The Time Machine-Treasury of Illustrated Classics Storybook Collection

First novel by H.G. Wells, published in book form in 1895. The novel is considered one of the earliest works of science fiction and the progenitor of the "time travel" subgenre. Wells advanced his social and political ideas in this narrative of a nameless Time Traveller who is hurtled into the year 802,701 by his elaborate ivory, crystal, and brass contraption. The world he finds is peopled by two races: the decadent Eloi, fluttery and useless, are dependent for food, clothing, and shelter on the simian subterranean Morlocks, who prey on them. The two races--whose names are borrowed from the Biblical Eli and Moloch--symbolize Wells's vision of the eventual result of unchecked capitalism: a neurasthenic upper class that would eventually be devoured by a proletariat driven to the depths. --The Merriam-Webster Encyclopedia of Literature H.G. Wells (1866x961946) was a professional writer and journalist who published more than a hundred books, including novels, histories, essays, and programs for world regeneration. Marina Warner is a prize-winning writer of fiction, criticism, and history. Steven McLean is secretary of the H. G. Wells Society. Patrick Parrinder has written on H. G. Wells, science fiction, and James Joyce.