Around the World in 80 Days: A Simple Summary

Arun Pratap
3 min readJul 9, 2024

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Around the World in 80 Days is a famous adventure book by Jules Verne, written in 1873. It tells the story of Phileas Fogg, a rich and precise Englishman, who bets his friends that he can travel around the world in 80 days. His loyal servant, Passepartout, joins him on this exciting journey of challenges and surprises.

Main Characters

1. Phileas Fogg: A wealthy and punctual Englishman who bets he can travel around the world in 80 days.

2. Passepartout: Fogg’s faithful French servant who helps him on the journey.

3. Detective Fix: A detective who thinks Fogg is a bank robber and follows him to arrest him.

4. Aouda: An Indian woman Fogg and Passepartout save, who then travels with them.

Plot Summary

The story starts in London, where Phileas Fogg bets his friends at the Reform Club that he can travel around the world in 80 days. He quickly sets off with Passepartout, using boats and trains to visit places like France, Italy, Egypt, India, Hong Kong, Japan, and the United States.

During their trip, they face many problems:

- In India, they save Aouda from being forced to die with her dead husband.

- Detective Fix follows them, thinking Fogg is a thief.

- In America, they have trouble with Native Americans, get delayed, and Passepartout is kidnapped but later saved.

Despite these problems, Fogg and Passepartout keep going, showing determination and cleverness. In the end, they return to London and think they are one day late. But they realize they gained a day by travelling east and win the bet just in time.

Themes

1. Time and Punctuality: Fogg’s focus on time shows both its importance and its limits.

2. Adventure and Exploration: The story is full of excitement and the joy of discovering new places.

3. Colonialism and Imperialism: The journey reflects the British Empire and the attitudes of that time.

4. Technology and Progress: The story shows the 19th-century belief in technology making the world smaller and more connected.

Impact and Legacy

Around the World in 80 Days book is still popular today and has inspired many movies, TV shows, books, and plays. People love its thrilling adventures, interesting characters, and exciting race against time purchase books online and feel the aura of this masterpiece from Jules Verne.

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