In an interview he gave to a magazine in France in 1894, Jules Verne said that the thing he regrets most is not finding his place in French literature.
David Lloyd
In an interview he gave to a magazine in France in 1894, Jules Verne said that the thing he regrets most is not finding his place in French literature. These things raise the question of whether Vern was referring only to the books he had already written or whether he was also thinking about the books he would like to write.
Today it is common to think of Verne as an important writer, but the truth is that it was only in the second half of the twentieth century that his works found their place in French literature and scholars from all over the world began to treat them as literary works. Until then, it was customary to judge his books by the degree of accuracy with which Vern was able to predict the development of science and technology. This reference did not notice his innovative experiments in literary styles nor the way he handled non-scientific fields, such as social criticism.
In English-speaking countries his status as a writer was even lower. More than a fifth of the original text of his books did not appear frequently in translations of his books into English. For political or religious reasons large sections of text were omitted or changed. As a result of these omissions and changes, English-speaking readers came to the conclusion that Verne's books were only suitable for children and lacked literary value or depth.
In recent years there has been a revival in everything related to Verne's writing. Literary researchers today place more emphasis on their literary value, while their scientific-prophetic aspect has become secondary. Thus, a hundred years after his death, interest in Warren is growing and the question of who the real Warren is arouses increasing curiosity.
There is no doubt that literature was the love of his life. After many attempts at writing in his youth, Verne reached a new genre, the "scientific novel", almost by accident, when he wrote short articles for a magazine in Paris to supplement his income. His first book, "Five weeks in a hot air balloon", was very successful. The integration of the scientific dimension in his stories was probably what was behind the success of most of his books. But Verne tried at least twice to break through the limits of this formula.
In the first version of the book "Island of Mysteries", almost no scientific elements appeared. "Where is the science?" asked Etzel, Verne's publisher, demanding that he rewrite the book. Etzel greatly influenced Verne's writing. He knew the audience's taste and made sure Warren would not deviate from it. This influence was particularly noticeable in Verne's second book, "Paris in the Twentieth Century". The secret of success, in Etzel's eyes, was not only in the integration of the scientific dimension in the stories, but also in Verne's optimistic view of the place of science in human society. However, in "Paris in the Twentieth Century" a completely different side of Verne was revealed. Not only was the view of the future place of technology very pessimistic, but the hero of the book comes to a tragic end because of his inability to live peacefully in such a materialistic world.
After Etzel's refusal to publish the book, the book remained locked in the family safe until it was discovered in 1989. Until the publication of the book in 1994, it was widely believed that the later pessimism in Verne's writing, which appeared after Etzel's death, stemmed from family tragedies. This opinion was shaken only after a renewed and in-depth observation that revealed that the tone of pessimism had already been woven into Verne's second book. This observation led to a renewed examination of Verne and his work.
What would have happened if Vern had developed as he wished as a writer, without Etzel's influence?
Was he considered a more important writer?
And if so, would we still know the man who left a legacy that is spoken and read in every language on earth and inspires people in every corner of the world?
David Lloyd founded and operates the network of English teachers (www.etni.org.il) at the IT center at the Sde Boker seminary.
