James Baquet “20,000 Leagues Under the Sea” by Jules Verne is a prescient work of early science fiction. The 1870 novel describes many features of modern submarines. Like another of Verne’s books, “Around the World in Eighty Days,” it involves a long journey. This one is led by an enigmatic captain — not unlike Ahab — named Nemo. The nations of the world share a problem: A mysterious sea monster has been sighted in various places. The U.S. government sends out an expedition, which includes a French marine biologist (and the book’s narrator), Professor Pierre Aronnax; his valet Conseil (like Phileas Fogg’s Passepartout), and a Canadian harpooner named Ned Land. Near Japan, the monster damages the ship’s rudder. Our heroes are thrown overboard, and end up atop the monster — which is not a creature at all, but a submarine! They wait on deck until morning, when they are introduced to the designer and commander of the craft, the mysterious Captain Nemo. Many adventures ensue. The passengers discover that Nemo does not intend to release them: They must travel with him until they die. The professor and his man are enthralled by the chance to explore under the sea, but Ned longs to be free again. They visit coral reefs, sunken battleships, and even the lost world of Atlantis. Most famously, they survive an attack by a giant squid. They learn that Nemo built his submarine, the “Nautilus,” partly as a means of exploring the undersea realm, and partly to escape the power of governments — especially one in particular. It seems his homeland had been invaded by an unnamed imperialist nation; in the process, his family was slaughtered. Eventually, a warship of that nation attacks the Nautilus, and Nemo rams it, sending it to the bottom of the sea with its entire crew. After that, Nemo is deeply depressed, and the ship’s previous rigorous discipline and purposeful navigation falls by the wayside. At last, seeing a chance to escape, the three board the submarine’s skiff and row toward land. At the same time, the Nautilus is caught in a maelstrom and drawn deeper and deeper. The survivors reach a desert island off the coast of Norway, but the submarine’s fate is unknown. Vocabulary: Which word above means: 1. gaining power over other countries 2. vessel 3. one who studies sea life 4. fascinated 5. with clear intention 6. having knowledge of things before they happen 7. steering mechanism 8. small boat 9. whirlpool 10. mysterious ANSWERS: 1. imperialist 2. craft 3. marine biologist 4. enthralled 5. purposeful 6. prescient 7. rudder 8. skiff 9. maelstrom 10. enigmatic | 