Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea

Professor Pierre Aronnax now becomes the novel’s narrator.

The mysterious monster in the water attacks happen as Aronnax prepares to return home to Paris in May 1867. As an Assistant Professor in the Museum of Natural History in Paris, he has been in the territory of Nebraska in the United States for research. He has been following reports about the mysterious sea object. There are two opinions about what it might be: a monster with great strength or a submarine “of enormous motive power” (6). However, such a machine seems technologically impossible. Governments have denied building it, and it is difficult to imagine a private citizen building something like this without detection.

In New York, Professor Aronnax is asked his opinion about the situation—a result of having previously published a well-respected book on submarines called “Mysteries of the Great Submarine Grounds” (6). In an article published in the New York Herald, he argues that the object must be a creature of the sea. The paper quotes him as saying it may be something as yet unidentified that has risen from the lower levels of the ocean, or an abnormally large “unicorn of the sea” (7), or a narwhal. Narwhals have big, iron-like tusks that can do incredible damage; one with “colossal dimensions” (8) could potentially penetrate a ship. Public opinion favors Professor Aronnax’s view.

In New York, the ship Abraham Lincoln is prepared for an expedition to pursue the monster under Commander Farragut. Three hours before the ship is scheduled to leave, Professor Aronnax receives a message from the United States Government asking him to join the expedition.

Although Professor Aronnax longs to go home to Paris, he suddenly feels that pursuing the monster is his true calling. He usually travels with his dutiful Flemish servant of 10 years, Conseil, without asking whether Conseil wants to join him, even when the voyage may be long and “hazardous” (10). Professor Aronnax tells Conseil to gather everything together for the trip—they are going in search of the monster.

They arrive at the ship and meet Commander Farragut. Professor Aronnax observes that the Abraham Lincoln is "a frigate of great speed” (11). As the ship departs, he realizes how close he came to missing this “extraordinary, supernatural, and incredible expedition” (11). The ship is escorted by several boats and cheered on by thousands of people until it heads away from the coast of Long Island and into “the dark waters of the Atlantic” (12).

According to Professor Aronnax, Commander Farragut is the “soul” (12) of the ship—a fitting captain for the Abraham Lincoln. Farragut unquestionably believes in the existence of the sea monster and has made it his mission to kill the creature or die trying. The other officers on the Abraham Lincoln share Captain Farragut’s opinion and daily watch from the rigging for a sign of the monster. Farragut has offered a reward of $2,000 for the first person to spot it.

The ship is well equipped to catch a narwhal. It is armed with an arsenal of weapons. Also on board is a Canadian harpooner named Ned Land, an imposing man who “knew no equal in his dangerous occupation” (13). The natural bond between Canadians and the French leads Ned to gravitate toward Professor Aronnax, who listens to Ned’s tales of the polar seas. The two also bond over the dangers they now face together.

Ned is the only person on board who doesn’t believe in the monster. His doubt stems from experience: He does not know of any cetaceans that could penetrate the iron plates of a ship. Professor Aronnax argues that such a creature is possible: It would have “incalculable strength” (15) to survive the pressures of the ocean’s depths, since the deeper one goes into the ocean, the more pressure the water exerts on the body. At 32,000 feet, the pressure is a crushing 97,500,000 pounds. If the monster can bear this, it must be powerful enough to pierce a hull.

During the trip, Ned briefly boards another ship to help them catch a whale. Instead of catching one, he catches two and impresses everyone with his “dexterity” (17). On July 6th, the Abraham Lincoln sails around Cape Horn, at the tip of South America—a decision made by Commander Farragut to avoid passing through the narrow Straits of Magellan. They then enter the waters of the Pacific.

Professor Aronnax spends all of his time on the poop deck, watching the water. Every time a sea creature is spotted, everyone gathers in excitement, but it usually only turns out to be a whale. They stay away from land and sail in deep water—where the monster has often been spotted. They live in a perpetual and “violent” (18) state of excitement as the ship explores the Japanese and American coasts.

Although they do not want to give up, Captain Farragut makes the decision on November 2nd to turn around if the monster is not spotted within three days. Everyone rallies to get the narwhal’s attention. They throw bacon in the water and circle the Abraham Lincoln in small ships. On the night of November 4th, Ned shouts that he’s spotted “the very thing we are looking for” (20).

Ned is pointing at an object that gives off light of an “electrical nature” (21) and seems to be rapidly heading toward them. Captain Farragut tells Professor Aronnax he thinks the creature is an electric narwhal and he needs to wait until daylight to attack it, since he is not sure of the proper defense against the animal.

All night, everyone aboard can hear the strokes of its tail and “panting breath” (23). They prepare to hunt the creature, but are met with an intense fog in the morning. As the fog lifts, Ned spots the creature again and Professor Aronnax notes that its size was exaggerated, estimating that it is only around 250 feet long. As it releases water shooting upward to 120 feet, he concludes it is a mammal.

Captain Farragut gives the orders to go full steam ahead toward the animal, but no matter how fast they go, it manages to stay ahead of them at speeds Professor Aronnax estimates to be nearly 30 miles per hour. Captain Farragut orders the gunners to shoot at it, vowing that he will “pursue that beast till my frigate bursts up” (25). A gunner manages to hit the creature, but the shot isn’t fatal. After several hours, the animal still shows no signs of slowing down.

As night falls, the electric light once again reappears. Professor Aronnax assumes that the animal must be resting. Captain Farragut takes the opportunity to once again try to attack the creature. This time, they get close enough for Ned to strike. His harpoon hits what sounds like a “hard body” (26). Suddenly, the light goes out and the creature collides with the ship. Professor Aronnax is tossed overboard.

Professor Aronnax quickly swims to the surface, gets his bearings, and sees that the Abraham Lincoln is sailing away from him. He feels himself slipping into the ocean when Conseil suddenly grabs him—he jumped into the water to save his master. While Professor Aronnax is panicking, Conseil remains calm.

In order to preserve their strength, the men alternate between resting and swimming. They determine their best chance is to wait for one of the Abraham Lincoln’s boats to pick them up. However, soon Aronnax is overcome with fatigue. He despairs when he spots the Abraham Lincoln five miles away.

Just when Professor Aronnax begins to sink into the water from exhaustion, Conseil’s cries for help are suddenly met with a response. Something pulls them up out of the water—it’s Ned, who fell into the water as well, but was able to catch himself on the entity they were pursuing. It’s not a narwhal, but is something made of iron. Professor Aronnax realizes that this “natural phenomenon” (30) is actually a man-made vessel.

The machine starts to move and they all grab hold tightly. Ned tells them they are fine unless the machine dives. Professor Aronnax searches for a way in and wonders what lurks inside of the craft. In the morning, Ned kicks at the wall of the vessel, shouting to be let in. Suddenly, an iron plate moves and a man appears. He gives an “odd cry” (31), and then eight men wearing masks bring Ned, Conseil, and Professor Aronnax inside.

Inside, the men find themselves in total darkness in a small cabin. Suddenly, a bright light comes on, which Professor Aronnax recognizes as the same electric light that they mistook for phosphorescence. The source of the light is a “half globe” (32) in the cabin’s roof.

The cabin contains only a table and stools. Suddenly, a door opens, and two strangers enter the room. One has dark hair, a thick mustache, and the physiognomy of people from the South of France. The other is, according to Professor Aronnax, “the most admirable specimen I had ever met” (33). He appears self-confident, calm, energetic, and courageous, yet his hands suggest “a highly nervous temperament” (33). The two men speak in an unfamiliar language. Professor Aronnax and Ned talk to them in French, English, German, and Latin, but they have no success.

The two men leave, and Ned yells in frustration that they will starve to death. Professor Aronnax reminds him they have suffered through worse and surmises that the two men are southern; however, whether they are “Spaniards, Turks Arabians, or Indians” (34) remains unclear. A steward brings them a change of clothes in an unfamiliar fabric, sets the table, and brings in food—a meal worthy of a world class hotel featuring many kinds of fish. Each utensil is engraved with the letter “N” and the motto “Mobilis in Mobili” (35). After finishing their meal, they are overcome with fatigue. Professor Aronnax is initially distracted by anxious thoughts and nightmares, but eventually relaxes and succumbs to sleep.

Professor Aronnax wakes fully rested. The table has been cleared, but otherwise, the cabin is unchanged. He notices that the air feels heavy; as soon as he wonders how the air supply will be replenished, he feels a burst of fresh air enter the cabin and notes a ventilator above the cabin door. He determines from the motion of the boat that they have just gone up to the water’s surface to breathe.

The burst of fresh air wakes Conseil and Ned, who wonders what time it is. They are hungry and the steward has not returned with more food. Ned grows impatient and angry as two more hours pass. He starts to shout, but there are no sounds outside the cabin. Eventually, the steward enters and Ned lunges at him, gripping him around the throat. As Conseil and Professor Aronnax prepare to intervene, the ship’s commander enters. He addresses them in French as “Master Land” and “Professor” (38) and asks them to listen to him.