Jules Verne Forum

<jvf@Gilead.org.il>

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec 19961997199819992000200120022003200420052006200720082009

Re: Chronology--Who cares?

From: thomas mccormick <tom_amity~at~hotmail.com>
Date: Fri, 16 Jun 2006 03:26:42 +0000
To: jvf~at~Gilead.org.il

In my view, one cannot use the "nation of the oppressed" quote in support of
the notion that Captain Nemo has a Indian identity in 20,000 Leagues, for
two reasons. First, there is a great deal of external evidence, in the
Verne-Hetzel correspondence, that Verne conceived the Nemo of that novel as
Polish. Did Verne not, after all, tell Hetzel that if he were not able to
portray the Captain as a Pole he would keep his identity secret? Second,
there is precious little of the Indian in a Nemo who plays and composes on
the organ (not the sitar or sarod), whose art collection and library is
European, and whose pseudonymn and motto are Latin (not Sanskrit).

It would seem that Nemo's rescue of the pearl diver, and also Verne's later
identification of the Captain as a Hindu, do show that Verne had feelings
about the oppression of India. I'm sure it's true that the mention - almost
the celebration - of the Sepoy Rebellion in Mysterious Island conveys the
same message. Brian's remarks, about how shocking the rebellion must have
been to Europeans, are very pertinent and I'm sure that was part of Verne's
purpose. But it seems an overstatement of this argument to suggest that Nemo
is Indian in the earlier novel.

Tom


>From: Rfbagby~at~aol.com
>Reply-To: Jules Verne Forum <jvf~at~Gilead.org.il>
>To: jvf~at~Gilead.org.il
>Subject: Re: Chronology--Who cares?
>Date: Thu, 15 Jun 2006 15:37:26 EDT
>
>REPLY: Though, Brian, don't you feel that a French audience would be more
>willing to identify with an anti-British rebel than, say, an Algerian
>fighting
>the French expansion across the Mediterranean? As witness, the portrayals
>of
>hostile "natives" in CLOVIS DARDENTOR and THE INVASION OF THE SEA, and the
>ambivalence in PROPELLER ISLAND.
>In his Annotated 20,000 our own WJM points out that a possible Indian
>identity for Nemo is raised in that work, when Nemo explains his somewhat
>uncharacteristic rescue of the pearl diver as identifying with "the nation
>of the
>oppressed", raising the issue whether he means it literally (as the Dakkar
>identification later spells out) or merely metaphorically.
>Ross
>In a message dated 6/14/06 6:01:53 PM, btav~at~loc.gov writes:
>
><< For a
>nation under imperial subjugation to almost overthrow the rule of the most
>powerful nation on Earth, England, was a shock to Europeans.
>
>To link Nemo with that very revolt not only precluded any European
>identity for his character, and the European/American claim to hegemony
>over the power of science, but placed Nemo nationally and ideologically
>with those striving to overcome colonialism. And that was simply more
>important than preserving any internal timelines within the fiction.
>
>
>Brian Taves
>Motion Picture/Broadcasting/Recorded Sound Division
>Library of Congress
>101 Independence Avenue, S.E. Washington, D.C. 20540-4692
>Telephone: 202-707-9930; 202-707-2371 (fax)
>Email: btav~at~loc.gov
>
>
>Disclaimer--All opinions expressed are my own.

_________________________________________________________________
Don’t just search. Find. Check out the new MSN Search!
http://search.msn.click-url.com/go/onm00200636ave/direct/01/
Received on Fri 16 Jun 2006 - 06:26:57 IDT

JV.Gilead.org.il
Copyright © Zvi Har’El
$Date: 2009/02/01 22:36:11 $$