Captain Nemo, antisocial reprobate and oceangoing Robin Hood, raises the themes of revenge and redemption.

Verne's publisher, Hetzel, strongly objected to some of the savage aspects of Nemo, especially his sinking of the British ship at the end of the second volume.

Is the contradictory Nemo believable? Was Verne right in defending his creation against suggestions of playing down or rationalizing his character? As Robert Evans points out in his book Jules Verne Rediscovered (1988), Captain Nemo is the archetype of the Romantic hero of the eighteenth and nineteenth century. A discussion of this concept may lead to other writers who have created similar protagonists. What are the traits of the Romantic hero, and his role in fiction?

1. The opening chapters of Verne's novel do not introduce Captain Nemo's submarine. Instead, the author discusses at length several theories about the mysterious object or objects that are damaging...