MovieChat Forums > Time After Time (1979) Discussion > gun laws

gun laws

posted 11 years ago by denham
10 replies | jump to latest

In the hotel room, Stevenson says to Wells:

Did you know that you can go into a shop here and purchase a rifle or a revolver, it's perfectly legal...?

He says this as if it's an extraordinary idea which Wells would be surprised to hear, and this is how Wells reacts. However, the real Wells would more likely have responded, 'So what?' Someone living in late Victorian England would have been used to guns being readily purchased legally. It was only in 1920 that gun laws in Britain began to be significantly tightened. Before then, the situation in England wasn't so different from that in the San Francisco of 1979. The writers apparently assumed (wrongly) that the gun restrictions in force in Britain in 1979 had been essentially similar a century before.

"I beseech ye in the bowels of Christ, think that ye may be mistaken."

[–] 11 years ago

[deleted]

[–] denham 11 years ago

It's estimated that in the late 19th century there were 200,000 or so guns in a British population of roughly 30 million. This would compare to more than 200 million guns in a population of about 310 million in present day America (1979 ratio likewise). Guns, and gun ownership, wasn't anything like such a big thing in Victorian Britain. But that wasn't because laws made it difficult, it was more to do with economics. Gun owners tended to be well off. When it seemed likely that lots of poor people would also be able to have guns (and the Russian revolution had just happened) the British government legislated to prevent this undesirable outcome.

"I beseech ye in the bowels of Christ, think that ye may be mistaken."

[–] 11 years ago

[deleted]

[–] denham 11 years ago

Ha, you're right, in those days it was legal to use cocaine, opium or morphine, cannabis... even Queen Victoria was a user. If only someone would invent a time machine...

"I beseech ye in the bowels of Christ, think that ye may be mistaken."

[–] agenericperson 11 years ago

I think it was to further show that this wasn't the utopia Wells had imagined. He assumed the world was going to be a peaceful paradise so all the violence was disturbing. In the same scene he was showing him all the violence on TV, some of which was in cartoons.

[–] Milkdoesabodygood 11 years ago

It's half and half, half bitter black coffee with half sweet cream to sweetin the deal.

Uh baby U 4got to pull out. 9 months later, can U pull this ucking baby outta me, do that @ least!

[–] wetcamelfood 9 years ago

agenericperson nailed it. They key to this is right after the quote by the OP, Stevenson says to Wells: says "these people encourage it" which is when Wells slapped Stevenson. This is obviously something Wells didn't want to hear since he thought Utopia would have people of the opposite mindset.

[–] joe_538 9 years ago

Wells was naïve. I don't think the continuance of contact sports and violence in fiction would alarm too many people.

[–] ltarex 9 years ago

It is an extraordinary idea, since in any normal civilized society one can't just walk into a shop and buy a gun.

"A voice from behind me reminds me. Spread out your wings you are an angel." 

[–] borg1005-1 9 years ago

It is an extraordinary idea, since in any normal civilized society one can't just walk into a shop and buy a gun.

You can in any free society, just pass a background check and register your firearm via a BATF Form 4473.

What "normal civilized society" are you thinking of?