A Floating City
A novel of love and confrontation aboard the Great Eastern, first serialized in 1870.
Jules Verne’s adventure novel *A Floating City* (French: *Une ville flottante*) was first serialized in France in 1870, with the book edition appearing in 1871. Upon its debut, the novel was as widely read as Verne’s *Around the World in Eighty Days*. English editions for the United Kingdom and the United States followed in 1874. The original illustrations were created by Jules Férat.
The story follows a male narrator traveling aboard the steamship *Great Eastern*. Among the passengers is Ellen, a woman trapped in an abusive marriage, and her former lover, Captain Fabian Mac Elwin. As the journey unfolds, life on the ship is portrayed in rich detail, presenting the vessel as a bustling, self-contained society with its own amusements and daily routines. Tension builds when Fabian struggles with the anguish of seeing Ellen again, leading to a dramatic confrontation at sea. The climax and resolution occur before the ship reaches New York, and the fates of the characters are left ambiguous.
Quick Facts
- Title Orig
- fr · Une ville flottante
- Author
- Jules Verne
- Illustrator
- Jules Férat
- Country
- France
- Language
- French
- Series
- The Extraordinary Voyages #8
- Genre
- Adventure novel
- Publisher
- Pierre-Jules Hetzel
- Release Date
- 1871
- English Pub Date
- 1874
- Media Type
- Print (Hardback)
- Preceded By
- Around the Moon
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
The novel tells of a woman who, on board the ship Great Eastern with her abusive husband, finds that the man she loves is also on board. As the voyage progresses, life aboard the Great Eastern is depicted in vivid detail, showing the ship as a bustling microcosm of society with its own entertainments and routines.
Reader's Guide
Tensions rise as the narrator’s friend, Captain Fabian Mac Elwin, struggles with the emotional turmoil of seeing his former love, Ellen, trapped in a doomed marriage to her abusive husband. Their fraught relationship culminates in a dramatic confrontation at sea, after which the narrative follows the characters’ attempts to cope with loss and begin anew as the Great Eastern nears its arrival in New York. The novel was originally illustrated by Jules Férat.
Did You Know?
- The novel was first serialized in 1870; the book edition followed in 1871.
- The narrator is a male passenger—not a woman—and Ellen is a secondary character.
- Captain Fabian Mac Elwin is a fellow passenger and Ellen’s former lover, not the narrator’s friend.
- The story’s climax occurs before the ship reaches New York, and the characters’ fates are ambiguous.
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