Who Was Jules Verne? The Visionary Who Predicted the Future
Jules Verne (Nantes, 1828 – Amiens, 1905) was a French writer who imagined the future with astonishing precision. Submarines, helicopters, space travel, video calls — all appeared first in his novels, decades before technology made them real.
A boy who dreamed of traveling
Jules grew up in Nantes, a river port full of ships. As a child, he spent hours watching vessels departing for distant lands. Legend has it that at age 11, he tried to stow away on a ship bound for India. His father caught him in time and made him promise he would "only travel in his imagination." Verne kept that promise — and then some.
From frustrated lawyer to revolutionary writer
His father wanted him to be a lawyer. Jules studied law in Paris but spent his nights writing plays. In 1862, at 34, he presented a manuscript to publisher Pierre-Jules Hetzel. That manuscript became Five Weeks in a Balloon, and everything changed.
Hetzel proposed an ambitious contract: two novels a year for twenty years under the collective title "Extraordinary Voyages." Verne accepted and exceeded the goal: he wrote over 60 adventure and science fiction novels.
The prophet of science
The most extraordinary thing about Verne isn't the adventure — it's the precision of his predictions:
- Submarines: The Nautilus in Twenty Thousand Leagues (1870) preceded the first modern submarine by decades.
- Moon travel: In From the Earth to the Moon (1865), the projectile launches from Florida — exactly where NASA would launch Apollo 11 a century later.
- Helicopters: The Albatross in Robur the Conqueror (1886) is a heavier-than-air craft with vertical propellers.
- Around the world in record time: Around the World in 80 Days (1873) inspired journalist Nellie Bly to attempt it in 1889 — and she did it in 72 days.
Verne wasn't a scientist, but he voraciously read scientific journals. He transformed real data into gripping narrative.
A universal author
Verne's novels have been translated into over 150 languages, making him the second most translated author in history (behind only Agatha Christie). His works have inspired generations of scientists, engineers, and explorers.
Yuri Gagarin himself, the first human in space, said he read Jules Verne as a child. Filmmaker Georges Méliès created the first science fiction film, A Trip to the Moon (1902), based directly on Verne's novel.
His most important works
Of the more than 60 "Extraordinary Voyages," these are the most iconic novels:
- Five Weeks in a Balloon (1863) — His first novel, a flight across Africa
- Journey to the Center of the Earth (1864) — Expedition into the planet's interior
- From the Earth to the Moon (1865) — Fiction's first space voyage
- Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea (1870) — Captain Nemo and the Nautilus
- Around the World in Eighty Days (1873) — Literature's most famous wager
- Michael Strogoff (1876) — The Czar's courier across Siberia
- The Mysterious Island (1875) — Survival and ingenuity on a desert island
Why read Verne today?
In an era where science advances faster than ever, Verne reminds us of something essential: imagination always runs ahead of technology. His novels awaken in young people curiosity, scientific rigor, and a passion for exploring the unknown.
Read also: What Jules Verne's Stories Teach Children · The Best Jules Verne Stories for Kids