Dr. Ox's Experiment (, "A Fantasy of Doctor Ox") is a humorous

science fiction Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...

novella A novella is a narrative prose fiction whose length is shorter than most novels, but longer than most novelettes and short stories. The English word ''novella'' derives from the Italian meaning a short story related to true (or apparently so) ...

by the French writer

Jules Verne Jules Gabriel Verne (;''Longman Pronunciation Dictionary''. ; 8 February 1828 – 24 March 1905) was a French novelist, poet and playwright. His collaboration with the publisher Pierre-Jules Hetzel led to the creation of the ''Voyages extraor ...

, published in 1872.A Fantasy of Dr Ox, Jules Verne, trans. Andrew Browne,

Hesperus Press Hesperus Press is an independent publishing house based in London, United Kingdom. It was founded in 2001. The publisher's motto, "Et Remotissima Prope," is a Latin phrase which means "Bringing near what is far". Hesperus Press has published som ...

, 2003Jules Verne,
Le Docteur Ox
'. Re-edited by J. Hetzel, 1920.Pierre Schoentjes (2000): "Rhétorique de l'argumentation et rhétorique de la fiction dans ''Une fantaisie du docteur Ox''". in ''Récits de la pensée : études sur le roman et l'essai'', edited by Philippe Gilles. Sédès, Paris.Volker Dehs (2015): "L'Abécédaire du ''Docteur Ox''". ''Bulletin de la Société Jules Verne'' volume 188, pages 34-67.Pierre-André Touttain (1978): "Une cruelle fantaisie : Le Docteur Ox". ''Revue des Lettres Modernes. Jules Verne 2 : l'écriture vernienne''. Minard. Paris. It describes an experiment by one Dr. Ox, and is inspired by the real or alleged effects of oxygen on living things.

Synopsis

The setting of the story is the imaginary village of Quiquendone in

West Flanders West Flanders is the westernmost province of the Flemish Region, in Belgium. It is the only coastal Belgian province, facing the North Sea to the northwest. It has land borders with the Dutch province of Zeeland to the northeast, the Flemis ...

(now part of

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

) whose citizens are described as "well-to-do folks, wise, prudent, sociable, with even tempers, hospitable, perhaps a bit heavy in conversation as in mind"; and where even "the dogs don't bite, and the cats don't scratch". Van Tricasse, the town's

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

, claims that "the man who dies without ever having decided upon anything in his life has very nearly attained to perfection." A prosperous scientist Dr. Ox comes to the authorities and offers to build a novel gas lighting system, at no cost to the town. The offer is gladly accepted. Dr. Ox and his assistant Gédéon Ygène (whose surnames happen to form the word ''oxygène'', "oxygen") propose to use electrolysis to separate water into hydrogen and oxygen, and pump the two gases through separate pipes to the city. The doctor's secret plan is however to conduct a large scale experiment on the effect of oxygen on plants, animals and humans, and so he pumps an excess of the invisible and odorless gas through all lamps. The enriched air has remarkable effects on the town. It accelerates the growth of plants, and causes excitement and aggressiveness in animals and humans. Eventually the excited citizens of Quiquendone decide to go to war against the neighboring village of Virgamen, to avenge an old offense: in 1195, a cow belonging to that town had dared to step into a Quiquendonian field and eat some mouthfuls of their grass. However, as the army was on the way to battle, an accident at Dr. Ox's plant causes oxygen and hydrogen to mix, producing a huge explosion that destroys the plant. The story ends with the town back to its traditional slow and quiet way of life. Dr. Ox and his assistant, who were not at the plant when the accident happened, disappeared without trace.

Publication history

The story ''Une fantaisie du docteur Ox'' ("A fantasy of Dr. Ox") was first read in 1872 at the Hotel of the City of

Amiens Amiens (English: or ; ; , or ) is a city and Communes of France, commune in northern France, located north of Paris and south-west of Lille. It is the capital of the Somme (department), Somme Departments of France, department in the region ...

.T. Jeunet (1873), in the ''Journal d’Amiens'' Quote: "Last year, Mr. Jules Verne, acceding to lively demands, agreed to give a reading in the grand room of the Hôtel de Ville d’Amiens. This reading was extracted from a charming literary fantasy that appeared shortly thereafter in the ''Musée de Familles''; and is going to be published, within a year or two, with beautiful illustrations, by the publisher Hertzel. Thanks to the kindness of Mr. Jules Verne and the kind authorization of the editor, the''Journal d’Amiens'' can now publish in installments this work, still unavailable in bookstores, of the popular author of the '' Extraordinary Voyages''." It was published in installments between March and May of the same year in the

magazine A magazine is a periodical literature, periodical publication, print or digital, produced on a regular schedule, that contains any of a variety of subject-oriented textual and visual content (media), content forms. Magazines are generally fin ...

Musée des Familles ''Musée des familles'' (''"Museum of Families"'') was an illustrated French literary magazine that was published in Paris from 1833 to 1900. It was founded by Émile de Girardin. The magazine was subtitled ''Lectures du soir'' (''"Readings in ...

'', and from 6 January to 6 February in ''

Journal d'Amiens A journal, from the Old French ''journal'' (meaning "daily"), may refer to: *Bullet journal, a method of personal organization *Diary, a record of personal secretive thoughts and as open book to personal therapy or used to feel connected to onesel ...

''.Jules Verne (2000): ''Contes et nouvelles de Jules Verne''. Éditions Ouest-France.Jules Verne (2011): ''Une fantaisie du docteur Ox''. Collection "2 euros", number 5298. The story was re-published in 1874 by Hetzel as the main piece of a Verne short-story anthology, ''

Doctor Ox ''Doctor Ox'' () is a collection of short stories by Jules Verne Jules Gabriel Verne (;''Longman Pronunciation Dictionary''. ; 8 February 1828 – 24 March 1905) was a French novelist, poet and playwright. His collaboration with the publ ...

'', that included three older tales. The spicy, ironic, satyric, and erotic elements of the original text were significantly expunged for this version.Jules Verne (1874), letter to Hetzel. Quote: "My dear friend, on Monday, or Tuesday at the latest, I will send you myself the Doctor Ox, and we will see what has to be suppressed for the kids."Olivier Dumas (1984): '"Le docteur Ox, censuré par Hetzel". ''Bulletin de la Société Jules Verne'', volume 71, issue 3

Notes

The town of Quiquendone may have been intended as a caricature of

, where Verne was living at the time.Jules Verne, letter to Charles Wallut. Quote: "On the wish of my wife, I am establishing myself at Amiens, a town that is wise, policed, with even temper..." The name of the town sounds in

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

as ''qui qu'en donne?'', which could be translated as "who gives?". The effects of oxygen on living things, as described in the story, are grossly exaggerated or even imaginary.

Derived works

On the stage

Dr. Ox reappears as the main villain of the play ''

Journey Through the Impossible ''Journey Through the Impossible'' () is an 1882 fantasy play written by Jules Verne, with the collaboration of Adolphe d'Ennery. A stage spectacular in the '' féerie'' tradition, the play follows the adventures of a young man who, with the ...

'', written by Verne in 1882. The original story was adapted by

Jacques Offenbach Jacques Offenbach (; 20 June 18195 October 1880) was a German-born French composer, cellist and impresario. He is remembered for his nearly 100 operettas of the 1850s to the 1870s, and his uncompleted opera ''The Tales of Hoffmann''. He was a p ...

as ''

Le docteur Ox ''Le docteur Ox'' is an opéra bouffe in three acts and six tableaux of 1877 with music by Jacques Offenbach. The French libretto was by Arnold Mortier and Philippe Gille, adapted from the 1872 short story '' Une fantaisie du docteur Ox'' by Jul ...

'', an opéra-bouffe in three acts and six tableaux, premiered on 26 January 1877 with a libretto by

Arnold Mortier Arnold Mortier (1843 – 2 January 1885) was a 19th-century French journalist, playwright, and Libretto, librettist. Arnold Mortier was responsible for the drama column at ''Le Figaro'', gathered in a collection entitled ''Les soirées parisienne ...

, Philippe Gille and Verne himself. Another version by

Annibale Bizzelli Annibale Bizzelli (23 April 1900, in Arezzo Arezzo ( , ; ) is a city and ''comune'' in Italy and the capital of the Province of Arezzo, province of the same name located in Tuscany. Arezzo is about southeast of Florence at an elevation of ...

, ''Il Dottor Oss'', was published in 1936.Annibale Bizzelli, Antonio Lega, Tullio Serafin, and Jules Verne (1936): ''Il dottor Oss : fantasia lirica : due atti in tre quadri''. Published by G. Ricordi & C., Milan. In 1964

Pierre Max Dubois Pierre Max Dubois, sometimes given as Pierre-Max Dubois (1 March 1930 – 29 August 1995) was a French composer of classical music, conductor, and music educator. He was a student of Darius Milhaud, and though not widely popular, was respected ...

adapted the story as a

ballet Ballet () is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia. It has since become a widespread and highly technical form of ...

son a libretto by

José Bruyr José Bruyr (18 March 1889–1980) was a 20th-century French-speaking Belgian poet. Biography José Bruyr was among the founding fathers of the Académie Charles-Cros. He was also a member of the Claude Debussy committee in Saint-Germain-en-Lay ...

. http://catalogue.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/cb41438574s/PUBLIC It was also adapted by

Gavin Bryars Richard Gavin Bryars (; born 16 January 1943) is an English composer and double bassist. He has worked in jazz, free improvisation, minimalism, Musical historicism, historicism, Avant-garde music, avant-garde, and experimental music. Early lif ...

as '' Doctor Ox's Experiment'', an opera in two acts with a libretto by

Blake Morrison Philip Blake Morrison (born 8 October 1950) is an English poet and author who has published in a wide range of fiction and non-fiction genres. His greatest success came with the publication of his memoirs ''And When Did You Last See Your Father?' ...

, first performed on 15 June 1998.

Other

The

H. G. Wells Herbert George Wells (21 September 1866 – 13 August 1946) was an English writer, prolific in many genres. He wrote more than fifty novels and dozens of short stories. His non-fiction output included works of social commentary, politics, hist ...

's novel '' The Food of the Gods'' (1904) has similarities to ''Dr. Ox's Experiment'', "both dealing with the alterations in humankind and its environment due to changes in the chemicals the species is supplied". The story was adapted to comics strip form by

Mathieu Sapin Mathieu is both a surname and a given name. Notable people with the name include: Surname * André Mathieu (1929–1968), Canadian pianist and composer * Anselme Mathieu (1828–1895), French Provençal poet * Claude-Louis Mathieu (1783–1875) ...

, and it inspired a 1950 comics album by

André Franquin André Franquin (; 3 January 1924 – 5 January 1997) was an influential Belgian comics artist, whose best-known creations are ''Gaston (comics), Gaston'' and ''Marsupilami''. He also produced the ''Spirou et Fantasio'' comic strip from 1946 to ...

André Franquin (1950): Il y a un sorcier à Champignac, part of the

Spirou et Fantasio ''Spirou & Fantasio'' (), commonly shortened to ''Spirou'', is one of the most popular classic Franco-Belgian comics. The series, which has been running since 1938, shares many characteristics with other European comics, European humorous adventu ...

series. It also was adapted in 1964 by

Mino Milani Mino Milani (3 February 1928 – 10 February 2022) was an Italian writer, cartoonist, journalist and historian. During his career he also used several pseudonyms, including Stelio Martelli, Eugenio Ventura, Piero Selva, Mungo Graham Alcesti and ...

with illustrations by

Grazia Nidasio Grazia Nidasio (9 February 1931 – 25 December 2018) was an Italian comic artist and illustrator. Life and career Born in Milan, Nidasio graduated from the Liceo scientifico in her hometown and later from the Brera Academy. In the 1950s she star ...

for the

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

children's magazine

Corriere dei Piccoli The ''Corriere dei Piccoli'' (Italian for "Courier of the Little Ones"), later nicknamed ''Corrierino'' ("Little Courier"), was a weekly magazine for children published in Italy from 1908 to 1995. It was the first Italian periodical to make a re ...

and extended with several original stories featuring the same character, published therein from 1964 to 1969.Mino Milani and Grazia Nidasio (2013): ''Il dottor Oss. Tutte le storie 1964-1969''. Published by Comicout. An audio version was broadcast by the

radio station Radio broadcasting is the broadcasting of audio (sound), sometimes with related metadata, by radio waves to radio receivers belonging to a public audience. In terrestrial radio broadcasting the radio waves are broadcast by a land-based rad ...

France Culture France Culture () is a French public radio channel and part of Radio France Radio France () is the French national public radio broadcaster. Stations Radio France offers seven national networks: *France Inter — Radio France's "generalist ...

in 2017.Hervé Prudon (2017), '' Une expérience du Docteur Ox]''. Radio broadcast by

, 2017-05-25, wit
online transcript

References

External links

Dr. Ox's Experiment
(Translation from 1874)
Dr. Ox's experiment, and other stories
Internet Archive

at University of Adelaide * (English and German) {{DEFAULTSORT:Doctor Ox's Experiment 1872 short stories Short stories by Jules Verne Short stories set in Belgium Ox, Dr. Works set in Flanders Works adapted into operas