On Wells's Dualism Of Personal Self And Social Self In Tono-Bungay

The name H.G.Wells signifies a famous writer of science-fiction, and his fame and reputation rest primarily on a handful of stirring scientific romances. But his influence on the social and intellectual climate of the twentieth century has probably been more extensive than that of any other single writer. He also wrote numerous social novels which are still readable and fascinating today. Tono-Bungay (1909) is one of them, whose fame lies in its vitality and power as an authentic Edwardian social document.In this novel, the climate of the age is portrayed with a brilliant and searching pen. On one hand, Wells is an independent and self- realizing person and embarks on his own way of writing in order to realize his personal self; on the other hand, he is zealous about political and social reforms and eager to find an ideal way for the whole nation. Wells tries his best to combine personal achievement and social obligation together in his life and novel.This thesis analyzes the dualism of Wells's personal and social self in great detail and is divided into five parts:Chapter I demonstrates the purpose of this thesis and tries to establish a general frame work for it.Chapter II makes a brief introduction to the author and the work, which provides a historical and intellectual background for a good understanding of this book. Chapter III analyzes how Wells's personal self is incarnated in this novel, and especially introduces his unique theory of form for novel, as well as how the protagonist George treats all the surrounding people as the Others which demonstrate Wells's personal self. This chapter uses the theory of "philosophy of presence" to support its key point.Chapter IV proves that Wells is far from being indifferent to social issues, but enthusiastic about social reforms. He gains a deep understanding of the decaying England, which is represented by his analysis of the Bladesover system, the medicine career and the journey to steal 'quap'. So he thinks about the ways out for the nation. However, he chooses the idealized science as the way for England after his attempts on religion and socialism turn out to be a failure.The conclusion part summarizes Wells's way of uniting his personal and collective self in the novel. The last part also points out that Tono-Bungay certainly has impact on Wells's days as well as modern society.