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Definition of Motif
A motif is an element or idea that recurs throughout a work of literature. Motifs, which are often collections of related symbols, help develop the central themes of a book... read full definition
A motif is an element or idea that recurs throughout a work of literature. Motifs, which are often collections of related symbols, help develop the... read full definition
A motif is an element or idea that recurs throughout a work of literature. Motifs, which are often collections of... read full definition
Book 1, Chapter 1: The Eve of the War
Explanation and Analysis—Blindness:
The motif of blindness in The War of the Worlds conveys a sense of human error and hubris. Its presence underscores humanity's vain beliefs about itself. For instance, in Book 1, Chapter 1, the narrator explains why people doubt the presence of intelligent life on Mars:
It has air and water and all that is necessary for the support of animated existence. Yet so vain is man, and so blinded by his vanity, that no writer, up to the very end of the nineteenth century, expressed any idea that intelligent life might have developed there far, or indeed at all, beyond its earthly level.
Related Themes:
Book 1, Chapter 5: The Heat-Ray
Explanation and Analysis—Fear:
The War of the Worlds is filled with moments of fear. The motif of fear has two purposes. The first is to remind readers of human folly, as fear often makes people act irrationally. For example, in Book 1, Chapter 16, the narrator describes a mass exodus from London:
Unlock with LitCharts A+So you understand the roaring wave of fear that swept through the greatest city in the world just as Monday was dawning – the stream of flight rising swiftly to a torrent, lashing in a foaming tumult round the railway stations, banked up into a horrible struggle about the shipping in the Thames, and hurrying by every available channel northward and eastward. By ten o’clock the police organization, and by midday even the railway organizations, were losing coherency, losing shape and efficiency, guttering, softening, running at last in that swift liquefaction of the social body.
Book 1, Chapter 9: The Fighting Begins
Explanation and Analysis—The Color Red:
The color red often appears in The War of the Worlds. This recurring motif reinforces the theme of violence as it comes to signify impending danger. It also functions as an element of visual imagery. At the beginning of the novel, the color red appears in association with the Martians. The Martians originate from Mars, which is known as the Red Planet. When Mars passes closely by Earth, people see strange red lights. Furthermore, the narrator claims that there were red reflections on the ceiling of his brother's room the night he heard the report of the Martians' journey to Earth. And in Book 1, Chapter 11, he describes the presence of the Martians as their Heat-Rays throw "red reflections" into the sky:
Unlock with LitCharts A+It seemed indeed as if the whole country in that direction was on fire – a broad hillside set with minute tongues of flame, swaying and writhing with the gusts of the dying storm, and throwing a red reflection upon the cloud-scud above. [...] I could not see what they were doing, nor the clear form of them, nor recognize the black objects they were busied upon. Neither could I see the nearer fire, though the reflections of it danced on the wall and ceiling of the study.
Related Themes:
Book 1, Chapter 11: At the Window
Explanation and Analysis—The Color Red:
The color red often appears in The War of the Worlds. This recurring motif reinforces the theme of violence as it comes to signify impending danger. It also functions as an element of visual imagery. At the beginning of the novel, the color red appears in association with the Martians. The Martians originate from Mars, which is known as the Red Planet. When Mars passes closely by Earth, people see strange red lights. Furthermore, the narrator claims that there were red reflections on the ceiling of his brother's room the night he heard the report of the Martians' journey to Earth. And in Book 1, Chapter 11, he describes the presence of the Martians as their Heat-Rays throw "red reflections" into the sky:
Unlock with LitCharts A+It seemed indeed as if the whole country in that direction was on fire – a broad hillside set with minute tongues of flame, swaying and writhing with the gusts of the dying storm, and throwing a red reflection upon the cloud-scud above. [...] I could not see what they were doing, nor the clear form of them, nor recognize the black objects they were busied upon. Neither could I see the nearer fire, though the reflections of it danced on the wall and ceiling of the study.
Related Themes:
Book 1, Chapter 16: The Exodus from London
Explanation and Analysis—Fear:
The War of the Worlds is filled with moments of fear. The motif of fear has two purposes. The first is to remind readers of human folly, as fear often makes people act irrationally. For example, in Book 1, Chapter 16, the narrator describes a mass exodus from London:
Unlock with LitCharts A+So you understand the roaring wave of fear that swept through the greatest city in the world just as Monday was dawning – the stream of flight rising swiftly to a torrent, lashing in a foaming tumult round the railway stations, banked up into a horrible struggle about the shipping in the Thames, and hurrying by every available channel northward and eastward. By ten o’clock the police organization, and by midday even the railway organizations, were losing coherency, losing shape and efficiency, guttering, softening, running at last in that swift liquefaction of the social body.
Book 2, Chapter 8: Dead London
Explanation and Analysis—Blindness:
The motif of blindness in The War of the Worlds conveys a sense of human error and hubris. Its presence underscores humanity's vain beliefs about itself. For instance, in Book 1, Chapter 1, the narrator explains why people doubt the presence of intelligent life on Mars:
Unlock with LitCharts A+It has air and water and all that is necessary for the support of animated existence. Yet so vain is man, and so blinded by his vanity, that no writer, up to the very end of the nineteenth century, expressed any idea that intelligent life might have developed there far, or indeed at all, beyond its earthly level.
Related Themes:
Book 2, Chapter 9: Wreckage
Explanation and Analysis—Church Bells:
Church bells are an important motif in The War of the Worlds. At the beginning of the novel, churches carry on their normal activities despite signs of danger. But when the Martians arrive, all the churches begin ringing their bells to warn people of the coming invasion. This officially confirms the presence of danger to the masses. At the end of the novel (in Book 2, Chapter 9), the church bells ring to signify the end of the war, the death of the Martians, and the safety of humanity:
Unlock with LitCharts A+Thence the joyful news had flashed all over the world; a thousand cities, chilled by ghastly apprehensions, suddenly flashed into frantic illuminations[...]. The church bells that had ceased a fortnight since suddenly caught the news, until all England was bell-ringing.
Related Themes:
