53 pages • 1 hour read
Jules VerneAround the World in Eighty Days
Fiction | Novel | Middle Grade | Published in 1872A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Themes
Imperialism, Colonization, and Period-Typical Racism
Victorian imperialism and colonization were embedded in Victorian ideals. Those ideals, in turn, developed alongside the massive spread and global control of the British Empire, which fueled and benefitted from intense industrial and economic growth. The Industrial Revolution led to the rise of an educated middle class in England that believed in the moral imperative to provide less well-developed cultures with progress through British influence. This imperial impulse stemmed from and was used to justify colonization and the acquisition of resources. In other words, British imperialism and colonization are situated in the Victorian belief that Britain was culturally superior to all other cultures. This demonstration of period-typical racism appears in many Victorian-era texts, including Around the World in Eighty Days.
Verne’s novel demonstrates period-typical racism by emphasizing British superiority and the positive influence of the British on the British Colonies. For example, Chapter 19 begins with a description of Hong Kong and the British impact on the city. The narrator describes “the colonizing genius of the English” as transforming Hong Kong into “an important city and an excellent port” (124). As Passepartout wanders through Hong Kong, he sees everywhere “the evidence of English supremacy” (125). Verne primarily references British influence on trade and travel, disregarding the demands Britain placed on colonies to provide resources for England or the impact of British influence on local religious and cultural behaviors. While Verne briefly claims that British authorities strive to protect local practices, Phileas’s immediate reference to his rights as a British subject suggests the privilege he expects despite his impact on the places he visits, whether deliberate or unintentional.
The character of Aouda and her introduction is another example of period-typical racism that presumes British superiority and encourages imperialism and colonization as a positive global influence. As Phileas, Sir Comarty, and Passepartout discuss the Parsee woman’s unfortunate circumstances, Phileas notes that some “barbarous customs still exist in India, and that the English have been unable to put a stop to them” (77). Phileas’s judgment of non-Christian religious customs as “barbarous” was a popular moral justification for imperialism and colonization during the Victorian era. Verne’s depiction of non-Christian religious justifies his character’s judgment, dramatizing an invented version of a ceremony that occurs largely without context. Additionally, Aouda is acceptable as a romantic interest and wife for Phileas because her upbringing and characterization mark her as suitably British. The author notes that despite her exotic beauty, she has an English disposition and speaks English, for example. Her character contrasts with other representations of Indian characters in the novel, which the narrator refers to as savage, an indication of the author’s colonialist views.
Punctuality, Time, and Time Management
The theme of Punctuality, Time, and Time Management functions as an important plot device within the novel. It also works with the theme of The Juxtaposition of Art and Science to encourage two views of travel that emerged during the Victorian era due to technological developments and increasing globalization.
Phileas’s compulsive punctuality is an example of the growing need to follow a scheduled itinerary to travel successfully during the Victorian era. The wager and the itinerary represent the possibility of circumnavigation, a concept introduced at the Reform Club as a member describes how small the world has become as technology continues to develop; this sense of a shrinking world entails a certain restrictiveness given the strict scheduling involved in achieving the effect. It quickly becomes clear that circumnavigation is only possible through careful time management. Phileas carefully follows the published itinerary illustrated early in the novel. However, he also demonstrates the least concern when delays and other problems arise and complicate the voyage. His traveling companions often become frustrated and enraged while the protagonist stays focused and mechanical, asking questions and considering alternate modes of travel instead. Phileas’s ability to adapt calmly as well as his initial assertion that the minimum amount of time to circumnavigate the globe was correct indicates his awareness that technology and travel have progressed to the point where such a journey is only impossible if a person lacks resources.
While punctuality and time management are important for the speed of the journey, Passepartout’s lackadaisical attention to time provides a juxtaposition to the speed and purpose that Phileas introduces. That his pocket watch remains set to British time despite multiple attempts by secondary characters to encourage the necessary adjustment while traveling suggests the immovable object to Phileas’s unstoppable force. That is, even as technology forges ahead, demanding ever higher and more complex levels of punctuality, there is an urge to resist that shift and keep time simple and familiar. Passepartout’s unwillingness to adjust the watch renders it useless for most of the voyage. In the end, however, his watch helps save the day. Likewise, the valet frequently laments how quickly they pass extraordinary sites. Taken together, Passepartout represents an appreciation for journey and experience, which cannot necessarily be scheduled, that is lost on the protagonist.
Victorian Honor, Integrity, and Ideals
Phileas Fogg is a symbol of Victorian ideals and principles such as morality, charity, reason, order, honor, and integrity. Phileas frequently notes that certain departures from the itinerary are acceptable, describing adventures such as Aouda’s rescue and the rescue of Passepartout as “in the interest of [his] journey—a part of [his] program” (133). These departures develop the protagonist’s characterization as an amalgamation of Victorian ideals. The rescues highlight the Victorian principle of morality. Phileas’s willingness to provide Fix’s passage on the Tankadere is an example of Victorian charity, while Phileas’s strict adherence to regimen and schedule is a Victorian demonstration of order. His compulsive punctuality also reinforces the Victorian ideal that associates honor with verbal and written agreements, a code of honor based on the fulfillment of expectations and obligations typical within Victorian society. Unwilling to win the wager without proper evidence of the completion of each step of the voyage, the protagonist’s habitual stops to record his journey in his passport are an exaggerated demonstration of the Victorian ideals of honor and integrity.
Phileas and the wager also symbolize the Victorian commitment to progress and legacy. Individual contributions to cultural development and progress create a legacy of supremacy. That legacy, in turn, is fostered by the British Empire, creating overlap between this theme and the theme of Imperialism, Colonization, and Period-Typical Racism. The wager is an attempt to demonstrate the modern accomplishments in travel. Phileas establishes British supremacy by being the first to complete a journey of the kind, signifying that one aspect of the protagonist’s program is the legacy of this accomplishment.
Secondary characters throughout the novel are critical of Phileas’s behavior, demonstrating criticism of the high standard that Victorian ideals demand. The Reform Club members are astonished by Phileas’s steadfast belief that the itinerary must be accurate, a demonstration of the disconnect between the protagonist’s rigid expectations and the daily life of Victorian society. London society responds with similar incredulity to the wager, viewing Phileas’s attempt as evidence of madness. These skeptical and negative reactions occur despite Phileas’s commitment to a program of the very Victorian ideals that should underpin all Victorian behavior. That most of London bets against Phileas’s success illustrates a symbolic rejection of Victorian ideals by Victorian society.
The Juxtaposition of Art and Science
The author juxtaposes science and art through symbolism and style throughout the novel. Notably, this approach positions Around the World in Eighty Days as an example of the author’s literary legacy, an attempt to create a synergy between science and literary style for the educated reader.
The juxtaposition of Phileas and Passepartout parallels the broader juxtaposition of the orderly, systematic nature of science and the stylized aesthetics of art and literature. Verne often describes Phileas as misunderstood, characterizing him as odd and mechanical; these descriptions of Phileas echo Verne’s descriptions of advanced mechanics. This language contrasts with the playfully fanciful characterization of Passepartout, who consistently notes the beauty and splendor of the places they pass. Passepartout's wonder and awe are more in line with the emotions that the arts channel and evoke, especially his obvious enjoyment of exotic adventures such as riding on the back of an elephant.
Verne carries this juxtaposition throughout the language and style of the novel, manifesting contrast in the exposition, settings, and descriptions. The episode when Phileas and his companions encounter the herd of buffalo on the tracks of the Pacific Railroad is one example. The passage begins with a predominantly technical description of a herd: The herd encompasses “ten or twelve thousand head of buffalo […] massing together” (191). The passage concludes, however, with a more stylized description of the herd’s movement, portraying its growing momentum and strength through an extended metaphor that compares the power and flow of the herd with that of a river.
While the author highlights this juxtaposition of art and science throughout, character development and the novel’s conclusion demonstrate the potential and beauty of synchronization of science and art. The novel’s conclusion suggests this synchronization as ideal, a suggestion that aligns with Verne’s approach to literary form—it’s this very synchronization that established the author as an important figure within the canon of science fiction. Specifically, thanks to the symbolic characterization of the protagonist and his foil, Verne is able to employ a dual composition: an informed plot structure representative of the scientific mode and a set of literary devices representative of the aesthetic mode. Verne also creates a complex, fictional device to resolve the issue of Phileas’s late return to London, both heightening tension and enhancing the aesthetics of the conclusion.
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