Technology and Science of Robert Louis Stevenson and Hebert George Wells
Attitudes towards science and technology In the course of the Romantic Era, which originated in 1850 and lasted till 1920, many poets and writers stood against science and technology as a literature subject. They judged that it wasn’t compatible with romantic love of nature, love of the common men or fascination with the supernatural and unexplainable. However, a few generations earlier, English poet, Alexander Pope was astonished by Newton's accomplishments and as an acknowledgement of the work “The Optiks” he wrote the famous epitaph:
“Nature, and Nature's Laws lay hid in Night.
God said, Let Newton be! and All was Light” (Pope). The transformation of the attitudes haven’t occurred until 1930 when the twentieth century artists had either configured or just rejected the romantic mentality about technology and science. They discovered great interest and attraction towards this particular subject and began to create literature, which explores various possibilities with use of research and knowledge. Although the precursors of science fiction as Lucian's “True History in the 2nd century”, “The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter in the 10th century”, and Jules Verne's “A Journey to the Centre of the Earth” in the 19th century already introduced the science fantasies, new forms of science fiction appeared and spread within the society. The genesis of new technologies as telegraph or electricity triggered new writers and influenced creation of the “literature of ideas”. The circle of the most acclaimed writers who employed technology and science in their oeuvre included Herbert George Wells, Robert Louis Stevenson and Ray Bradbury. H. G. Wells is well known for contribution to scientific romances, comic novels and the novels of ideas. As a scientist, he had an extensive knowledge in this matter. “Wells repeatedly employs evolution as motif in his scientific romances” (Towheed, 87). In “The Time Machine” Wells portrays the future human race as deteriorating and
“Nature, and Nature's Laws lay hid in Night.
God said, Let Newton be! and All was Light” (Pope). The transformation of the attitudes haven’t occurred until 1930 when the twentieth century artists had either configured or just rejected the romantic mentality about technology and science. They discovered great interest and attraction towards this particular subject and began to create literature, which explores various possibilities with use of research and knowledge. Although the precursors of science fiction as Lucian's “True History in the 2nd century”, “The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter in the 10th century”, and Jules Verne's “A Journey to the Centre of the Earth” in the 19th century already introduced the science fantasies, new forms of science fiction appeared and spread within the society. The genesis of new technologies as telegraph or electricity triggered new writers and influenced creation of the “literature of ideas”. The circle of the most acclaimed writers who employed technology and science in their oeuvre included Herbert George Wells, Robert Louis Stevenson and Ray Bradbury. H. G. Wells is well known for contribution to scientific romances, comic novels and the novels of ideas. As a scientist, he had an extensive knowledge in this matter. “Wells repeatedly employs evolution as motif in his scientific romances” (Towheed, 87). In “The Time Machine” Wells portrays the future human race as deteriorating and