Fathers of Steampunk – Jules Verne

by Antiquarian World | Vas Joseph | Jul 28, 2016

Jules Verne father of Steampunk Cyprus Antiquarian World

Fathers of steampunk – Jules Verne.

Steampunk has generally seen the great evolution of life, but the topic in question is who has seen the beginning of steampunk itself? There are so many legends who can be named to be the originators of steampunk and amongst them is the great, French born, Jules Verne (1828 – 1905).

Jules Verne Vs Steampunk.

Although this legendary writer is not steampunk himself, his works, constructs of his mind and literature have been one of the main drivers of the steampunk movement and aesthetic. Jules, along with other great writers, brought to existence science fiction before the term existed, and in turn steampunk.

Steampunk as a genre is contemporary and had only materialised to existence as a concept and word in the science fiction trade journal “Locus” published in April 1987.

Antiquarian-world-steampunk-letter-cyprus-locus

Image: Locus Publications

Fundamentally, for some people in the steampunk and science fiction communities, Jules Verne is considered to be a prophet and visionary. A philosopher and scholar from the 18th century that projects technology that only came to existence in the 20th century. For example, Jules’ books which feature 20th century objects and technologies like glass sky scrapers, high speed moving trains, even calculators, not to mention a worldwide communications network.

Jules Verne can be considered as one of the fathers of steampunk due to his writings on air, space and underwater travel, long before anyone even imagined such technologies would ever exist. For example, some of his most diachronic literature “Around the world in eighty days” and “Journey to the centre of the earth”.

In essence Jules Verne would be categorised as a steampunk author if he was to write today.