ChatGPT Jungian Analysis of Around The World In 80 Days by Jules Verne
Having Fun With A Classic Text
This week, I finished reading Jules Verne’s ‘Around The World in 80 Days.’ You know it as a brilliantly plotted adventure romp with the stoic Phileas Fogg, accompanied by his manservant Passpartout, attempting to circumnavigate the globe in an age of steamers and newly-constructed rail lines, all to win a wager. Along the way, Fogg scoops up an Indian bride.
The book is delightful in its pacing, its descriptions of places like Singapore, Suez, Yokohama, and San Francisco; with brilliant invention, Fogg manages to overcome every setback; the book never lets up and, with a magician’s flair, dazzles with its final twist.
But because it has so few characters, and since those characters are quite fixed in some respects, I thought it was ripe for ChatGPT Jungian Analysis.
For a while now, Tatum has been using ChatGPT to provide Jungian Analysis of her dreams and it is, to date, the best use-case of ChatGPT that I have seen. The normally superficial ChatGPT is unlocked, suddenly becoming precise, perceptive, and willing to stake bold claims.
Is this exercise valuable? Short answer: I don’t know. Is it fun? Hell yes.
According to ChatGPT, Around The World in 80 Days is “not just an adventure story but also a psychological journey of individuation.”
In the beginning, Fogg’s wager “is symbolic of his need to prove himself, to conquer the world.”
Passepartout, his servant serves as the Trickster archetype, bringing unpredictability to the mechanical Fogg. His disruptions ultimately lead to opportunities for Fogg to grow and develop. For example, in Hong Kong, Passepartout gets high in an opium den, a classic trickster succumbing to temptation, forcing Fogg to change his plans and show greater flexibility than he’s used to.
Aouda, the Indian princess whom Fogg rescues from a “sati” (widow burning) ritual and later marries, “can be interpreted as the Anima—Jung’s concept of the feminine aspect within the male psyche”. Through their relationship, “Fogg becomes more in touch with his emotions, compassion, and inner humanity, aspects that were previously suppressed.”
And what of the antagonist, Detective Fix of Scotland Yard doggedly pursuing Fogg in the belief that he is a bank robber? What does ChatGPT have to say about him?
“Detective Fix can be seen as an externalization of Fogg’s Shadow. Fix represents the suspicion, doubt, and mistrust that Fogg must overcome in his journey. Fix’s eventual realization of his mistake and his help in the final leg of the journey symbolize the integration of the Shadow into Fogg’s conscious mind.”
Meanwhile, the countless entertaining cultural encounters that must have fascinated 19th century audiences represent the larger collective unconscious, all of which had to be navigated to be ultimately integrated.
“Around the World in 80 Days is not just an adventure story but also a psychological journey of individuation for Phileas Fogg. His transformation from a mechanical, isolated individual to a more emotionally connected and self-aware person reflects the Hero's journey towards wholeness, integrating various archetypal forces within his psyche.”
Not bad, ChatGPT. You’re finally getting somewhere. Used to be, you could only help with itineraries. Now look at you.
On the whole, I agree with ChatGPT but there is one other that I noticed that I want to add because us fictions writers, I think, are always in search of credible motivations for characters.
Honor over Money —- A large part of Passepartout’s admiration for Fogg stems from his disdain for money. Fogg is not motivated by the monetary aspect of the wager. He is wiling to spend freely, extravagantly, rewarding people along his journey, and is willing to risk ruination but not his honor. The wager therefore has more spiritual weight: Fogg’s stakes his whole life, his whole fortune, on his own capacity. It makes him truly a hero of our times.
I hope you enjoyed this brief little detour. I certainly enjoyed reading Around The World in 80 days. My current work-in-progress novel has travel aspects and many cultural encounters so I’m definitely not above copying the techniques of masters like Verne and others. It is a very quick read and Spotify also has an excellent audio version read by Ralph Cosham.
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Excellent review, Raghav. Not many contemporary writers would explore the virtues of this classic storyteller.