20,000 Leagues Under the Sea

L'histoire en bref

Three men of different standing find themselves aboard the mysterious craft, the Nautilus. They are: Professor Pierre Arronax, a learned man; his manservant, Conseil; and a whaler by the name of Ned Land. Inside the Nautilus and guided by the infamous Captain Nemo, they commence an exploration of the seas of the world, from the Red Sea to the South Pole.

Vingt mille lieues sous les mers

Originally written in French by the sci-fi author Jules Verne, this copy was published by HarperCollins in 2010 and, in places, the translation does leave something to be desired. The admission in the preface is that the first translations of the original manuscript were inaccurate and politically censored. This version is probably extremely accurate but, at times, the reader can tell that it is not an original English text and, as such, while making sense, it is perhaps literarily flawed.

The sea is everything. Its breath is pure and healthy. It is an immense desert where man is never alone, for he feels life quivering around him on every side.

One thing to say about the book, is that it certainly mentions a lot of life. Lists of flora and fauna, classified from kingdom to species, are riddled throughout the novel. This is one of the things that probably posed quite a problem for translators: on the one hand, the biological basis of these passages makes it easy to translate, as you simply follow the science; on the other hand, how do you make such a direct and phylogenetically analytic text poetic and pleasing to read?

I admit that the constant references to various kinds of fish did become a little mind-boggling and, at times, led to certain passages being skim-read. Except in modern scientific texts, I think it is rare to find a novel containing such in-depth analysis, although at the time when the book was written in 1870, Darwin's oeuvre was still fairly new to the world, so I can see that a novel containing such detailed descriptions of the animal kingdom would have been chronistically à la mode, perhaps.

Thus, then, in the bosom of the immense ocean Captain Nemo's entire life was passed, and he had even prepared his grave in the most impenetrable of its depths. There was always in him the same implacable and ferocious defiance towards all human society.

The character of Captain Nemo is an intricate and bewitching one. As captain of the Nautilus, he is at the same time the rescuer, captor and educator of the three land-dwellers. It was hard for me to read about him and not imagine the Nemo portrayed by Naseeruddin Shah in the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen; however the film version is without doubt a more likeable fellow. The Nemo of the book is hard, resolute and disregards the freedom of his "captives". We never learn his origins, simply that whatever they are, they took his entire family from him, making him angry and hell-bent on revenge, attacking the mysterious ships that are somehow linked to this past. However, he shows a love for his crew and absolute remorse when even a single member is lost to him. He puts his own life at risk to save a simple pearl-diver and gives the gold he recovers from the sea to the poor and needy. He may hoard artefacts of the world, but does not take or remove the gigantic pearl, but instead observes its growth and appreciates the beauty of the natural phenomenon. For the majority of the book, the overwhelming impression is that the captain wishes to be left alone, untarnished and unaffected by the hypocrisy and corruption of world powers. It is only at the end that revenge seems to engulf this mysterious and engaging man.

This is for you if...
You want to read a piece of history. It is one of the first science novels from an author who became the 'Father of Sci-Fi' by pioneering the genre. If you're looking for a holiday read, stick to popular pulp fiction - that's where I'll be returning next.

Recommendations
At some point, read something classic. Even if it is only to appreciate the ease and intrigue of modern literature!

And the next round is: Classic Literature

What: Read a classic book
Where: Mostly on the tube, shuttling backwards and forwards to work
Who: A little bit of M. Jules Verne
When: Hoping to manage it in a week...
Why: I love pulp fiction (not the film, although that is also good) but sometimes you have to try and raise your game. Hence I shall put down my crime novels and pick up "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea" - let's see how it goes!

P.S. I realise this is somewhat less of a New Thing, but I also currently have a New Job to contend with, so it'll do for now...