Orwell argued that Wells confused scientific advancement with progress in societal values. For Orwell, this flaw in thinking made it hard for Wells to reconcile the order, planning and scientific encouragement found within Nazi Germany and his vision of a world state run by a scientific elite.
Orwell criticized Wells for his belief that scientific progress was synonymous with societal progress, a view he believed led Wells to overlook the potential dangers of such an approach, particularly in the context of Nazi Germany's totalitarian regime.