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The World Set Free by H. G. Wells
First published 1914
The World Set Free is considered the first published work, fiction or non-fiction, to mention the idea of the atomic bomb. The scientists who actually constructed such a bomb, some 31 years later, were very much aware of H. G. Wells's novel and the implications of nuclear war which the author had explored.
But theorizing about nuclear war wasn't the author's chief purpose for writing the novel. He wanted to propose a new world order, ruled by scientific and socialist principles. He felt that society in the early twentieth century was still in a "barbaric stage... aimless, untrained and unorganized to the pitch of imbecility." The trigger getting mankind to recognize its folly and embark upon the Modern State would be the War to End All Wars, a nuclear war.
Ironically, The World Set Free was published in 1914 on the very eve of a war that H. G. Wells didn't see coming--at least not for decades. His one great war would not occur until the mid-1950s, by which time nuclear power had revolutionized life on earth by making energy virtually free. It is the discontent of the laboring classes such as coal miners whose jobs have been eliminated by nuclear power that eventually brings war about.
The World Set Free is written in the form of a future work of history. Most of it is narration of events and discourse upon the principles upon which the new society is founded. There are a few characters brought in at different times to provide eyewitness accounts of events--a scientist, a soldier, a king, and an educator--but the novel is not about them.
Wells does not attempt to predict the future of technology, and I don't think the novel should be harshly judged just because his 1956 is different from 1914 only in that atomic engines have replaced steam engines and gasoline motors. His atomic bombs, for example, are carried to the target in open cockpit biplanes. The observer/bombardier drops the bomb simply by pulling the fuse with his teeth and heaving it over the side. He signals to other airplanes with a megaphone and shoots at his enemies with a rifle.
The atomic bombs which the author imagined are far removed from the eventual reality but, ironically, have much the same effect. They don't explode in a single blast, but erupt like miniature suns which keep on burning at an ever-diminishing level according to the radioactive element's half-life. It is a generation before the major cities of the world can be safely entered.
The annihilation of 218 cities across the globe shocks the surviving leaders of the world into the realization that they must abandon pride, nationalism, materialism, and traditional prejudices. They meet in northern Italy and agree to form a single world government based on equality, universal suffrage, a common language and currency, standard education, and the complete renunciation of military force. Local traditions and religious practices are respected, but they conclude that "There can be no real social stability or any general human happiness while large areas of the world and large classes of people are in a phase of civilisation different from the prevailing mass."
It almost seems that mankind awakes from the horror of war to find itself a new species. "The peace between nations is also a peace between individuals. We live in a world that comes of age. Man the warrior, man the lawyer, and all the bickering aspects of life, pass into obscurity...." Free energy and other scientific advances relieve some economic distress, but it's hard to see how Wells can be so optimistic. Further, he says "The majority of our population consists of artists, and the bulk of activity in the world lies no longer with necessities but with their elaboration, decoration, and refinement."
The final chapters of the novel address the role of women in the new world. In a scenario where an elderly male educator is addressing two female medical personnel, it is ironically the women who need convincing that they should consider themselves equal to men. One of the women says, almost as if to defend her gender's subordinate position, that "you could nearly write a complete history of the world without mentioning a woman's name." But the educator responds: "To think of yourselves as women is to think of yourselves in relation to men. You can't escape that consequence. You have to learn to think of yourselves — for our sakes and your own sakes — in relation to the sun and stars. You have to cease to be our adventure, Rachel, and come with us upon our adventures. ..."
After two world wars and the failures of communism, and while violence, paranoia and militarism continue to dominate international relations, it is difficult to share H. G. Wells's optimism that a new world order is possible. He gives us an appealing utopian vision, but he doesn't show us a path for getting there except by plunging to the brink of self destruction.
First published 1914
The World Set Free is considered the first published work, fiction or non-fiction, to mention the idea of the atomic bomb. The scientists who actually constructed such a bomb, some 31 years later, were very much aware of H. G. Wells's novel and the implications of nuclear war which the author had explored.
But theorizing about nuclear war wasn't the author's chief purpose for writing the novel. He wanted to propose a new world order, ruled by scientific and socialist principles. He felt that society in the early twentieth century was still in a "barbaric stage... aimless, untrained and unorganized to the pitch of imbecility." The trigger getting mankind to recognize its folly and embark upon the Modern State would be the War to End All Wars, a nuclear war.
Ironically, The World Set Free was published in 1914 on the very eve of a war that H. G. Wells didn't see coming--at least not for decades. His one great war would not occur until the mid-1950s, by which time nuclear power had revolutionized life on earth by making energy virtually free. It is the discontent of the laboring classes such as coal miners whose jobs have been eliminated by nuclear power that eventually brings war about.
The World Set Free is written in the form of a future work of history. Most of it is narration of events and discourse upon the principles upon which the new society is founded. There are a few characters brought in at different times to provide eyewitness accounts of events--a scientist, a soldier, a king, and an educator--but the novel is not about them.
Wells does not attempt to predict the future of technology, and I don't think the novel should be harshly judged just because his 1956 is different from 1914 only in that atomic engines have replaced steam engines and gasoline motors. His atomic bombs, for example, are carried to the target in open cockpit biplanes. The observer/bombardier drops the bomb simply by pulling the fuse with his teeth and heaving it over the side. He signals to other airplanes with a megaphone and shoots at his enemies with a rifle.
The atomic bombs which the author imagined are far removed from the eventual reality but, ironically, have much the same effect. They don't explode in a single blast, but erupt like miniature suns which keep on burning at an ever-diminishing level according to the radioactive element's half-life. It is a generation before the major cities of the world can be safely entered.
The annihilation of 218 cities across the globe shocks the surviving leaders of the world into the realization that they must abandon pride, nationalism, materialism, and traditional prejudices. They meet in northern Italy and agree to form a single world government based on equality, universal suffrage, a common language and currency, standard education, and the complete renunciation of military force. Local traditions and religious practices are respected, but they conclude that "There can be no real social stability or any general human happiness while large areas of the world and large classes of people are in a phase of civilisation different from the prevailing mass."
It almost seems that mankind awakes from the horror of war to find itself a new species. "The peace between nations is also a peace between individuals. We live in a world that comes of age. Man the warrior, man the lawyer, and all the bickering aspects of life, pass into obscurity...." Free energy and other scientific advances relieve some economic distress, but it's hard to see how Wells can be so optimistic. Further, he says "The majority of our population consists of artists, and the bulk of activity in the world lies no longer with necessities but with their elaboration, decoration, and refinement."
The final chapters of the novel address the role of women in the new world. In a scenario where an elderly male educator is addressing two female medical personnel, it is ironically the women who need convincing that they should consider themselves equal to men. One of the women says, almost as if to defend her gender's subordinate position, that "you could nearly write a complete history of the world without mentioning a woman's name." But the educator responds: "To think of yourselves as women is to think of yourselves in relation to men. You can't escape that consequence. You have to learn to think of yourselves — for our sakes and your own sakes — in relation to the sun and stars. You have to cease to be our adventure, Rachel, and come with us upon our adventures. ..."
After two world wars and the failures of communism, and while violence, paranoia and militarism continue to dominate international relations, it is difficult to share H. G. Wells's optimism that a new world order is possible. He gives us an appealing utopian vision, but he doesn't show us a path for getting there except by plunging to the brink of self destruction.
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