From the Bookshelf of Never too Late to Read Classics…

Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea

Jules Verne

Start date: July 1, 2019

Finish date: July 31, 2019

Discussion: Science Fiction and Fantasy

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Jan 31, 2023 Sean rated it really liked it

Shelves: classics, literature-french

Published in 1870 this is one of the 54 novels that form what Verne referred to as his collection of “Extraordinary Voyages”. Thanks in no small part to Disney’s 1955 film adaptation it has become one of his most famous.

The story concerns the adventures of the three companions - Professor Aronmax , a marine biologist, Conseil, his servant, and Ned Land, a harpooner. They are held as prisoners on board the submarine Nautilus by Captain Nemo after he rescues them from drowning in the ocean.

Captai Published in 1870 this is one of the 54 novels that form what Verne referred to as his collection of “Extraordinary Voyages”. Thanks in no small part to Disney’s 1955 film adaptation it has become one of his most famous.

The story concerns the adventures of the three companions - Professor Aronmax , a marine biologist, Conseil, his servant, and Ned Land, a harpooner. They are held as prisoners on board the submarine Nautilus by Captain Nemo after he rescues them from drowning in the ocean.

Captain Nemo is the central and most interesting character of the novel. As Aronnax states, “Perhaps I was never to know who he was, from whence he came, or where he was going to”. Note Verne’s deliberate choice of the name Nemo which is Latin for ,”no one” or “nobody”. His real name and back story are not revealed until the later novel ,”The Mysterious Island”.

One of the key mysteries concerning Nemo is why he has decided to go into self imposed exile in a submarine. When Aronnax complains to Nemo about his and his companions loss of liberty Nemo responds that,

“You are my prisoners of war. I keep you, when I could, by a word, plunge you into the depths of the ocean. You attacked me. You came to surprise a secret which no man in the world must penetrate,—the secret of my whole existence.”

Some hints as to why Nemo has chosen to travel the world’s oceans in a submarine can be found below when he states that:

“The sea does not belong to despots. Upon its surface men can still exercise unjust laws, fight, tear one another to pieces, and be carried away with terrestrial horrors. But at thirty feet below its level, their reign ceases, their influence is quenched, and their power disappears. Ah! sir, live—live in the bosom of the waters! There only is independence! There I recognise no masters! There I am free!”

Aronnax describes the Nautilus as a “masterpiece of modern industry”. It is fast, luxurious, virtually indestructible, capable of travelling long distances without refuelling and can dive to great depths. No wonder Nemo states that, “I love it as if it were part of myself.”

The Nautilus’s only potential weakness is that it is incapable of producing its own air supply whilst under water but needs to surface in order to refresh it. This will become an important plot point later in the book.

Despite the many dry scientific descriptions of the flora and fauna provided by Aronnax that he encounters during the voyage, I enjoyed the book and look forward to reading the rest of the collection.

Note concerning the Title
Due to a lazy translation error dating back to when the book was first translated from the original French into English it was given the title, “…Under the Sea”. This error continues to be repeated to this day as the book is distributed by new publishers. For example the libraries in my state hold over 40 editions by different publishers but only one has the correct title.

Many readers who are unfamiliar with the old fashioned league as a unit of measurement are therefore mislead into thinking that this is the depth that the Nautilus submerges to. This is illogical since 20,000 leagues converts to 80,000 kms. In addition when the book was written fathoms rather than leagues were used to measure depth. The actual translation is “…Under the Seas”, - the distance the Nautilus travels or nearly twice the circumference of the Earth. ...more

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Jul 23, 2014 Jenny rated it liked it

Shelves: 1001-children-s-books

I think that this is a book of its time, and reading it as an adult, I am not sure what a younger reader would think of it today. But they are reading it, my public library has five copies of 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea on its shelves and two audio versions, and people seem to be checking them out.

Today, the descriptions and details drag down the story and the technical details that a contemporary reader knows are incorrect detract from the adventure. When Verne first published it, the descrip ...more

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Jul 03, 2022 Leona rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

This book is one of the best by Jules Verne as far as I am concerned.
Not a fast read and I am not sure if all the sea creatures he had in the book are real as well as some ot the details but still a very interesting read.
A great read about history, the sea, countries, sea animals and sea plants.
Captain Nemo has taken Professor Aronnax, the faithful servant of the Professor, Conseil, and the Canadian harpooner, Ned Land, as prisoners on his ship the Nautilus.
The word league refers to distance a ...more

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