Ahoy, book nerds and sea monster enthusiasts! Strap on your diving helmets, because today we’re plunging into Jules Verne’s 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, the OG submarine adventure that gave us Captain Nemo, giant squids (which only appear in literally one chapter yet are the only thing remembered by many), and enough nautical and scientific jargon to make your Science teacher cry tears of joy.

Plot in a Seashell
The world thinks there’s a sea monster terrorizing ships. Spoiler: it’s not Godzilla, it’s a submarine.

Enter Professor Pierre Aronnax (science nerd), Conseil (loyal sidekick), and Ned Land (harpoon-happy Canadian). They get scooped up by Captain Nemo’s Nautilus and discover they’re not guests, they’re prisoners with a front-row seat to Nemo’s underwater TED Talk.

Cue adventures: treasure-hunting in Vigo Bay, pearl-diving in Ceylon, dodging cannibals in Papua New Guinea, sightseeing in Atlantis (yes, Atlantis), and battling a giant squid that looks like it auditioned for Pirates of the Caribbean.

The finale? A whirlpool called the Maelstrom swallows the Nautilus. Nemo’s fate = mystery. Aronnax & friends = freedom. Readers = screaming “WHAT JUST HAPPENED?!”

Characters We Love (and Love to Side-Eye)
Captain Nemo: Genius, tragic hero, part-time tyrant. He’s basically Batman if Batman lived in a submarine and hated imperialism.

Professor Aronnax: The science fangirl who’s too busy cataloging fish to notice he’s in captivity.

Conseil: The human Wikipedia. Loyal, polite, and probably the only one who doesn’t want to strangle Nemo.

Ned Land: The “get me outta here” guy. If sarcasm were a harpoon, he’d have sunk the Nautilus himself.

From Page to Pop Culture
Disney’s 1954 film gave us Kirk Douglas singing sea shanties and a squid battle so campy it deserves its own Oscar.

Captain Nemo pops up everywhere: comics, video games, anime (Nadia: The Secret of Blue Water), and even League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. He’s the brooding antihero we can’t quit.

The Nautilus is basically the blueprint for every cool sci-fi ship, think Star Trek’s Enterprise but wetter.

Squids? Thanks to Verne, they’re forever the poster children for “nature is terrifying.”

Why It Still Slaps
Verne mixes science and myth like a bartender with no measuring spoons. Real marine biology sits next to Atlantis and giant squids, and somehow it works. It is somewhat hard to read and a bit repetitive in this reader’s opinion, but there are a lot of fish in the sea with different view points. (see what I did there?)

Themes of freedom vs. captivity and technology vs. humanity still resonate in our age of smartphones and streaming wars.

Nemo’s anti-imperialist rage feels eerily modern, he’s basically sub tweeting colonial powers from his submarine.

If I imagine this as a text thread, it might go something like this:

Aronnax: “Wow, Nemo, your submarine is amazing!”

Ned Land: “Cool, but can we LEAVE?”

Nemo: “No. Also, I’m the law, the judge, and the oppressed. Please enjoy your stay in my underwater Airbnb.”

The squid: “Surprise cameo!”

The ending: “We’re not saying Nemo died, but we’re also not saying he didn’t. #AmbiguityIsLit.”

Need help understanding this very science-dense, fish- categorizing , underwater tale of revenge, exploration and “what is happening right now” text? Have no fear. I read this thing word for word and have created this resource for you. Check it out in my store.

20,000 Leagues Under the Sea isn’t just a novel, it’s a vibe (I’ll be it a bit nerdish). It’s the book that taught us science can be thrilling, squids can be terrifying, and antiheroes can be both saviors and jailers. Whether you’re watching Disney’s version, spotting Nemo in pop culture, or just laughing at Aronnax’s fish obsession, Verne’s masterpiece proves that the ocean is the ultimate stage for human drama.

Stay tuned for the Hidden Pictures Activity to follow 🙂