Examine the ways in which HG Wells creates atmosphere in The War of the Worlds by close reference to key episodes.

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GCSE English Prose Assignment

Examine the ways in which HG Wells creates atmosphere in The War of the Worlds by close reference to key episodes.

The novel was written by HG Wells and first published in 1898 at the end of the nineteenth century. The feelings of the people around the end of the nineteenth century are similar to what we felt at the end of the twentieth century. Excitement and curiosity about space and space travel. We saw the new century as a time of hope and fear and so did the people at the end of the nineteenth century. Often ideas about the future were expressed through science fiction and generally showed fears towards the future and uncertainty.

The first episode of the novel describes a mysterious cylinder landing from outer space, a crowd begins to gather and a young man is pushed by the frantic crowd on top of the cylinder. In this episode HG Wells creates an atmosphere of alarm, anxiety and revulsion. For example, the man who has been pushed onto the cylinder is clearly afraid, shown by him trying to "scramble out of the hole again" the word scramble suggests a