ENGLISH LITERATURE II-M.

RESPONSE PAPERS: MRS DALLOWAY

PAULA SANTOS NAVAJAS

THE WAR OF THE WORLDS: CLOSE READING

ON COLONIALISM

This novel, written by H. G. Wells, was one of the pioneers in the science fiction genre and
the first to mention an extraterrestrial invasion. In The War of the Worlds, a narrator tells us
about the devastating consequences of the Martian invasion of Earth six years ago.

To understand the novel entirety, it is important to situate it in time and put it in context.
During the 19th century, the British Empire was at the height of its splendour. The empire
was a source of pride for most Britons, although there were also those who rejected it. In
short, Britain was a world power at the time, and they did not imagine that they could be
defeated. In this novel, the narrator shows us a scenario in which Martians, fleeing their
uninhabitable planet, are seeking to occupy the earth in order to inhabit it. The problem they
encounter is that humans already inhabit it. So they start a war in which they end up burning
and destroying everything.

One could argue that the atmosphere described in the novel might remind us of colonialism.
The opposition between humans and Martians is very similar to that of the colonizers and the
colonized.

On the one hand, we could say that the Martians represent all the colonizers who for years
invaded already inhabited lands. They razed everything and exploited the raw material of the
places as well as the inhabitants of those places. In the novel by H. G. Wells it can be seen
that in the end, the Martians and the colonizers have many similarities.

At the same time, we encounter the humans, who witness how aliens gradually take over their
homes. They see firsthand how they burn their homes and loved ones and are forced to flee
away. Humans could come to represent the colonized who witnessed the massacres of the
colonizers.
 ENGLISH LITERATURE II-M. RESPONSE PAPERS: MRS DALLOWAY
PAULA SANTOS NAVAJAS

As we have already mentioned above, the British believed themselves to be invincible since
during the 19th century they were so. They were not afraid since they knew everything, and
there was nothing that posed a threat to them. But in the novel, if we look at it from a
different point of view, it is clear that another of the prevailing themes is the irrational fear
"of the other" from the point of view of humans. In the novel, the English see the Martians as
mysterious beings who instil terror in them, since at the beginning of the novel, it is not
known what they want, which is when Ogilvy and Henderson try to communicate with them
in a peaceful way. Still, they are afraid, because they do not know their intentions. The
Martians pose a great threat and represent fear of the unknown. This is a clear representation
of the xenophobia or fear of the unknown prevalent in 19th-century England.

In short, The War of the Worlds can serve as a metaphor to represent colonizers and
colonized. As a consequence of this, humans, who are invaded, show an irrational fear
towards "the other". This, as we have mentioned, is a representation of the xenophobia
prevailing in 19th-century England.

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