![]() All we ever learn of Nemo is that he and his family have suffered at the hands of an imperialistic government and that he is brave, stubborn, secretive and a genius. We only ever see him through the eyes of our narrator and although Aronnax tries to learn more about him, he never succeeds in doing so. Nemo remains an enigma throughout the book. Ned is a man of action and he, more than any of the others, resents their imprisonment. ![]() Ned Land, on the other hand, seems to be there to remind Aronnax that, comfortable as they are on the Nautilus, and as wonderful as all the discoveries they make are, that they should not be imprisoned and that they need to escape. His main role seems to be to ask questions that allow Aronnax the opportunity for lengthy expositions about the Nautilus or marine life. And it seems to give Nemo pleasure to finally have someone on board who shares his love for the underwater world.Ĭonseil is mostly ancillary to Aronnax. Aronnax is at first relatively content in his imprisonment, as he is thrilled to be able to observe the underwater world in more detail than he ever imagined possible, and is excited by the various locations he is taken to by Nemo. They are rescued by the ‘creature’ which turns out to be a giant submarine under the command of Nemo, a man who has separated himself from ordinary society, and are imprisoned on board: Nemo does not wish anyone on land to know of his secret. They attack, but the frigate is damaged and Aronnax, Conseil and Ned are thrown overboard. After many months at sea, they finally encounter the creature in waters near Japan. Aronnax is a renowned naturalist and he is invited to join an expedition on board the frigate Abraham Lincoln to hunt down the unknown creature. At first it is only a curiosity, but then it becomes a danger when several strong vessels are almost sunk. The basic story is a simple one - the book opens with the information that for a year or so, various ships around the world have encountered a mysterious phenomenon, widely supposed to be a giant sea creature. There is a very limited cast of characters in this book - we have the narrator, Professor Aronnax, his servant Conseil, the harpooner Ned Land and the enigmatic Captain Nemo. And it is set in the Victorian era, so at least it’s in the right cultural period for Steampunk. Of course, octopi and giant squid are common symbols used in Steampunk and I think this is probably because of the attack of the giant squid on the Nautilus, a scene frequently illustrated on different editions of the book (see the side bar for several examples). For starters, Captain Nemo disdains steam and boasts that his Nautilus, the submarine at the centre of this story, runs on the superior electricity. ![]() I’ve long heard this book referred to as a classic of steampunk, but having now finally read it, I actually think that while some movie versions might have a steampunk aesthetic (such as the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen which features Captain Nemo as a character), the book doesn’t have too many Steampunk elements in it. I do not, therefore, obey its laws, and I desire you never to allude to them before me again” - Captain Nemo The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen has 96 hours to save the world.“I am not what you call a civilised man! I have done with society entirely, for reasons which I alone have the right of appreciating. The threat is catastrophic, the risks are staggering. ![]() There, a masked madman known as the Fantom plans to sabotage a conference of world leaders by setting off a domino chain of explosions, sinking the entire city. With little preparation and no time to lose, they will be transported via Captain Nemo's extraordinary submarine, the Nautilus, to the frontline of defense: Venice, Italy. Now they must learn to trust each other and work as a team for the very hope of civilization. The League members are staunch individualists, outcasts in fact, with checkered pasts and singular gifts that have been both blessing and curse. Hyde and M-the League's enigmatic recruiter. ![]() Quatermain's extraordinary League is comprised of Captain Nemo, Dracula vampiress Mina Harker, an invisible man Rodney Skinner, American secret service agent Sawyer, Dorian Gray, Dr. Allan Quatermain, the world's greatest adventurer, leads a legion of superheroes the likes of which the world has never seen. ![]()
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