The Oxford Companion to English Literature | Wells, H. G.
Wells, H.
G.
,
Herbert
George
Wells
(
1866
–
1946
), born in Bromley, Kent, the son of an unsuccessful small tradesman and professional cricketer. He was apprenticed to a draper in early life, a period reflected in several of his novels. He then became assistant teacher at Midhurst Grammar School, studying by night and winning a scholarship in
1884
to the Normal School of Science in South Kensington, where he came under the lasting influence of
T.
H.
Huxley
. For some years, in poor health, he struggled as a teacher, studying and writing articles in his spare time; his marriage in
1891
to his cousin Isabel proved unhappy, and he eloped with his student
Amy
Catherine (‘Jane’) Robbins
, whom he married in
1895
(though this did not prevent him from embarking on further liaisons, and continuing to criticize conventional marriage). In
1903
he joined the
Fabian Society
, but was soon at odds with it, his sponsor ...
[The entire page is 788 words long]
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