The Machine Stops: A Science Fiction Classic

by E. M. Forster

Overview

E. M. Forster (1879–1970) was an English novelist, short story writer, essayist,and librettist. He is known best for his ironic and well-plotted novels examining class difference and hypocrisy in early 20th-century British society. Forster's humanistic impulse toward understanding and sympathy may be aptly summed up in the epigraph to his 1910 novel, Howards End: "Only connect..." His 1908 novel, A Room with a View, is his most optimistic work, while A Passage to India (1924) brought him his greatest success.

First published in 1909, Forster's short science fiction work, "The Machine Stops," posits a technology-dependent humanity now living underground, its every need serviced by machines. But what happens if--or when--the machines stop? "The Machine Stops" was named one of the greatest science fiction novellas published before 1965 by the Science Fiction Writers of America.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781434446251
Publisher:	Wildside Press
Publication date:	06/20/2013
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	48
File size:	268 KB

About the Author

Born in London in 1879, E. M. Forster is the author of six novels: Where Angels Fear to Tread, The Longest Journey, A Room with a View, Howard’s End, A Passage to India, and Maurice, the last published posthumously. He also wrote a number short stories, in addition to criticism and essays. His books have been adapted into several popular movies. He was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature in 13 separate years. He died in 1970.

Date of Birth:

January 1, 1879

Date of Death:

June 7, 1970

Place of Birth:

London

Place of Death:

Coventry, England

Education:

B. A. in classics, King's College, Cambridge, 1900; B. A. in history, 1901; M.A., 1910