French author Jules Verne, the third most translated author of all time, published his highly acclaimed novel Around the World in Eighty Days in 1873. After his famous novels published in previous years, Journey to the Center of the Earth (1864), Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea (1870), this work joins them as one of his best known works. The creation and publication of this novel took place entirely in the period of imperialism and the setting of the novel is also set in the 1870s. During his travels, Phileas Fogg witnessed firsthand the technological and scientific advances the world was experiencing, particularly in relation to transportation. As he visited other countries, he was also immersed in the reality of imperial power and what was happening in the world. “I see that it is not at all useless to travel if a man wants to see something new” (Verne, Jules, chapter 9, Around the World in 80 Days, 1873). Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Imperialism is a movement that has undoubtedly changed the world over a vast period of time. Around the 16th century, when what was called the old imperialism occurred, people from European nations settled in North and South America and also in Southeast Asia. However, the movement known as the era of New Imperialism began around 1870 and occurred both in reality and in this fictional novel. During his travels, almost all the countries he visits are or have been subject to imperialism (lesson notes). Most importantly, he visits Hong Kong and India, which are currently British colonies, at the time that Mr. Fogg and his traveling companions are there. “But British India, properly so called, embraces only seven hundred thousand square miles, and a population of between one hundred and one hundred and ten millions. A considerable part of India is still free from British authority; and in the interior there are certain fierce rajahs who are absolutely independent.” (Verne, Jules, Around the World in 80 Days, 1873). Since Verne was French and France was a known rival of Britain; he seems to write with interest about the British Empire and its imperial power. However this interest does not appear to be negative, as the protagonist of his novel, Phileas Fogg, is in fact British and one of the main themes of the novel is the impact of the English and their colonial expansion across the world. he first began to settle in a city which is known to us as Madras and continued to expand. The importance of the expansion of British power is highlighted when he comments on the fact that the Indian princess Aouda spoke English, which may have been a sign that the British nation was taking over: “She speaks English with great purity” (Verne, Jules, Around the World in 80 Days, chapter 14). He may have simply been commenting on the way he speaks, but I think the fact that he speaks English is a key fact. Not only does Mr. Fogg notice the people around him, but he is also very attuned to the places that surround him: “A more than European city, because it is as English as Manchester or Birmingham, with its iron foundries, cutting tools and tall chimneys puffing clouds of black smoke into the sky” (Verne, Jules, Around the World in 80 Days, chapter 14). It seems Mr Fogg is shocked by the similarities between the Indian town of Monghyr and the English cities of Manchester and Birmingham. It seems that this particular city has been quite industrialized due to imperialism. As Fogg travels through Hong Kong, yesis faced with similar observations and his thoughts return to the overwhelming imperial power of the British Empire. When traveling, machinery and transportation are extremely important. Therefore, while on his travels, it is without a doubt that Phileas Fogg observes technology and its advancements, particularly as it relates to transportation. Unlike most of Verne's extraordinarily creative science fiction works, this adventure novel focuses on his time and what technology can achieve. Without the technology of the world at that time, Phileas Fogg and his French servant Jean Passepartout would not have been able to complete their spontaneous journey in the time they did. Their achievement deserves celebration, as does the fact that technology has united and continues to unite the world by eliminating the hardships of travel. Personally, reading the novel today in 2017, I can see the contrasting change in transportation and technology. The most common methods of transportation they used were steamships, merchant ships, and trains, and unimaginably they even used an elephant when all else failed. (http://www.mssresearch.org/?q=Around_the_World_in_80_Days) “The elephant was recovered and staged without delay. The Parsi had experience in the profession of "Mahout" or elephant keeper. He covered the elephant's back with a kind of saddle pad and placed a rather uncomfortable litter on each side of its body. (Verne, Jules, Around the World in 80 Days, 1873, chapter 11). It is possible that Verne included an elephant as a means of transportation to show the contrast in using an animal as a means of transportation, compared to a machine such as a train. Today it is difficult to imagine a world without fast cars and airplanes, which is the world this story is based on. In a way, this novel is a celebration of the progress that technology has made over the last two hundred years or SO. Without being aware of it, Verne is highlighting to modern readers, now and in the years to come, the advanced technology and methods of transportation that we take for granted every day. It took Canadian Jean Béliveau 11 years and 2 months to travel around the world on foot, while a commercial flight would take approximately fifty-one hours to travel around the world. Fogg and his friend Ralph also both agree with a certain theory: “The world has become smaller, since a man can now turn it ten times faster than a hundred years ago. And that is why the search for this thief will be more likely to succeed." (Verne, Jules, Around the World in 80 Days, 1873). This statement is rather bittersweet, as if it portrays both the positive and negative aspects of technology advances that occurred daily. After reading and studying this 19th century novel, it is clear that technology, British colonialism, and the impact of imperial power on countries around the world were very significant at the time (lesson notes). Passepartout, Fogg's traveling companion, states exactly how important British colonialism is in his eyes "where English engineers were still at work, two thousand years after Solomon's engineers" (Verne, Jules, Around the World in 80 Days, Chapter 9, 1873).This statement compares the British Empire to Solomon's Empire in the Bible. This shows exactly how influential the English were. It also shows how the world relies on technology, without showing it as having an impact negative on humanity. The entire story would not be possible without transportation technology and the advances it made before the time of the novel and those it continues to make today. Please note: this is just an example. Get a custom paper from our expert writers now. Get a)