“ We may brave human laws, but we cannot resist natural ones. ”
Jules Verne, Twenty Thousand Leagues under the Sea (1870). copy citation
| Author | Jules Verne |
|---|---|
| Source | Twenty Thousand Leagues under the Sea |
| Topic | nature law mankind |
| Date | 1870 |
| Language | English |
| Reference | |
| Note | Translated by Lewis Page Mercier |
| Weblink | http://www.gutenberg.org/files/164/164-h/164-h.htm |
Context
“
"And this has happened—how?"
"From a caprice of nature, not from the ignorance of man. Not a mistake has been made in the working. But we cannot prevent equilibrium from producing its effects. We may brave human laws, but we cannot resist natural ones."
Captain Nemo had chosen a strange moment for uttering this philosophical reflection. On the whole, his answer helped me little.
"May I ask, sir, the cause of this accident?"
"An enormous block of ice, a whole mountain, has turned over," he replied.” source
"And this has happened—how?"
"From a caprice of nature, not from the ignorance of man. Not a mistake has been made in the working. But we cannot prevent equilibrium from producing its effects. We may brave human laws, but we cannot resist natural ones."
Captain Nemo had chosen a strange moment for uttering this philosophical reflection. On the whole, his answer helped me little.
"May I ask, sir, the cause of this accident?"
"An enormous block of ice, a whole mountain, has turned over," he replied.” source
Original quote
Meaning and analysis
