Biography of Jules Verne

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Introduction

Jules Gabriel Verne (1828 - 1905) was a novelist, poet and playwright, renowned as one of the pioneers of science fiction as a genre. As a person who was born, brought up and lived most of his life in France, it should come to no one’s surprise that his primary language was French. As a science fiction fan myself, I thought that one of the first writers to take this genre seriously would be the perfect subject for this essay. Undeniably Jules Verne has had a huge impact on literature as well as many disciplines of science and even geography. In addition to that, I had read some of his novels earlier and found them to be enjoyable reads with a strong scientific foundation. What I found most intriguing about his works was the thorough description of how his hypothetical machines and gadgets worked and how grounded in reality that they were. So, without further ado, let’s find out about his life.
Life

Jules Verne was born on the 8th of February, 1828 to Pierre Verne and Sophie Verne, in Nates, France. His parents had close links to the slave trade, which Jules later on came to despise. In a year, he would have a brother, Paul, and later three sisters, Anna, Mathilde and Marie. Jules began school in 1834 and throughout his school career demonstrated proficiency in singing, Greek, Latin and geography along with an innate sense of curiosity about the world around him. In accordance with his father’s wishes, he moved to Paris where he studied law from 1847 – 1849. After receiving his law degree, he started writing short stories and met author Jacques Arago. In this time he also took up poetry and wrote more than 50 poems, many of them directed towards Herminie Arnault‑Grossetière, a love interest he had at the time. A fe...

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...hronology of Jules Verne. Oxford University Press, 2007. Web. 10 Jan. 2013. .

Evans, Arthur B. "Jules Verne (French Author)." Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Encyclopedia Britannica, 6 June 2006. Web. 10 Dec. 2013. .

"Famous Authors." Famous Authors. N.p., 2010. Web. 05 Jan. 2013. .

Goupil, Armand. Jules Verne. Paris: Larousse, 1975. Print.

"Jules Verne Biography." Bio.com. A&E Networks Television, n.d. Web. 10 Dec. 2013. .

"Jules Verne." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 01 Mar. 2014. Web. 07 Dec. 2013. .

“TOP 50 Authors.” Unesco. 2007. Web. 09 Jan. 2013.

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