Vol. 6, Issue 3, Part B (2020)
Uncanny in the war of the worlds: A Freudian study
Uncanny in the war of the worlds: A Freudian study
Author(s)
Ishfaq Ahmad Bhat
AbstractIn every one or two decades, there always comes one such masterpiece in literature that remains a riveting reading experience and continues to haunt its readers. The Victorian era towards its end witnessed one such enthralling masterpiece in the form of H G Wells’ novel The War of the Worlds. It is a remarkable science fiction novel that marked its appearance in hardcover in 1898 from publisher William Heinemann of London. Upon its first appearance in hardcover, it terrified the Victorian readers with its account of the gruesome invasion of earth by the deadly creatures from Mars who let loose a reign of terror and annihilated all life in their path. So, it is no big shocker that the novel The War of the Worlds is high on fear. But what Wells manages to do with this powerful theme of fear is worth consideration.
Working out on this theme of fear, this study presents a possible Freudian reading of the text, based in particular on the “The Uncanny”. Analyzing this brilliant artistic mastery of the novelist in successfully arousing the feelings of dread and creeping horror, the paper sets out to filter all such emotions through Freud’s model of the uncanny and examines relevant instances in the novel, where such feelings of uncanny can be traced. By applying the theory of ‘The Uncanny’ to the novel, the reader not only gains a deeper understanding of Freud’s theory, but also an in-depth analysis of thematic elements in the novel.
How to cite this article:
Ishfaq Ahmad Bhat. Uncanny in the war of the worlds: A Freudian study. Int J Appl Res 2020;6(3):106-108.