The proud Orinoco

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Front cover of the French original edition with an illustration by the draftsman George Roux
Illustration from the novel by the draftsman George Roux

The proud Orinoco is a novel by the French author Jules Verne . The novel was first published with the first part on June 23, 1898 and the second part on November 14, 1898 by the publishing house Pierre-Jules Hetzel under the French title Le superbe Orénoque . A preliminary publication took place in the Magasin d'Éducation et de Récréation in volumes 7 and 8 from January 1 to December 15, 1897. The first German-language edition appeared in 1898 under the title The proud Orinoco .

action

The plot of the novel takes place in Venezuela along the entire length of the Orinoco River from its mouth to its source. Three scholars have differences of opinion regarding the clarification of the exact course and in particular the determination of the "correct" source flow. You embark on a journey to explore the course of the river. You start your boat trip to the upper reaches of the Orinoco in the provincial capital Bolívar . At the beginning of your research trip you meet two travelers from France , the old professional soldier Sergeant i. R. Martial and his nephew Jean. Jean is actually the young wife Jeanne the Sergeant. For security reasons she disguised herself as a man. The two expect that traveling through the Venezuelan wilderness will be safer for a man than for a woman. The couple are looking for the officer Colonel von Kermor, who disappeared a few years ago. Von Kermor left his home a few years ago. He lost his wife in a shipwreck and is of the opinion that his daughter was also killed.

On the way to the upper reaches of the Orinoco, the tour company meets two other French people. The researchers Germain Paterne and Jaques Helloch want to explore the botanical features of a tributary of the Orinoco. They think it is safer to travel with the group and eventually join the tour company out of curiosity. On the further journey the group comes to an area that is ruled by dangerous villains and wild Indians. The journey follows in the footsteps of Alexander von Humboldt , whose research trips also took him through this area.

Uncle Martial, Jean / Jeanne, Germain and Jaques eventually split up from the rest of the group. You drive to the mission station Santa Juana further upstream. Its leader, Father Esperante, is said to have information about the missing colonel. Through his work, he spread education, faith and prosperity in the mission and the surrounding villages.

The seedy Spaniard Jorres is also on his way to the mission station. In reality, he is the rogue Alfaniz, wanted in the entire area, and has committed murders on his way to the predatory Indians of the Quivas. Jorres separates from the group that night. He ambushes the tour group that is captured by the quivas. The Indian boy Gomo, who had recently joined the group, escapes the ambush and manages to make his way to the nearby mission station. There he alerts Father Esperante, who is going out with his protection force to fight the band of robbers and free their prisoners. After this has been successful, it turns out that he is actually the wanted Colonel von Kermor.

Film adaptations

  • The novel was in 2005 in Venezuela , under the original title in 1888, el extraordinario viaje de la Santa Isabel (also in 1888, el extraordinario viaje de Jules Verne filmed) by director Alfredo Anzola and under the title 1888 The Extraordinary Voyage of Jules Verne as a DVD in the USA expelled.

literature

  • Heinrich Pleticha (ed.): Jules Verne manual . Deutscher Bücherbund / Bertelsmann, Stuttgart and Munich 1992.
  • Volker Dehs and Ralf Junkerjürgen: Jules Verne . Voices and interpretations of his work. Fantastic Library Wetzlar, Wetzlar 2005.
  • Volker Dehs: Jules Verne . Jules Verne. A critical biography. Artemis & Winkler, Düsseldorf 2005. ISBN 3-538-07208-6

Web links

Commons : The Mighty Orinoco  - collection of images, videos and audio files