Nemo's cabin, by Riou

Captain Nemo's Cabin

 
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emo’s cabin with its five-meter length is quite roomy, even with the hull taper and the space I’ve appropriated for a meter-wide forward corridor.  Although just under two meters wide at its forward end, it widens to nearly four meters aft. The floor area is just over 14 m2.  The cabin has two doors, forward to Aronnax’s cabin and aft to the salon. Both forward cabins have 2½-meter ceilings.  Although not particularly useful in this forward section, which has no practical space above, I’ve lowered the corridor overhead to accommodate an air vent as Sylvain St-Pierre has suggested. Nemo's (currently empty) cabin
To date I've done no work here; there isn't even a light.  The picture shows the empty cabin looking forward into Aronnax's mostly furnished cabin.
Nemo’s cabin presents something of a puzzle.  The entire forward part of the Nautilus is luxuriously appointed, except for the captain’s cabin, which is described as "austere, almost monastic" with "no luxuries.  Just the bare necessities".  Since this part of the boat seems to be reserved for Nemo and his castaway guests, the exception seems strange.  We might again consider that Nemo designed the Nautilus in better times with a luxurious cabin for himself and perhaps, his wife, but changed the cabin when he built it to reflect his new condition and attitude.

We might apply my thought that Aronnax’s cabin was actually the sleeping room of the captain’s suite.  Nemo’s cabin contains a full set of instruments (duplicated in the salon) so let’s consider that this room is really the control center of the submarine.  It is a utilitarian room, with no need of luxury. We can then speculate about Nemo’s life before the coming of the castaways.  For sleep, he had the comfort of the small forward sleeping cabin.  He took his meals in the luxurious dining room, and studied in the library or salon.  We can surmise that he spent a great deal of time in the salon, considering the "disorder" for which he apologizes.  The duplicate instruments in the salon allowed him to keep one eye on the progress of the Nautilus while he pursued his other studies.


Here our tour ends, but feel free to explore the Nautilus at your convenience on your own.

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