The Survivors of the 'Jonathan'
Encyclopedia
The Survivors of the "Jonathan", also known as Magellania, is a novel that was written (as Magellania) by Jules Verne
in 1897. However, it was not published until 1909, after it had been rewritten by Verne's son Michel
under the title Les naufragés du "Jonathan".
Piero Gondolo della Riva discovered the original manuscript in the Hetzel
family archives in 1977.
The two parts of the novel were subsequently translated and published separately in English
as Masterless Man and Unwilling Dictator.
is "Neither God nor master", helps himself survive and also provides assistance to the indigenous peoples of Magellania. However, when a group of settlers is shipwreck
ed on a nearby island, Kaw-djer assists them establish their colony
, though he refuses to rule over them or control them in any way. However, when the colony falls victim to fight for power, Kaw-djer is forced to temporarily abandon his own anarchistic principles. After he restores order, he abdicates and becomes a lighthouse
-keeper, thereby retaining his individualism
.
as form of social organization, and the problems that make it impossible or possible to apply. However, Kaw-djer is not a completely unsympathetic character, and since he is portrayed in a positive light, symbolizes the attractiveness that individualist anarchism
held for the writer.
Jules Verne
Jules Gabriel Verne was a French author who pioneered the science fiction genre. He is best known for his novels Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea , A Journey to the Center of the Earth , and Around the World in Eighty Days...
in 1897. However, it was not published until 1909, after it had been rewritten by Verne's son Michel
Michel Verne
Michel Jean Pierre Verne was a writer and the son of Jules Verne.Because of his wayward behaviour, Michel was sent by his father to Mettray Penal Colony for six months in 1876. By the age of 19, he caused a scandal by eloping with an actress despite his famous father's objections...
under the title Les naufragés du "Jonathan".
Piero Gondolo della Riva discovered the original manuscript in the Hetzel
Pierre-Jules Hetzel
Pierre-Jules Hetzel was a French editor and publisher. He is best known for his extraordinarily lavishly illustrated editions of Jules Verne's novels highly prized by collectors today...
family archives in 1977.
The two parts of the novel were subsequently translated and published separately in English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
as Masterless Man and Unwilling Dictator.
Plot
The novel tells the story of a mysterious man named Kaw-djer. Kaw-djer lives in the land of Magellania, that is, the region around the Straits of Magellan. Kaw-djer, whose mottoMotto
A motto is a phrase meant to formally summarize the general motivation or intention of a social group or organization. A motto may be in any language, but Latin is the most used. The local language is usual in the mottoes of governments...
is "Neither God nor master", helps himself survive and also provides assistance to the indigenous peoples of Magellania. However, when a group of settlers is shipwreck
Shipwreck
A shipwreck is what remains of a ship that has wrecked, either sunk or beached. Whatever the cause, a sunken ship or a wrecked ship is a physical example of the event: this explains why the two concepts are often overlapping in English....
ed on a nearby island, Kaw-djer assists them establish their colony
Colony
In politics and history, a colony is a territory under the immediate political control of a state. For colonies in antiquity, city-states would often found their own colonies. Some colonies were historically countries, while others were territories without definite statehood from their inception....
, though he refuses to rule over them or control them in any way. However, when the colony falls victim to fight for power, Kaw-djer is forced to temporarily abandon his own anarchistic principles. After he restores order, he abdicates and becomes a lighthouse
Lighthouse
A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lenses or, in older times, from a fire, and used as an aid to navigation for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways....
-keeper, thereby retaining his individualism
Individualism
Individualism is the moral stance, political philosophy, ideology, or social outlook that stresses "the moral worth of the individual". Individualists promote the exercise of one's goals and desires and so value independence and self-reliance while opposing most external interference upon one's own...
.
Analysis
The novel explores the idea of anarchyAnarchy
Anarchy , has more than one colloquial definition. In the United States, the term "anarchy" typically is meant to refer to a society which lacks publicly recognized government or violently enforced political authority...
as form of social organization, and the problems that make it impossible or possible to apply. However, Kaw-djer is not a completely unsympathetic character, and since he is portrayed in a positive light, symbolizes the attractiveness that individualist anarchism
Individualist anarchism
Individualist anarchism refers to several traditions of thought within the anarchist movement that emphasize the individual and his or her will over external determinants such as groups, society, traditions, and ideological systems. Individualist anarchism is not a single philosophy but refers to a...
held for the writer.
External links
- Magellania: A Socio-Political Statement by Michelle Fram Cohen