Chancellor – Verne Jules (2024)

This lesser-known novel from the series Extraordinary Journeys tells the story of the demise of the three-masted ship Chancellor in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean through the diary of one of the travelers, J. R. Kazallon. The author describes how a fire broke out on the ship during the voyage when a cargo of cotton ignited. He depicts the futile attempts of the crew to save the ship and their subsequent suffering on a raft they had to make from the wreckage. In critical situations, the true nature of many characters (incompetence, cowardice, selfishness, greed, envy, sadism, and even cannibalism) is revealed, which they had previously hidden beneath the veneer of civilization. Jules Verne wrote his novel in a precise style and without embellishments, omitting the instructive and cheerful passages that are otherwise common in his works, which would hardly be appropriate given the subject matter. Besides the thrilling plot, the work offers a powerful study of how low a person can sink when it comes to sheer survival. Although Verne was likely heavily influenced by the work of American poet Edgar Allan Poe, The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym, Chancellor is among his most remarkable novels.