The world of the Martians represents the progressive future of humanity in a cultural war with our world of tradition and reaction-these are the two worlds in question. The red planet is red in more than one sense, pointing the direction of terrestrial progress. The Martians in the novel are octopoidal monsters, bodily anticipating the tentacular, all-controlling totalitarian regimes of the twentieth century. To those familiar with Wells' works only through film, this acclaimed series annotated by the world's premier Wellsian scholar, Leon Stover, will be a real eye-opener. The historical, philosophical, and literary contexts of Wells' scientific romances are thoroughly examined.
All editions are in library binding, with an introduction, appendices, bibliography and index.