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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What are the Eloi's tables made of?

2. Which of the characters reads the note left by the Time Traveler?

3. What does the Time Traveler notice about Eloi gender roles?

4. What frightens the Time Traveler badly enough to make him flee the underground lair of the Morlocks?

5. On what day of the week did the guests come for dinner?

Short Essay Questions

1. Inside the dark tunnel he explores in the Palace, the Time Traveler finds a carcass. What is it and what does this carcass foreshadow?

2. What makes The Time Traveler push the lever again and leave the time period with the two creatures and the large, red sun?

3. Describe the plan the Time Traveler comes up with to recover his time machine and escape back to the past.

4. What does the Time Traveler intend to do with Weena once he recovers the time machine?

5. Describe the Time Traveler's appearance when he suddenly arrives during the second dinner.

6. When the Earth is in perpetual twilight, the air thin and hard to breathe, and the sun is huge and red, what are the only two animals/creatures The Time Traveler sees? What do they look like?

7. What is the Editor's reactions when the Time Traveler tells him and the other guests of his journey?

8. Describe the Time Traveler's reaction to the fact that his machine has been moved into the White Sphinx; what action does he undertake, if any, to recover the machine?

9. What happens when the Psychologist pushes the lever on the model time machine and how do the observers respond?

10. Why does the Time Traveler think the Morlocks started eating Eloi?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Two kinds of science fiction worlds are utopias and dystopias. Define these terms. Using examples from this novel, identify which speculative elements are utopian and which are dystopic. How does Wells play with these two kinds of science fiction worlds? Finally, offer your opinion: do you consider this novel utopian, dystopian, or something else? Be specific.

Essay Topic 2

While some critics argue that the Morlocks represent the future of the working class and the Eloi the future of the elite classes, there are also many other characters in the novel who actually are middle and upper class. Describe briefly the analysis of social power dynamics represented by the science fiction elements evidence in the Morlock and the Eloi. Then consider two or three of the characters who are middle class--the Time Traveler, the Medical Man, the Editor, or the Psychologist--and analyze to what extent these characters offer a critique of their own on the social class they represent. You may also consider, if you wish, why none of the onscreen characters are representative of the working class.

Essay Topic 3

This novel takes what some might consider a pessimistic view of the role science plays in modern life. Even though Wells's narrative takes place in the 19th century, there are many parallels one could draw between the scientific and technical progress discuused in the novel and the explosion of digital technologies in our own time. Using textual examples from Wells, analyze the effects technological developments and innovations are likely to have on humanity. Compare and contrast Wells's predictions of what technological advancement does to humanity with your opinion of the effects of the technological advancements from your own lifetime.

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