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The Theme Of Time In The Time Machine

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Science fiction can be associated with change in human species as a result of scientific findings and developments that are brought about by human beings to their own social evolution. The quest is not just about adventure but having a specific role. The quest is about self-sacrifice and not what the character can gain. The character on the quest seeks curiosity and questions the world around them. Around the world in 80 days is a Science fiction novel based on technology in existence using the quest to examine this. The novel contemplates the impact of scientific development in the real world, compared to Wells book the time machine which is based on the future journey and social, scientific changes that will occur in the future world. This …show more content…

Time is a significant theme throughout the novel around the world in eighty days. The quest of the novel is about beating time as the protagonist Philis Fogg must try and win a bet of 20000 pounds that he made with his friends from the reform club and travel around the world in eighty days. Whilst on his journey Fogg is constantly taking note of how many days he lost and how many days he gained. The importance of time is portrayed in a key scene when the main characters are in India and fogg saves Aouda a young lady who is a princesses and who is about to be killed by the natives in the forest. Fogg explains that he is only saving the princess because he has some spare time to do so: “I have yet twelve hours to spare” (Chapter 12, p. 64). When Sir Francis applauses fogg for saving the lady Fogg says “when I have the time” time is of significant importance to fogg sir Francis describes him as a “product of the exact sciences” (Chapter 11, p. 51) as he speculates if Fogg cares about anything else like saving the lady’s life rather than just saving her because he had spare time to do so. However although time is an integrant part of the quest, fogg fails to realize the standardization of …show more content…

Whilst fogg is on his journey he does not take note of scenery or place. The quest is about taking note of the advances in technology such as power and the increase in speed. “The world has grown smaller, since a man can now go round it ten times more quickly than a hundred years ago” (Chapter 3, p. 22). For example the Mongolia ship which is used as transport for some of the characters journey is “built of iron, of two thousand eight hundred tons burden, and five hundred horsepower”. Although the sea is rough during some of the journey this doesn’t slow down the ship as it arrives before the intended time. Fogg also describes how they passed through valleys “like a flash” as the train sped through towns and villages: “the train passed on at full speed, in the midst of the roaring of the tigers, bears, and wolves which fled before the locomotive”. Verne describes the American Transcontinental Railroad in great detail in the novel as it works with nature rather than cutting through it and also allows one to cross a continent in just days instead of months. However

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