A Moth by H. G. Wells AKA The Moth Episode #342
H. G. Wells | March 9, 2025-
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A Moth by H. G. Wells AKA The Moth Episode #342
H. G. Wells
A MOTH
Episode #342 · Written by H. G. Wells · Narrated by Scott Miller
A brilliant scientist retreats to the countryside to recover from professional defeat and mental exhaustion. What follows is an unsettling encounter that blurs obsession, rivalry, and reality itself.
In The Moth, H. G. Wells crafts a quiet psychological nightmare rooted in scientific rivalry. Hapley, a driven entomologist, has spent decades locked in a bitter feud with his professional rival. When that rivalry ends abruptly, Hapley retreats to the countryside hoping to regain his balance. Instead, his mind remains trapped in conflict.
A strange moth soon appears, one that seems to defy classification and explanation. It appears unexpectedly, vanishes without warning, and grows increasingly persistent. Wells allows the tension to build slowly, focusing not on spectacle but on perception. As Hapley’s certainty erodes, the reader is drawn into an unsettling question: is the moth real, or is it the final expression of a mind consumed by obsession?
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
H. G. Wells was a pioneering voice in science fiction, celebrated for combining imaginative ideas with psychological realism. While he is best known for landmark novels like The Time Machine and The War of the Worlds, his short stories often reveal an even sharper edge.In works like The Moth, Wells examines the emotional cost of ambition, rivalry, and intellectual pride. He understood that the most frightening transformations often occur within the mind. This story stands as a powerful example of his ability to turn scientific passion into psychological horror, proving that obsession itself can be the most dangerous experiment of all.
LISTEN TO THE STORY
Listen to A Moth by H. G. Wells — a haunting short story of obsession and rivalry from the golden age of science fiction.
H. G. WELLS SHORT STORIES
Few writers stand at the true beginning of classic science fiction the way H. G. Wells does.
Before rockets filled magazine covers and robots stalked chrome cities, Wells was already tearing holes in reality. He sent men tumbling into parallel dimensions, opened doors to lost childhood Edens, hurled wandering stars toward Earth, and let ordinary shopkeepers toy with godlike power. His stories feel startlingly modern, yet they carry the sharp Victorian edge of a writer who understood both scientific possibility and human frailty.
On The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast we’ve explored the astonishing breadth of his shorter fiction. In The Star, a rogue celestial body drifts toward Earth, and the quiet calculations of astronomers collide with the terror of a watching world. The Crystal Egg offers a glimpse across space itself, peering toward Mars through an object no one fully understands. The Plattner Story thrusts a chemistry teacher into an inverted universe where left becomes right and life hangs by a thread.
Wells could be playful and unsettling in the same breath. The Man Who Could Work Miracles hands unlimited power to a very limited man—with chaotic results. The Door in the Wall tempts a statesman with a green door that leads to wonder, beauty, and regret. A Moth narrows its focus to a single, maddening presence that chips away at a rational mind.
And then there is the darker current running beneath his work. The Red Room traps us in a chamber where fear itself becomes the antagonist. The Sea Raiders drags something ancient and intelligent from the ocean depths onto the quiet shores of England. Whether gazing at the cosmos or listening for footsteps in a lonely house, Wells never lost sight of the human reaction to the unknown. Explore the stories below and return to the wellspring of vintage science fiction.
ABOUT THE LOST SCI-FI PODCAST
The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast is the most listened-to vintage science fiction podcast in the world. Ranked the #1 Science Fiction Podcast in 34 countries and heard in more than 190 countries, the show has surpassed 3.8 million listens.
Each episode features carefully selected stories from the Golden Age of science fiction, professionally narrated. Timeless storytelling the way it was meant to be heard.
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