Quotes from book
The Mysterious Island

The Mysterious Island
Jules Verne Original title L'Île mystérieuse (French, 1874)

The Mysterious Island is a novel by Jules Verne, published in 1874. The original edition, published by Hetzel, contains a number of illustrations by Jules Férat. The novel is a crossover sequel to Verne's famous Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea and In Search of the Castaways, though its themes are vastly different from those books. An early draft of the novel, initially rejected by Verne's publisher and wholly reconceived before publication, was titled Shipwrecked Family: Marooned with Uncle Robinson, seen as indicating the influence of the novels Robinson Crusoe and The Swiss Family Robinson. Verne developed a similar theme in his later novel, Godfrey Morgan .


Jules Verne photo

“So is man's heart. The desire to perform a work which will endure, which will survive him, is the origin of his superiority over all other living creatures here below. It is this which has established his dominion, and this it is which justifies it, over all the world.”

Ainsi est-il du cœur de l’homme. Le besoin de faire œuvre qui dure, qui lui survive, est le signe de sa supériorité sur tout ce qui vit ici-bas. C’est ce qui a fondé sa domination, et c’est ce qui la justifie dans le monde entier.
Part III, ch. XV
The Mysterious Island (1874)

Jules Verne photo
Jules Verne photo

“Man is never perfect, nor contented.”

L’homme n’est jamais ni parfait, ni content.
Source: The Mysterious Island (1874), Part I, ch. XXII

Jules Verne photo

“An energetic man will succeed where an indolent one would vegetate and inevitably perish.”

L’homme qui "sait" réussit là où d’autres végéteraient et périraient inévitablement.
Part I, ch. XIX
The Mysterious Island (1874)

Jules Verne photo

“"Men, Pencroft, however learned they may be, can never change anything of the cosmographical order established by God Himself.""And yet," added Pencroft, "the world is very learned. What a big book, captain, might be made with all that is known!""And what a much bigger book still with all that is not known!" answered Harding.”

<p>Les hommes, Pencroff, si savants qu’ils puissent être, ne pourront jamais changer quoi que ce soit à l’ordre cosmographique établi par Dieu même.</p></p><p>— Et pourtant, ajouta Pencroff, qui montra une certaine difficulté à se résigner, le monde est bien savant! Quel gros livre, monsieur Cyrus, on ferait avec tout ce qu’on sait!</p><p>
Et quel plus gros livre encore avec tout ce qu’on ne sait pas, répondit Cyrus Smith.</p>
Part III, ch. XIV
The Mysterious Island (1874)

Jules Verne photo

“Civilization never recedes; the law of necessity ever forces it onwards.”

La civilisation ne recule jamais, et il semble qu’elle emprunte tous les droits à la nécessité.
Part III, ch. XVI
The Mysterious Island (1874)

Jules Verne photo

“It is a great misfortune to be alone, my friends; and it must be believed that solitude can quickly destroy reason.”

Malheur à qui est seul, mes amis, et il faut croire que l’isolement a vite fait de détruire la raison.
Part II, ch. XV
The Mysterious Island (1874)

Jules Verne photo

“He who is mistaken in an action which he sincerely believes to be right may be an enemy, but retains our esteem.”

Celui qui se trompe dans une intention qu’il croit bonne, on peut le combattre, on ne cesse pas de l’estimer.
Part III, ch. XVI
The Mysterious Island (1874)

Jules Verne photo

“Better to put things at the worst at first, and reserve the best for a surprise.”

Mieux vaut mettre les choses au pis tout de suite, répondit l’ingénieur, et ne se réserver que la surprise du mieux.
Part I, ch. IX
The Mysterious Island (1874)
Context: Better to put things at the worst at first," replied the engineer, "and reserve the best for a surprise.

Jules Verne photo

“Before all masters, necessity is the one most listened to, and who teaches the best.”

La nécessité est, d’ailleurs, de tous les maîtres, celui qu’on écoute le plus et qui enseigne le mieux.
Part I, ch. XVII
The Mysterious Island (1874)

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