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A review by sowalsky
The Adventures of Captain Hatteras by Jules Verne
4.0
When I picked up the second half of this two-part work last year, I didn't realize that I was starting in the middle of Verne's tale of Arctic exploration, although it soon became clear to me. Thus, I was eager to find out what I had missed, and was pleasantly reassured that each of these two halves stand quite nicely on their own, such that reading them in reverse order presented no obstacles.
Much of the commentary which I provided regarding the second half of this novel (https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3578849202?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1) also applies here. I would like to add, however, a couple other observations which have come to mind. The first of these is how surreal it is, in 2021, to read a book the premise of which centers around the dire difficulties encountered in reaching the North Pole. So many of the challenges which the characters in Verne's novel must overcome no longer exist, as a result of climate change. Reaching the Pole today is, by comparison, a trivial affair. Far from robbing Verne's work of its intensity, though, this state of affairs actually heightens it by underscoring our own alarming circumstances some 150+ years later.
Second, in the light of the entire plethora of social justice issues which have come to the forefront of our cultural dialogue -- especially during the age of Trump -- Verne's novel stands as a perfect illustration of the ubiquity of colonialism in shaping the world as we have come to know it. The idea that the North Pole (or any geographic point, for that matter), is "there for the taking" by whichever dominant (i.e., white, Euro-centric) culture is first to plant its flag upon it seems ludicrous given a more critical assessment of world history, especially as it pertains to the U.S. and the U.K. Verne, as the saying goes, meant well and merely illustrates the mores of his age. But they were, in fact, the despicable mores of petty minds with but the dimmest understanding of the fullness of our human potential. None of which necessarily detracts from this novel's readability or the reader's enjoyment of it, so long as its historical context is held in mind. (Note: It may be useful to keep a map handy when reading this.)
Much of the commentary which I provided regarding the second half of this novel (https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3578849202?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1) also applies here. I would like to add, however, a couple other observations which have come to mind. The first of these is how surreal it is, in 2021, to read a book the premise of which centers around the dire difficulties encountered in reaching the North Pole. So many of the challenges which the characters in Verne's novel must overcome no longer exist, as a result of climate change. Reaching the Pole today is, by comparison, a trivial affair. Far from robbing Verne's work of its intensity, though, this state of affairs actually heightens it by underscoring our own alarming circumstances some 150+ years later.
Second, in the light of the entire plethora of social justice issues which have come to the forefront of our cultural dialogue -- especially during the age of Trump -- Verne's novel stands as a perfect illustration of the ubiquity of colonialism in shaping the world as we have come to know it. The idea that the North Pole (or any geographic point, for that matter), is "there for the taking" by whichever dominant (i.e., white, Euro-centric) culture is first to plant its flag upon it seems ludicrous given a more critical assessment of world history, especially as it pertains to the U.S. and the U.K. Verne, as the saying goes, meant well and merely illustrates the mores of his age. But they were, in fact, the despicable mores of petty minds with but the dimmest understanding of the fullness of our human potential. None of which necessarily detracts from this novel's readability or the reader's enjoyment of it, so long as its historical context is held in mind. (Note: It may be useful to keep a map handy when reading this.)