Les cinq cents millions de la Bégum . . .

Verne, Jules. Les cinq cents millions de la Bégum . . . (The Begum's Fortune). 1879. New York: French & European Publications, 1976. Rewrite by JV of Pascal Grousset, L'héritage de Langevol.

Presents contrasting utopian experiments, named France-Ville and Stahlstadt (Steel City), which in turn contrast "innocent Rousseauian escapism with modern technology." The "Rousseauian" France-Ville offers "cleanliness, order, security, and above all, benevolent regimentation"; Stahlstadt offers industrial jobs. See Sam J. Lundwall on The Begum's Fortune, in Survey of Science Fiction Literature, q.v. under Reference Works, source for most of this entry, and quote. See also the Wikipedia article, here.[1]

In Voices Prophesying War, I. F. Clarke notes in this work "the nearest Verne's imagination ever came to contemplating the type of war made possible by specially devised weapons" and finds, "It [...] a strange story, a lesson in good and evil, France and Germany, the peaceful and warlike uses of science" (ch. 3, p. 67).

RDE, references, 11Aug19, 10Dec20