"... kneeling down, [he] burst into deep sobs."

"Captain Nemo was terrible to hear; he was still more terrible to see. His face was deadly pale, with a spasm at his heart. For an instant it must have ceased to beat. His pupils were fearfully contracted. He did not speak, he roared ...

The speed of the Nautilus was accelerated. It was preparing to rush. The whole ship trembled. Suddenly I screamed. I felt the shock, but comparatively light. I felt the penetrating power of the steel spur. I heard rattlings and scrapings. But the Nautilus, carried along by its propelling power, passed through the mass of the vessel like a needle through sailcloth!

I could stand it no longer. Mad, out of my mind, I rushed from my room into the saloon. Captain Nemo was there, mute, gloomy, implacable; he was looking through the port panel. ...

I turned to Captain Nemo. That terrible avenger, a perfect archangel of hatred, was still looking. When all was over, he turned to his room, opened the door, and entered. I followed him with my eyes. On the end wall beneath his heroes, I saw the portrait of a woman, still young, and two little children. Captain Nemo looked at them for some moments, stretched his arms towards them, and, kneeling down, burst into deep sobs."


Jule Verne, Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea

Comments

Colleen said…
I loved this book and was happy when Disney made a movie.
Prince Romp said…
Richard..

Happy 1st blogiversary bruder..

I wish i could trail ur footsteps..
I like the way you write..as the way i like elvina wrote too..

things aint the same back here in Spore. We do hav multi-racials and different languages..

As english is not our only mother toungue..So writing in good english is something aint that simple...

We have to be at least bilingual and need to learn n catch it from young age. Unless if you're Caucasian..

One who speaks English doesnt mean he/she can write English as well..

Regards
Prince Romp said…
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Kay said…
The book 20,000 Leagues under the sea reminds me of my school days...

We used the book for our literature studies, and everytime its literature period, I would be looking forward to it, although I've read the book ahead at home.

But sadly, its not included in the exams papers...how weird is that..

I think its been like what, 20years ago since the last time I had my hands on the book, now I cant seem to find it...maybe my mom threw it away while we were moving house back then...wat a waste

I missed watching the disney movie though...but caught a scene of the ship and its crew with Capt Nemo in 'The League of ExtraOrdinary Gentlemen'...
Richard said…
Jules Verne has always been one of my favourite authors. I read everything I could by him in English. Reading his books in French is sooooo slow. But I should do it more often because it would improve my French.

I am a fast reader - a typical 300 page paperback will be gobbled up in under 5 hours. I read The DaVinci Code in 3 evenings.

I wasn't crazy about the movie (I've seen the Disney version and a silent film version). I don't think Jules Vernes works have ever been translated well into movies (except maybe for Master of the World - which fuses "Clipper of the Clouds" and "Robur the Conqueror")

Chose that passage to vent my bleh feeling Sunday.
Prince Romp said…
Richard..

About the tagged, its very unlikely for you to participate too..

I can understand it myself...
I dont really fancy about it...happen just got tagged by someone. Actually i hate doing all that.

I've a strong feeling something was wrong with my previous avatar...

After sometime...i dont feel good visiting others with an arrogant half naked avatar..

but that avatar actually helps me attract many female bloggers..

You know wat i'm saying? hee
hope i didnt spam ur comment box.
Richard said…
There is no problem with having tagged me. Had I not done it before, I would have been happy to do it.

Ah, yes, your old avatar … hmmm … yeah, you are probably right about it attracting women to your site.

It is amazing how an avatar can form an impression.
Coffee Fairy v1 said…
Hey Richard, thanks for droppin by my blog!
I like 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea too. I read it when I was a child and really caught my awe.
Yup, Captain Nemo and his submarine played a big role in the movie The League of Extraordinary Men (I love that movie and I'm waiting for the sequel).
The book also was in the movie Sphere(sci-fi movie starring Sharon Stone).
=)
Richard said…
I'm really impressed by how many people seem to have enjoyed the book.

I did wan tot see "A League of Extraordinary Gentlemen" because it had two favourites: Captain Nemo and Sean Connery.

But reviews were bad and I didn't indulge.

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