Book Anatomy · Around the World in Eighty Days
Around the World in Eighty Days: Prose style
17 lenses on prose style for Around the World in Eighty Days by Jules Verne. Count lenses are exact for our text. AI lenses are our reading and cite only quotes that passed a word for word check.
Jump to: H1 H2 H3 H4 H5 H6 H7 H8 H9 H10 H11 H12 H13 H14 H15 H16 H17
H1. Readability score per chapter. Count
Flesch reading ease for the whole book is about 65 (higher is easier; 60 to 70 is plain English).
Reading ease per chapter, chapter by chapter
H2. Vocabulary range. Count
6,812 different words. On average 53 in every 100 words are new within a 500 word stretch. 3,203 words appear only once.
H3. Signature words: what this author uses far more than others. Count
steamer, train, detective, passengers, francis. See the full lens on the book page.
H4. Adverb and adjective rates. Count
About 13.65 words ending in 'ly' and 13.95 likely adjectives per 1,000 words. (rough estimate from word lists)
'ly' words per 1,000, chapter by chapter
H5. Share of weak verbs such as "was" and "had". Count
'Was', 'were', 'had', 'is' and 'are' make up 3.6% of all words.
H6. Passive voice rate. Count
About 9.3% of sentences use a passive form such as 'was taken'. (rough estimate from word lists)
H7. Variety of sentence openings. Count
The five most common first words start 34% of sentences: the, fogg, he, it, passepartout.
| First word | Sentences |
|---|---|
| the | 500 |
| fogg | 336 |
| he | 214 |
| it | 155 |
| passepartout | 138 |
| but | 133 |
| i | 130 |
| mr | 92 |
| a | 79 |
| phileas | 78 |
H8. Rhythm: how much sentence length varies. Count
Sentence length varies by 0.77 of its mean on average (higher means a more varied rhythm).
Variation per chapter, chapter by chapter
H9. Similes and metaphors: how many, and of what kind. Both
110 likely similes ('like a', 'as ... as'): 1.74 per 1,000 words. (rough estimate from word lists)
Ch 2, para 2: “Faith,” muttered Passepartout, somewhat flurried, “I’ve seen people at Madame Tussaud’s as lively as my new master!”
Ch 2, para 4: During his brief interview with Mr. Fogg, Passepartout had been carefully observing him. He appeared to be a man about forty years of age, with fine, handsome features, …
Ch 2, para 9: At half-past eleven, then, Passepartout found himself alone in the house in Saville Row. He began its inspection without delay, scouring it from cellar to garret. So clean, …
Ch 2, para 11: Mr. Fogg’s wardrobe was amply supplied and in the best taste. Each pair of trousers, coat, and vest bore a number, indicating the time of year and season …
Ch 4, para 20: He mechanically set about making the preparations for departure. Around the world in eighty days! Was his master a fool? No. Was this a joke, then? They were …
Ch 5, para 8: Lord Albemarle, an elderly paralytic gentleman, was now the only advocate of Phileas Fogg left. This noble lord, who was fastened to his chair, would have given his …
Verne uses similes sparingly but effectively, mostly comparing Fogg to mechanical objects (a machine, a type of English composure) and natural forces (the earth's rotation). Few extended metaphors; the book favours direct description over figurative language.
Chapters: Ch 2, Ch 3, Ch 13, Ch 24
Calm and phlegmatic, with a clear eye, Mr. Fogg seemed a perfect type of that English composure which Angelica Kauffmann has so skilfully represented on canvas. (Ch 2, para 4)
This is just what I wanted! Ah, we shall get on together, Mr. Fogg and I! What a domestic and regular gentleman! A real machine; well, I don’t mind serving a machine. (Ch 2, para 12)
He was passing methodically in his orbit around the world, regardless of the lesser stars which gravitated around him. (Ch 17, para 33)
H10. Senses used: sight, sound, smell, touch, taste. Both
Share of sense words. sight 53%, sound 27%, touch 12%, taste 6%, smell 1%. (rough estimate from word lists)
| Sense | Words |
|---|---|
| sight | 206 |
| sound | 104 |
| touch | 48 |
| taste | 24 |
| smell | 5 |
Sight dominates throughout the adventure narrative. Sound appears in storms and action scenes. Smell is mentioned once as a detective's sense. Touch and taste are nearly absent, fitting the book's focus on external events over sensory immersion.
Chapters: Ch 21, Ch 28, Ch 29
A man rather feels the presence of these fellows, consul, than recognises them. You must have a scent for them, and a scent is like a sixth sense which combines hearing, seeing, and smelling. (Ch 6, para 9)
Phileas Fogg, with body erect and legs wide apart, standing like a sailor, gazed without staggering at the swelling waters. (Ch 21, para 8)
Glad it’s a typhoon from the south, for it will carry us forward. (Ch 21, para 32)
H11. Repetition, lists of three and other patterns. Both
107 lists of three in the pattern 'a, b and c': 1.69 per 1,000 words. (rough estimate from word lists)
Lists of three appear in Fogg's luggage (two shirts, three pairs of stockings repeated for master and servant). Repetition of key phrases like 'around the world' and 'eighty days' anchors the wager. Patterns of obstacle-solution repeat across chapters.
Chapters: Ch 4, Ch 3, Ch 9
We’ll have no trunks; only a carpet-bag, with two shirts and three pairs of stockings for me, and the same for you. (Ch 4, para 18)
In eighty days,” interrupted Phileas Fogg. (Ch 3, para 27)
As today is Wednesday, the 2nd of October, I shall be due in London in this very room of the Reform Club, on Saturday, the 21st of December, at a quarter before nine p.m. (Ch 3, para 64)
H12. Old words that may trip modern readers. Count
Old forms that may trip a modern reader: whilst, whence, ere, thither, anon, hither.
| Word | Times |
|---|---|
| whilst | 8 |
| whence | 7 |
| ere | 4 |
| thither | 3 |
| anon | 2 |
| hither | 2 |
| art | 1 |
H13. Showing against telling, with examples. AI
Verne shows character through action and dialogue rather than exposition. Fogg's coldness is revealed through his responses to crises (remaining calm during storms, paying bail without emotion) rather than authorial summary. Passepartout's loyalty emerges through his choices, not description.
Chapters: Ch 7, Ch 21, Ch 30
I hope that this will not happen again,” said Phileas Fogg coldly, as he got into the train. (Ch 10, para 23)
Phileas Fogg, with body erect and legs wide apart, standing like a sailor, gazed without staggering at the swelling waters. (Ch 21, para 8)
I will find him, living or dead,” said he quietly to Aouda. (Ch 30, para 6)
H14. How much description comes before action. Both
Description is minimal and functional. Verne moves quickly into action, using brief scene-setting before dialogue or events. Settings are sketched rather than painted; the focus stays on plot momentum and character decisions.
Chapters: Ch 6, Ch 11, Ch 20
H15. Filter words such as "saw", "felt", "heard". Count
Filter words ('saw', 'felt', 'heard' and so on): 3.69 per 1,000 words.
| Word | Times |
|---|---|
| seemed | 70 |
| thought | 58 |
| heard | 33 |
| saw | 30 |
| knew | 17 |
| felt | 17 |
| watched | 7 |
| noticed | 1 |
H16. Shifts in tone. AI
Tone shifts from the methodical precision of early chapters to urgent adventure in the middle, then to emotional vulnerability in the final chapters. Humour appears in Passepartout's mishaps and Fix's frustration, contrasting with Fogg's steadiness.
Chapters: Ch 1, Ch 19, Ch 35
Faith,” muttered Passepartout, somewhat flurried, “I’ve seen people at Madame Tussaud’s as lively as my new master! (Ch 2, para 2)
What nonsense!” cried Passepartout, striking the table with his fist. “My master is the most honourable of men! (Ch 19, para 55)
it is probable that he had not sought to enrich himself, being a man who rather laid wagers for honour’s sake than for the stake proposed. (Ch 35, para 4)
H17. How the comedy works. AI
Comedy arises from Passepartout's misadventures (entering the temple, joining the acrobatic troupe), Fix's repeated failures to delay Fogg, and the clash between Fogg's rigid precision and chaotic circumstances. Humour is situational rather than witty.
Chapters: Ch 10, Ch 22, Ch 23
Faith,” muttered Passepartout, somewhat flurried, “I’ve seen people at Madame Tussaud’s as lively as my new master! (Ch 2, para 2)
At last!” said Fix, seeing Passepartout unconscious. “Mr. Fogg will not be informed of the ‘Carnatic’s’ departure; and, if he is, he will have to go without this cursed Frenchman! (Ch 19, para 71)
It is evident,” said he to himself, “that I have been abominably drunk! What will Mr. Fogg say? At least I have not missed the steamer, which is the most important thing. (Ch 22, para 6)
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