In Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea, this is seen through the narrator’s focus on how the Nautilus operates and illuminates the water.īy the end of his career, he had invented what is known today as “Roman de la Science,” or “Novel of Science.” This genre of novel is considered a precursor to science fiction. For example, the use of electricity throughout the country and what it could lead to (positively and negatively) in the future. His father is said to have retrieved him at the ships’ first stop.Ĭommonly, scholars cite the rapid industrialization of France, as well as the rest of Europe, for Verne’s (and other authors’) interest in science and new technologies. Supposedly, he signed on to the vessel as a cabin boy.

Perhaps, through the influence of Madame Sambin, a particularly important instructor who, some scholars suggest, laid the initial spark of inspiration and interest in seafaring.Ī famous anecdote from his youth, which is generally considered more fiction than fact, describes the young Verne embarking on a ship journey at eleven years old without his family’s permission. He worked in the adventure genre throughout his career, an interest that scholars believe began in his youth. This novel is one of several in his “Voyages Extraordinaires.” This was a series of novels he started in 1862 and included other classics like Journey to the Center of the Earth and Around the World in Eighty Days. Jules Verne was a French author and pioneer of the “adventure” genre. Jules Verne and Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea When/where written: Paris, France 1869-1870.Title: Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea.Key Facts about Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea This mysterious antagonist keeps the three central characters hostage aboard the submarine, unwilling to allow the secret of his existence and his vast creation to reach those he believes are trying to prosecute him and keep him from living his chosen way of life. Initially, under the impression that the animal they’re hunting is a giant narwhal, the Professor and his companions soon discover that it is, in fact, a huge submarine commanded by Captain Nemo. He has been tasked, along with others, to hunt this creature down and ensure that it does no further damage. There is a large creature, some suggest, that is attacking ships indiscriminately.

When the novel begins, the main character and narrator, Professor Aronnax, describes a terrifying new occurrence in the world’s oceans.

Twenty leagues under the sea