Around the World in 80 Days

Around the World in 80 Days, by Jules Verne is one of my favorite books. While I typically like longer books than this one, this novel has such a wide range of settings with a new adventure in each one, that this book of 122 pages is more exciting than most 500 page books I have read. Most importantly, this book is very applicable to how Literature is being changed by the Digital Age. 

We begin with the character of Phileas Fogg, who is a very proper, well regulated, British Gentleman. He does the same thing every day at precisely the same time in precisely the same way. Then out of the blue, a friend challenges an idea of Mr. Foggs's, that with the new impressive traveling routes, a person could make it around the world in a mere 80 days. Taking the bet, Mr. Fogg decided to leave that very afternoon, along with his servant, to prove that one could travel the world in such a short period of time. On his travels, Mr. Fogg doesn't always stick to his route, and he meets new people and becomes acquainted with new ideas. 

This reminds me in many ways of the "new traveling routes" of experiencing literature that are available due to many new digital resources. While many scholars want to stay within defined, regulated standards of learning, if we take a step outside of the world we are used to living in and explore, we can discover many new ideas and ways of relating to literature.