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The thirth in a series concerning various dystopian novels.   

Introduction 

Food for Thought here with key points in regard to the dystopian novel The Time Machine, by H.G. Wells, which was published in 1945. Slightly inspired by the evolution theory he published the final version of his fiction story when he was 34 years old. He coined the term "time machine" and his book was the first about time travel. 

The Time Machine is a famous story with many adaptations and interpretations. There are even various eschatological aspects from Judeo-Christian apocalyptic religious believes (gigantic crabs and an enormous red scorching sun).  

The story is presented to us through the perspective of Mr. Hillyer,  the Time Traveller's dinner guest. This is not a book review, nor a book report but a presentation of important key points for you as a guideline for thought processes. Welcome in the year 802,701 ACE (After Common Era)!     

First paragraph 

“The Time Traveller (for so it will be convenient to speak of him) was expounding a recondite matter to us. His grey eyes shone and twinkled, and his usually pale face was flushed and animated. The fire burned brightly, and the soft radiance of the incandescent lights in the lilies of silver caught the bubbles that flashed and passed in our glasses. Our chairs, being his patents, embraced and caressed us rather than submitted to be sat upon, and there was that luxurious after-dinner atmosphere when thought runs gracefully free of the trammels of precision. And he put it to us in this way—marking the points with a lean forefinger—as we sat and lazily admired his earnestness over this new paradox (as we thought it) and his fecundity.” 

The issues the book is addressing 

1. The society of the Eloi seems like a paradise, an era of world peace. On the face of it a utopia but it is not because there is a dark side to this society. That dark side reality turns the utopia into a dystopian civilization. Two classes of humanity that coexist through a cannibalistic relationship. It appears to be a utopia but is in fact an unbalanced world from many different angles. Perhaps a lot like ours!?  
2. Social degeneration, decline in biological but also cultural and  moral-ethical change. The Eloi, the rich and beautiful are not cultured, nor educated at all but very naïve, lethargic and they lack empathy.  The writer was slightly inspired by the evolution theory. It is safe to assume that these traits were heredity. Throughout the centuries the Eloi class has lost their intelligence, curiosity and brainpower to continue to look beyond the horizon, to develop new concepts. Also, to cherish the achievements of the past and even their moral compass.  The Eloi live in the here and now and actually so do the Morlocks. They’ve both lost the faculties to firmly probe their existence and fight for a better reality. The issue of age. The Eloi look very young, not an elderly person can be spotted within their community. The possible age ranges of the Morlocks are hard to guess. I believe it’s connected with the issue of social degeneration. Growing older constitutes knowledge, wisdom, passing on information to a new generation, learning from mistakes.  The Eloi do have children but these traits cannot be found among them. They can’t even see that their way of life is basically a hoax, an illusion. ‘Live in the present moment because life is short’, how often do we already hear that?! Is there a dystopian side to this? 
3. Gender cannot be distinguished. Gender neutrality? In the vocabulary of our time, ‘trannies’. Not male nor female? Yet children are born.  The Eloi do have a gender but this cannot be discerned by their outward appearance.  
4. The hereditary human psychological appeal to show more sympathy for the beautiful and rich Eloi than for the poor and ugly Morlocks. People usually want to be on the side of the rich and beautiful (and often famous) than on the side of the poor and downtrodden. We tend to follow outward appearances more often than qualities such as a bright mind, social power and an inventive spirit.  H.G. Wells portraits the working class as ugly boorish apelike creatures. Perhaps what the Morlocks look like outwardly is what the Eloi are inwardly but less obvious?!   The Time Traveller affiliates himself with the Eloi, as did H.G. Wells who was part of the rich upper class of England. Perhaps his description of the Morlocks is exactly what the upper class thought of the working classes.  This since the Time Machine is a treatise describing the clash of classes.    

Symbols 

• Morlocks, the Underworld people the working class, predominantly uneducated. Described as ape-like creatures, primitive, ugly, nocturnal beings. They live underground in what seems like factories, trying to build or maintain machinery. They are sensitive to light and live in caves. They represent the lower working class. 
• Eloi, the Upperworld people, the upper class. Described as beautiful and rich but unintelligent, uncultured, uneducated and lethargic diurnal beings. They live a communal lifestyle above ground and are supported by the Morlocks. In return for these ‘favours’, the Morlocks eat the Eloi.  
• The statue of the Sphinx, a monument of the past but not the past the Time Traveller came from. In this statue the Morlocks hide the time machine. It is a silent reminder of past human achievement but cannot be perceived as such since humanity has lost the capability to even remember the past let alone analyze it. It is very interesting H.G. Wells used this symbol in his narrative to hide the time machine. 
• Palace of Green Porcelain. Another monument of the past of which there is no knowledge in the book what it used to be. The Time Traveller states his educated guesses. 
• Fire. Some say it symbolizes civilization but I think it symbolizes the hatred of the rich upper class against the lower class. It stands for oppression since the Morlocks cannot stand against it.  
• The Time Traveller, inventor. He’s us! He stands for modern man who still has the capability to think, analyze, invent, hope, dream, negotiate and fight for a better society wherein people of all classes can be treated with respect and dignity in a healthy codependence. He’s challenging all of us. 
• Time itself I believe. I perceive it to be connected with the platitude that if we don’t learn from history it will repeat itself. The Eloi couldn’t learn from history because they’ve lost that capability. Time doesn’t mean anything for them anymore. That means history, present and future is nothing but space you forcefully need to occupy. History constitutes time gone by but there is yet a lot of time space in front of us. What choices do we make to spend our time for the good of this and coming generations?   

Aphorism  

“It is only another way of looking at Time.”    

Interesting quotes 

‘Clearly,’ the Time Traveller proceeded, ‘any real body must have extension  in four directions: it must have Length, Breadth, Thickness, and—Duration.  But through a natural infirmity of the flesh, which I will explain to you in a moment, we incline to overlook this fact. There are really four dimensions,   three which we call the three planes of Space, and a fourth, Time.’   

“Then there is the future,’ said the Very Young Man. ‘Just think! One might invest all one’s money, leave it to accumulate at interest, and hurry on ahead!’ ‘To discover a society,’ said I, ‘erected on a strictly communistic basis.’   ‘Of all the wild extravagant theories!’ began the Psychologist. ‘Yes, so it seemed to me, and so I never talked of it until—’‘Experimental verification!’ cried I.   ‘You are going to verify that?”  

 “The material of the Palace proved on examination to be indeed porcelain, and along the face of it I saw an inscription in some unknown character.   I thought, rather foolishly, that Weena might help me to interpret this,  but I only learned that the bare idea of writing had never entered her head.”   

“I cannot convey the sense of abominable desolation that hung over the world.”   “I found the date was indeed to-day, and looking at the timepiece, saw the hour was almost eight o’clock.”  

Critique  

1. Communism (lifestyle of the Eloi, appearance of gender neutrality, ‘everybody looks the same’). 
2. Capitalism to a certain extent, by presenting the uncanny symbioses between working class (the Morlocks) versus the rich industrial powers (the Eloi) 
3. Identity of class status. H.G. Wells presents critique to both classes but even more to the rich upper class he himself belonged to, in his book depicted as the Eloi. Interesting that also in this story “The Time Machine” the middle class doesn’t exist! Just the poor and the rich, the lower working class and the rich upper class.  

My critique concerning this story

H.G. Wells portraits the working class ugly and boorish but the rich upper  class often portrait these traits as well. He could have described them both  as beautiful but perhaps with different colour of eyes and/or hair. I know it sounds girly but to make this sharp distinction in outward appearance he already chooses side. As I described before the Time Traveller affiliates   with the Eloi. Poor people are always present in the world, in every generation.  As several Jewish rabbis has said, ‘The poor you have always with you”,  but that doesn’t mean we have to treat them poorly. 

Perhaps H.G. Wells purposely challenge the issue of ‘beauty’ since his treatise also describes  be it more clandestine, strengths. The poor people or the lower working class will always be present in the world and so does the rich upper class. But guess what, both cannot live without the other. If both classes would appreciate each other’s’ strengths and substitute each other’s’ weaknesses there is no need for the lower class to be revengeful at the rich since they are equally appreciated as well and not perceived to be the ‘ugly’. The Morlocks are strong and productive and they actually try to fix and invent machines on behalf of the Eloi. The Eloi are rich, they don’t have to work and have the platform to use this productivity. Both classes can help each other if they would respect and appreciate one another without a cannibalistic tendency even remotely near that kind of relationship. 

But…. this is the real world. Many rich people are selfish, indeed lethargic, don’t appreciate anybody but themselves and their own circle of ‘Eloi’. Could an underground uprising aka revolution from the lower classes be on their way? What do you think? 

Last paragraph 

"At that I understood. At the risk of disappointing Richardson I stayed on, waiting for the Time Traveller; waiting for the second, perhaps still stranger story, and the specimens and photographs he would bring with him. But I am beginning now to fear that I must wait a lifetime. The Time Traveller vanished three years ago. And, as everybody knows now, he has never returned." 

//END OF KEY POINTS//  

 Also read  

1. Key Points Dystopian Novel | Harrison Bergeron by Kurt Vonnegut  
2. Key Points Dystopian Novel | Animal Farm by George Orwell

Coming soon 

1. Key Points Dystopian Novel | A Brave New World by Aldous Huxley  
2. Key Points Dystopian Novel | Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury 
3. Key Points Dystopian Novel | Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand 
4. Key Points Dystopian Novel | 1984 by George Orwell 
5. Key Points Dystopian Novel | The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins 
6. Key Points Dystopian Novel | Logan's Run by William F. Nolan & George Clayton Johnson 
7. Key Points Dystopian Novel | The Fixed Period by Anthony Trollope  

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