The Time Traveller acted respectfully in the future and didn't bring anything back with him to show off to his admirers. He travelled in the correct manner, a lesson for us non-time travellers today.

I enjoyed The Time Machine tremendously. HG Wells had a vivid imagination and his writing is not dated to any great degree even though the book was written in 1895.

An EXCELLENT adventure!



Ok, so I'm sort of ashamed of myself because I thought this was a graphic novel of The Time Machine, and I was planning on using it to cut corners. As in, I want to read the story, but...not really. And I didn't flip through this before snagging it at the library.
Well, this is the graphic version in the same way that Dr. Seuss is a graphic version of a story. Basically, this is a picture book for the 6 and up crowd who are just learning to read and need the story dumbed waaaaaay down for them.
So yeah. It was pretty much right on my level.



Regardless, this would be a good way to introduce kids (and/or lazy fuckers like myself) to classics.

So... I don't think there's any disputing that H.G. Wells was a genius and that his work was brilliant back in the day. But I just don't think that it ages all that well. Or maybe society has begun its long and inevitable evolution into the indolent beings Wells' time traveler claims that we become in roughly 800,000 years, and we don't want to think too hard about a narrative that takes some time to get to the point.

Probably at some point between the Victorian era when this was written and the year eight hundred thousand whatever, we will have started beaming storypictures directly into our brains and thus have no need for narrative any longer. They say that a picture is worth a thousand words, and Wells was determined to use as many of them as possible.

And so it is with maybe a tiny twinge of regret that I have to give this only 2 stars, because the narrative is where this book lost me. It was sooooooooooooooooo long and drawn out, with so many descriptions and so many needless details that my advanced future brain just wandered off in search of shiny things.

I think the premise here is pretty cool, but the actual story didn't do much for me... Usually, at least in my experience, time travelers usually go BACK in time. Either to change something, or learn something, or just accidentally. This one went forward in time. Why? Because he could, I guess. He wanted to see where humanity ends up? I don't know.

So, we find that in the year eight hundred thousand whatever that humanity has evolved along two different lines. An upper class set of Eloi, who are so advanced that they... do nothing? And the Morlocks, who have moved underground and adapted to a mole-like lifestyle. Until they ran out of food, anyway.

But, I have a coupla problems with this book. For one, I don't think that that kind of evolution would happen in less than a million years, considering how long it's taken for humans to develop from pre-human primates to where we are now.

Second... The time machine only moved through time. It stayed in the exact place it started, geographically, until it was moved by someone else. But, Earth is moving through space. Our solar system is moving through space. Our galaxy is moving through space. Everything is moving through space. If you were to jump in the air and skip a minute of time, where you land will not be where you started. It might not be far off, because it's only a minute, but it will be off. And if you were to travel eight hundred thousand whatever years in the future, the earth is no longer going to be in the same location in space. So... you probably land in the vacuum of space and die.

When Mr. Time Traveler came back, as he had to do to tell his tale, and his time machine was moved several feet or yards or whatever away, I thought to myself, "OK so we're ignoring the moving through space thing... but how lucky for him that his machine was still located within the confines of his lab. What a shame it would have been to arrive back home and end up trapped in the wall because the machine was moved one foot too far to the left. Oopsie!"

It must be a big lab.

Third, I just don't see the Morlocks as scary or disgusting or, well, anything but pitiable. They evolved along a different line, or so Mr. Time Traveler theorizes, and that made them less pretty, and thus lower class citizens relegated to the sewers and given the upper class's scraps - which only further helped along their evolutionary distancing, if we go along with dude's theory. They become less human, and more primitive, and do what they need to do to survive, as ALL life does.

But with attitudes like Mr. Time Traveler's, is it any wonder they became what they did? It's like Frankenstein's monster all over again. We create things we don't understand and then throw them away when they aren't pleasant.

I bet this was scary shit when it was written, but now? I just feel sorry for the Morlocks and think that the Eloi and Mr. Time Traveler are a bunch of dicks. Boring ones, at that.

Returning to a novel you liked years ago is often a risky business, particularly so when the genre of that novel is science fiction. Nothing can age so rapidly as the past’s conception of the future, and what once seemed cutting edge may, after fifty years or more, appear simply ludicrous.

Because of this, I was delighted to find H.G. Wells' brief novel at least as charming and exciting as I remembered it, the Time Traveler’s scientific lecture still intriguing, the journey he describes still convincing, and the sociological history he reveals to us—of the evolution of the two races, the Eloi and the Morlocks, still as persuasive as it it was in 1895. (Okay, I admit, not quite as persuasive as evolutionary biology, but—given the rising gap between the rich and the poor—still compelling as a parable and cautionary tale.)

Although I remembered vividly both the origin and appearance of the Eloi and the Morlochs, I had forgotten much of the rest, and what I forgot made the book even better: 1) the delightful clarity of the Time Traveler's exposition to his audience of dinner guests about the nature of time as a dimension and the possibility of traveling through it, 2) the vivid description of the time-trip itself, a flickering cinematic-style vision, 3) the brutal destruction of the future of the English countryside, brought about by the Traveler’s reintroduction of fire, and 4) the end of his journey in a dying world of the far future, and the almost religious tone of his musings.

What was most clear to me, however, is how artfully H.G. Wells here combines scientific speculation, sociological parable, compelling adventure, and philosophical meditation. He both informs and delights, while never wearying his reader, in this book that is less than half the length of most of the first volumes of our current speculative fiction trilogies.

Still a classic, and one that our contemporary writers would do well to emulate.

To the future and beyond.

A group of people is greatly preoccupied by the absence of one of their friends. And serious concerns arise over his pitiful state when he finally returns to his home, raddled and haggard. The Time Traveler has been in the year 802,701 AD, and he has quite a story to tell.

This was good! Great even, maybe. Tbh I’m not fan of HG Wells style of writing, but can’t understate the importance of this writing, being one of the first ever recorded works of time travel and all. I absolutely LOVE almost everything regarding time travel, but unfortunately I couldn’t love this one, possibly because of having watched the movies first. I did enjoy and appreciate finally getting to know in great detail the original work, the Time Traveler, Weena, the Eloi, the Morlocks, and the whole story around it. Also pleasantly surprised to learn about the travel to the ending of times, and the Epilogue, which I did not know about.  Did not enjoy the ideology/sociological explanations for the evolution/devolution of mankind, which I found theoretically and mind-numbingly boring, as much as the “Book of Goldestein” from 1984; personally I’d preferred to have left all that a mystery, but that’s me.

I’m positive if I hadn’t watched the movies ages ago I’d have enjoyed this so much more, but alas, even after all this time my memories still remain very much fresh. So the unavoidable predictability, plus the total absence of surprise (which means everything to me), greatly hampered my enjoyment of this book. The Time Machine (2002) is also one of my fav movies of all time, so it was very hard to compete against that too.

All in all, this felt mostly 3-stars, but if hadn’t watched it first I bet it would’ve been 4, maybe even 5. So I’m settling with 4. And still very much looking forward to reading the “War of the Worlds”, which I have also already watched. Dang.

*** The Time Machine (1960): By far the most accurate depiction I’ve watched so far. Rod Taylor and Yvette Mimieux play a decent Time Traveler and Weena, respectively. The movie was interesting enough, yet sadly left much to be desired. I just can’t deny the feeling that the movie felt kinda clunky and effects felt wildly dated by today’s standards, but you gotta love the movie funny version of the Morlocks lol. (5/10)

*** The Time Machine (2002): The most unfaithful and inaccurate depiction I’ve ever watched and by FAR the most entertaining and my most favorite one lol. Just LOVED everything about it! Guy Pearce, Samantha Mumba, Sienna Guillory and Jeremy Irons fantastic in their roles. LOVED the tragic backstory with Emma, the introduction of Mara instead of Weena, the utterly scary Morlocks and their Overlord. Completely LOVED the scenography, soundtrack and special effects, which totally blew my mind and is a perfect representation of how I picture and fantasize every day about time travel in my mind. Of course the movie has been widely panned and in all honesty deviates so much from the original work it hardly resembles it anymore. Don’t care. LOVED IT. (10/10)

It’s public domain. You can find it  HERE.



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n  PERSONAL NOTEn:
[1895] [110p] [Sci-Fi] [3.5] [Recommendable] [Weena]
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Hacia el futuro y más allá.

Un grupo de gente está muy preocupado por la ausencia de uno de sus amigos. Y surgen serias preocupaciones por su lamentable estado cuando éste finalmente regresa a su casa, gastado y demacrado. El Viajero del Tiempo ha estado en el año 802.701 d.C. y tiene una gran historia que contar.

¡Esto estuvo bien! Incluso maravilloso, tal vez. Sinceramente, no soy fanático del estilo de escritura de HG Wells, pero no puedo subestimar la importancia de este trabajo, que es uno de los primeros escritos registrados sobre viajes en el tiempo y todo eso. AMO casi absolutamente todo concerniente a viajar en el tiempo, pero desafortunadamente no pude amar esto, posiblemente por haber visto las películas primero. Disfruté y aprecié poder conocer finalmente en gran detalle la obra original, el Viajero del Tiempo, Weena, los Eloi, los Morlocks y toda la historia que los rodea. También me sorprendió gratamente saber sobre el viaje al fin de los tiempos y el Epílogo, del que no tenía conocimiento. No disfruté todas las explicaciones ideológicas/sociológicas sobre la evolución/involución de la humanidad, que encontré teórica y abrumadoramente aburridas, tanto como el “Libro de Goldestein” de 1984; personalmente hubiera preferido que todo eso hubiera quedado como misterio, pero ese soy yo.

Estoy seguro de que si no hubiera visto las películas mucho tiempo antes, habría disfrutado esto mucho más, pero, por desgracia, incluso después de todo este tiempo mis recuerdos todavía siguen muy frescos. Así que la inevitable previsibilidad, más la total ausencia de sorpresa (que lo significa todo para mí), perjudicaron enormemente mi disfrute del libro. La Máquina del Tiempo (2002) también es una de mis películas favoritas de todos los tiempos, por lo que fue muy difícil competir contra ella.

En general, esto se sintió principalmente como 3 estrellas, pero si no lo hubiera visto primero, apuesto a que habrían sido 4, tal vez incluso 5. Así que lo promedio en un 4. Y todavía tengo muchas ganas de leer "La guerra de los mundos", cuyas películas también ya vi. Maldita sea.

*** La Máquina del Tiempo (1960): Por lejos la representación más fiel que he visto hasta el momento. Rod Taylor e Yvette Mimieux interpretan a un decente Viajero del tiempo y Weena, respectivamente. La película me resultó suficientemente interesante, aunque lamentablemente dejó bastante que desear. No puedo negar la sensación de que la película y los efectos se sintieron asquerosamente anticuados para los estándares actuales, pero no puedo negar que me encanta la versión retro de los Morlocks de la película jaja. (5/10)

*** La Máquina del Tiempo (2002): Sin dudas la representación más infiel e inexacta que he visto en mi vida y por lejos la más entretenida y mi más favorita jaja. ¡Simplemente AME todo de ella! Guy Pearce, Samantha Mumba, Sienna Guillory y Jeremy Irons fantásticos en sus roles. AME la trágica historia de fondo con Emma, la presentación de Mara en lugar de Weena, los absolutamente aterradores Morlocks y su Mente Maestra. AME completamente la escenografía, la banda sonora y los efectos especiales, que me dejaron alucinado y son una representación perfecta de cómo imagino y fantaseo todos los días sobre viajar en el tiempo en mi mente. Por supuesto la película ha sido ampliamente criticada y, sinceramente, se desvía tanto de la obra original que al final apenas si se le parece. No me importa. AME TODO. (10/10)

Es dominio público, lo pueden encontrar  ACA.



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n  NOTA PERSONALn:
[1895] [110p] [Ciencia Ficción] [3.5] [Recomendable] [Weena]
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H.G. Wells's The Time Machine was required reading in high school for most when I was in 9th grade (about 25 years ago), and one of my teachers chose this book as 1 of 10 books we read that year in an English literature comparative analysis course. Each month, we'd read a book and watch two film adaptations, then have discussions and write a paper. At the time, I thought, this book is a little cheesy... I mean, not that I was a huge Star Trek fan (although I did love me some Voyager), but even I know time machines were a lot cooler than what I saw in the movie and read about in the book.



THEN, I realized HG Wells published this book in 1895... an entire century before I started watching TV shows about time travel. And that's when you realize what a priceless book this was. It was the advent of a new genre's blossoming into fandom. And I became fascinated with these types of stories. But there was so much more to it than time travel.

It's a commentary on society and values. Are you ostracized when you think differently? What if you look different... like as in your skin looks blue. Do you know what a Morlock is? Check it out (thanks the original GIF source in link!)



What I loved about this story was the thoughts and ideas of an 1890s man writing about the potential for traveling to the past and the future, suggesting what happens to humankind over time. In the era of Charles Darwin and the Origin of Species, or perhaps a few decades later, this book covers those ideas and helps activate a reader's imagination outside their own limited world. It was the 1890s... no TV, no phones, car engines being built for the first time, indoor plumbing had just become common in regular homes... life was every different.

That said, it's the words and imagery that catch you in this book. You have to forego current life and pretend you were still back in time.

Bu kitabı yorumlamak benim için çok zor.Kitabın en beğendiğim özelliğinden bahsedecek olursam, merak unsurunun devamlı canlı kalması ve kendisini okutturması diyebilirim.Kurgusuna ve hikayesine 2019 yılından bakarak "basit" demek yazara büyük haksızlık olacaktır doğrusu çünkü yazar bu kitabı kaleme aldığında takvimler 1895 yılını gösteriyordu ve Wells kesinlikle yaşadığı çağın ilerisinde bir insan.Tüm bunları kabul ettikten sonra kitabın artık yılların getirmiş olduğu bir yaşlılığa sahip olduğunu söylemeden edemeyeceğim.

Beklentimi karşılamadı diyemem çünkü 1895 yılında yazılan bir bilimkurgu eserinden daha ne bekleyebilir ki insan? Ağızda hoş bir tat olarak kalan türünün öncüsü olmuş bir eser.Bu kitaba 1 ve 5 arasında istenilen puan verilebilir, verilen her puan için kolaylıkla haklı gerekçeler bulunacaktır.

Over the last few weeks I have been going through the books that I read in my early days of joining GR and where I didn't write a (proper) review I am trying to remedy that situation.
I think I first read this book some time around the early to mid 70s, in fact it was probably not long after I first saw the film. Similar to WotW it was one of the 1950s (1960 actually) B movies that fuelled my desire for science fiction. Well that and the "Supermarionation" series on TV written and produced by Gerry Anderson.
Anyway having got off of the subject quite considerably lets return to this book. For a book written in the late Victorian era (1895) this book is amazingly modern. It deals primarily with a genius inventor who theorises on the subject of time travel with the ultimate intention of building a machine that will allow him to move through time looking at mankind's future. He discovers 800 thousand years in the future that due to a major world war, mankind has separated into 2 distinct races. The waif like Eloi that live above ground in a paradise type world and the neanderthal ugly Morlocks who live below ground with their evil sinister ways.
I think the thing that gets me most about this book is just how much imagination HG Wells must have had to write it. As i said it was written over 120 years ago, so not as technically biased as some of today's sf but still truly awe inspiring and bearing that in mind, certainly worth a read.

I chose to listen to this on LibriVox, read by Mark Nelson and I'm in awe—of this wonderful story and of Nelson's narration.

Written in 1895, The Time Machine is narrated by a man who details the accounts of a Time Traveller he knew, in the most captivating way. I have a feeling that if I had read a physical copy, I'd have given it a 3 or a 4 out of 5. But listening to the audiobook somehow enhanced the experience for me and I can find nothing to criticize.

Highly recommend!

I enjoyed this classic, sci fi tale of time travel more than I thought I would. His descriptions of the time machine while traveling were riveting to me, I could imagine myself there. Interesting he used the class system of his time and Darwinism to explain the distant future. The beautiful writing also had me on the edge if my seat as he was descending the shaft to the underworld. Definitely worth a read.

n  "[...] even when mind and strength had gone, gratitude and a mutual tenderness still lived on in the heart of men."n

This was quite an intriguing little book.

I imagine it would appeal much more to people interested in Astrophysics. I found myself reading and rereading paragraphs on time as the fourth dimension and still not grasping a word.

Despite the super technical intro chapters about time-traveling, this still managed to be quite interesting and offer a thought-provoking—though at times very obvious—social commentary.

The writing style didn't particularly grip me though, but I understand why this was more effective in this kind of passive style, since this was a story within a story. It just made it harder for me to focus.

I was not expecting the ending, so that was definitely a nice touch.

Wells güzellemesi yapmamak için kendimi zor tutuyorum… Düşünün 1895 yılında ve zaman makinesini konu alan bir eser yazıyor, bunu yaparken yaklaşık 40-50 sene önce yayımlanmış bir teoriden de (C. Darwin) esinleniyor, hatta o da yetmiyor oğul Darwin’in (gelgit sürtünmesi) teorilerinden de destek alıyor… Diğer taraftan da tüm bunları yaparken çok ciddi bir toplumsal eleştiri okumak da mümkün; gelir adaletsizliği, işçi hakları, proleterya - soylu çatışması… ve tüm bunları Viktorya Dönemi gibi gayet saçma sapan bir zamanda gerçekleştiriyor (ki ateş ile oynamaktan farksız olduğunu kabul edersiniz).

Kitabın hemen başında, Celal Üster’in “bilimkurgu türünün doğuşu ve gelişimi” üzerine bir yazısı var, yaklaşık on sayfa, okunmasını tavsiye ederim.

Bir ekleme de İş Bankası Kültür’e, kitabın sonunda verilen okuma notları (dipnotlar) okumayı kolaylaştırmıyor, gerçekten… Şu eleştiriyi artık ciddiye almaları lazım.