_Of_The_Worlds04.html

Why have the Martians come to earth? What does the Narrator learn to do before

the attack? What weapons do the Martian use? Who is the first victim of the attack? 5.Where does the Narrator take his wife

and why?

http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/timemachine/summary.html

What does the narrator learn about at his dinner?

What happens the next week? Who are the Eloi? Who are the murlocks? What do the Murlocks fear?

http://www.online-literature.com/wellshg/timemachine/

What are the four dimensions? How far into the future does the traveler

go? What exists 30 millions years after that? What is the only form left at his final

stop? When do the Murlocks come out?

Works Cited http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/timemachine/summary.htm "H.G. Wells." - Biography and Works. Search Texts, Read Online. Discuss. Web. 21 May

2012. <http://www.online-literature.com/wellshg/>. "H.G. Wells." H.G. Wells. Web. 21 May 2012. <http://www.kirjasto.sci.fi/hgwells.htm>. "Spartacus Educational." Spartacus Educational. Web. 21 May 2012.

<http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/Jwells.htm>. "The Time Machine." By H.G. Wells. Search EText, Read Online, Study, Discuss. Web. 21

May 2012. <http://www.online-literature.com/wellshg/timemachine/>. "The Time Machine." Enotes.com. Enotes.com. Web. 21 May 2012.

<http://www.enotes.com/time-machine/author-biography>. "The War of the Worlds." By H.G. Wells. Search EText, Read Online, Study, Discuss. Web. 21

May 2012. <http://www.online-literature.com/wellshg/warworlds/>. "War of the Worlds Radio Broadcast Causes Panic." About.com 20th Century History. Web.

21 May 2012. <http://history1900s.about.com/od/1930s/a/warofworlds.htm>. "The War of the Worlds Study Guide/Analysis/Book Summary/Free Book

Notes/Online/Download." The War of the Worlds Study Guide/Analysis/Book Summary/Free Book Notes/Online/Download. Web. 21 May 2012. <http://thebestnotes.com/booknotes/War_Of_The_Worlds/War_Of_The_Worlds04.html>.

"The War of the Worlds Study Guide/Analysis/Book Summary/Free Book Notes/Online/Download." The War of the Worlds Study Guide/Analysis/Book Summary/Free Book Notes/Online/Download. Web. 21 May 2012. <http://thebestnotes.com/booknotes/War_Of_The_Worlds/War_Of_The_Worlds04.html>