The way the world is going : Guesses & forecasts of the years ahead by H. G. Wells
The Way the World Is Going is a 1928 nonfiction book written by British author H. G. Wells. The book is a compilation of 26 articles and a lecture published in the United Kingdom and the United States throughout 1927. The topics range from politics to science and from social affairs to economics. Originally published in the Sunday Express in the UK, and the New York Times in the US, the articles
provided Wells with the best medium to air his social and political agendas. In his opening notes to the book Wells expressed his frustration at the “editorial interference” that resulted in his work appearing only after, “suffering a certain amount of mutilation.” Although this introduction appeared in both the UK and US editions, Wells subsequently had to clarify that his complaints applied to the Sunday Express only, and not the New York Times, which published the articles essentially intact. The articles are a mixture of predictions and commentary based on the science and politics of the time. The book is similar to Wells' earlier 1925 work A Year of Prophesying. Unlike this earlier work, The Way the World Is Going is marked by both a dark disillusionment and decaying optimism over the state of the world at the time. (This summary is from Wikipedia.)
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About this eBook
| Author | Wells, H. G. (Herbert George), 1866-1946 |
|---|---|
| LoC No. | 29001252 |
| Title | The way the world is going : Guesses & forecasts of the years ahead |
| Alternate Title | The way the world is going : Guesses and forecasts of the years ahead |
| Original Publication | Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, Doran and Company, Inc., 1927, copyright 1929. |
| Note | "These articles were written for great weekly newspapers upon both sides of the Atlantic." -- Note |
| Note | Wikipedia page about this book: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Way_the_World_Is_Going |
| Contents | Man becomes a different animal: delusions about human fixity -- What is happening in China? Does the Kuomintang foreshadow a new sort of government in the world? -- What is Fascism? Whither is it taking Italy? -- Doubts of democracy: new experiments in government -- Democracy under revision: a lecture delivered at the Sorbonne on March 15th, 1927 -- The absurdity of British politics: a shadow on the whole world. What has to be done about it? -- Baldwinism a danger to the world: wanted, a Coalition government. The deadlock and the way out -- Communism and witchcraft -- The future of labour: the struggle between Capital and Labour; controversial hallucinations -- What is the British Empire worth to mankind? Meditations of an Empire citizen -- The present uselessness and danger of aeroplanes: a problem in organisation -- Changes in the arts of war: are armies needed any longer? The twilight of the Guards -- Delusions about world peace: the price of peace -- The possibility of war between Britain and America. Such a war is being prepared now: what are intelligent people to do about it? -- The remarkable vogue of broadcasting: will it continue? -- The silliest film: will machinery make robots of men? -- Is life becoming happier? -- Experimenting with marriage: legal recognition of current realities -- New light on mental life: Mr. J.W. Dunne's experiments with dreaming -- Popular feeling and the advancement of science: anti-vivisection -- The new American people: what is wrong with it? -- Outrages in defence of order: the proposed murder of two American Socialists -- Some plain words to Americans. Are the Americans a sacred people? Is international criticism restricted to the eastward position? -- Fuel-getting in the modern world -- The man of science and the expressive man. To whom does the future belong? Some thoughts about Ivan Pavloff and George Bernard Shaw -- The future of the novel: difficulties of the modern novelist -- Is belief in a spirit world growing? Why many sensible men continue to doubt and disregard it. What is immortality? |
| Credits | Sean/IB@DP |
| Summary |
The Way the World Is Going is a 1928 nonfiction book written by British author H. G. Wells. The book is a compilation of 26 articles and a lecture published in the United Kingdom and the United States throughout 1927. The topics range from politics to science and from social affairs to economics. Originally published in the Sunday Express in the UK, and the New York Times in the US, the articles provided Wells with the best medium to air his social and political agendas. In his opening notes to the book Wells expressed his frustration at the “editorial interference” that resulted in his work appearing only after, “suffering a certain amount of mutilation.” Although this introduction appeared in both the UK and US editions, Wells subsequently had to clarify that his complaints applied to the Sunday Express only, and not the New York Times, which published the articles essentially intact. The articles are a mixture of predictions and commentary based on the science and politics of the time. The book is similar to Wells' earlier 1925 work A Year of Prophesying. Unlike this earlier work, The Way the World Is Going is marked by both a dark disillusionment and decaying optimism over the state of the world at the time. (This summary is from Wikipedia.) |
| Language | English |
| LoC Class | D: History: General and Eastern Hemisphere |
| Subject | Social prediction |
| Subject | English essays -- 20th century |
| Category | Text |
| EBook-No. | 77242 |
| Release Date | Nov 16, 2025 |
| Most Recently Updated | Dec 29, 2025 |
| Copyright Status | Public domain in the USA. |
| Downloads | 316 downloads in the last 30 days. |
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