Tuesday 3 September 2019

Literary References To Time Machines

HG Wells' The Time Machine has made everyone familiar with the idea of a "time machine," and has even added the phrase, "time machine," to the language. We no longer say "flying machine" but do say "time machine" because of Wells. Thus, the idea is used in science fiction and the phrase can be used more generally.

"...you couldn't get anything more like an old-fashioned saloon unless you had a time machine.'"
-Murder Bound, xii, p. 108.

In this case, as in Perish By The Sword (see Bilocation And Time Travel, here), we know that the author, Poul Anderson, is also, indeed primarily, an sf writer.

However:

"The key to the mystery was what it was that Harriet had seen in Hedestad. He would never find that out unless he could invent a time machine and stand behind her, looking over her shoulder."
-Stieg Larsson, The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo (London, 2008), CHAPTER 16, p. 277.

So does anyone know of other such literary references to time machines?

2 comments:

Sean M. Brooks said...

Kaor, Paul!

I'm still in Chapter iii of MURDER BOUND, and I've already noticed one or two "science fictional" turns of phrase that would see more "natural" in mystery writers focusing on that genre.

I don't really much care for "mainstream," contemporary literature, so I don't know of any recent examples of current writers mentioning "time machine" in their works. It's good and interesting that you have!

Sean

paulshackley2017@gmail.com said...

Sean,
Only that one, so far, though.
Paul.