Resumo de Twenty Thousand Leagues Under The Sea

This extremely detailed 19th century science fiction classic opens with an account of various rumours about a giant sea monster which has been confusing and terrifying sailors across the world?s oceans. Our narrator is Professor Arronax, a French professor of natural history, who is enlisted by the French government to join an international expedition to capture and destroy the monster. He is accompanied by Conseil ? his dedicated Flemish servant ? and onboard the US vessel Abraham Lincoln they befriend Ned Land, a Canadian harpooner of considerable experience and enthusiasm.

After months at sea they finally encounter the ?monster?, and during a long chase the Abraham Lincoln is rammed and Professor Arronax is thrown overboard. Conseil jumps in after him, and they swim for hours trying to catch up with the ship. They are hauled ashore by Ned, who was also thrown overboard but landed on the very thing they had been chasing. It turns out not to be a creature but a man made iron vessel, from which several mysterious masked men emerge to take them below. Our protagonists are kept in a dark, sealed room for days before the captain of the ship appears. He interviews them in three different languages before finally introducing himself. He is Captain Nemo, and he built the submarine vessel ?Nautilus? in order to escape from the ?world of men? which he despises. Due to the secrecy of his ship and its incessant voyage, the Professor and his companions must remain the Captain?s prisoners, never to return to dry land. Ned is furious, and plans many escape attempts throughout their journey. Conseil is happy to do whatever his master wishes, and the Professor is so curious about the Captain and his ship that he does not seem to mind their incarceration, viewing it instead as a great scientific opportunity.

During their long journey our adventurers witness a great many wonders of the deep ? there are many detailed descriptions of the aquatic life they see through the ship?s observatory, which the Professor dutifully records. They go on underwater hunting expeditions, they travel through an underwater shortcut between the Red Sea and the Mediterranean, they discover vast caches of pearls, and the Captain takes the Professor to the lost underwater city of Atlantis. The most sinister of these adventures is an encounter with another ship, whereby a battle ensues and one of Captain Nemo?s men is killed and buried beneath the sea. The Captain summarises his hatred for his fellow man thus: ?Through him I have lost all that I all that I loved, cherished, and venerated, - country, wife, children, father, and mother. I saw all perish! All that I hate is there!?

Eventually Captain Nemo reveals his ambition to be the first man to reach the South Pole (this, along with many other marvels of this book such as the construction of the Nautilus and the ability of its crew to walk on the sea bed, must be considered with regard to the era in which it was written). He succeeds, planting his own flag at the Pole, but the journey is arduous and nearly proves fatal when the Nautilus becomes trapped between underwater icebergs and is unable to resurface for air. The crew must take turns to dig through the ice, sharing the limited air supplies from their portable tanks. The characters? actions during this challenge reveal to the reader the extent of Ned?s strength and courage, of Conseil?s dedication to his master, and of Captain Nemo?s fierce loyalty to his crew.

The incident under the ice is followed by an attack from a giant squid, which claims the life of one of the crew, and another battle with a manned ship, which the Nautilus sinks, killing everyone onboard. All these events make Ned Land even more determined to escape, and when they near the coast of Norway he steals the Nautilus? rowboat, and he and Conseil and the Professor break free. There is a terrible storm which nearly ends their journey, but ultimately they survive, and Professor Arronax vows to tell the world about their 10 month voyage on that mysterious and wondrous ship. His last thought is that Captain Nemo, wherever he may be ? if indeed he is still alive ? can find peace in his heart.

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