# XXXV: An Electric Storm explained — Journey to the Center of the Earth > Chapter companion for Journey to the Center of the Earth by Jules Verne. ## What happens Axel describes the approach and fury of a massive electric storm on the subterranean sea. The raft is driven at incredible speed through violent winds, lightning, and fireballs. The crew is lashed to the raft, unable to communicate, and a ball of fire magnetizes the iron on board, causing chaos. The storm continues for days, and Axel fears they are lost, possibly carried under Europe. ## Themes in this chapter ### The Power of Nature The electric storm is depicted as an overwhelming, uncontrollable force that dominates the characters, reducing them to helpless observers. ### Human Endurance and Survival Despite the extreme conditions, the crew endures the storm, with Hans remaining steadfast and Axel and the Professor struggling to survive. ### The Unknown and the Sublime The storm's terrifying beauty and the mysterious fireball evoke a sense of the sublime, as the characters confront forces beyond human understanding. ## Character check-ins ### Axel Liedenbrock Axel narrates the storm, describes his terror, and attempts to convince his uncle to lower the sail. ### Professor Otto Liedenbrock The Professor refuses to lower the sail, hoping to see land, and later nods consent when Axel writes the suggestion. He falls full length during the storm. ### Hans Bjelke Hans remains calm and stoic throughout the storm, his hair tipped with electric sparks, and continues at the helm even after the fireball passes. ## Key lines > The atmosphere is charged with vapours, pervaded with the electricity generated by the evaporation of saline waters. The air is full of moisture and electricity from the salty sea. _Axel describes the buildup of electrical charge before the storm._ > My whole body is saturated; my hair bristles just as when you stand upon an insulated stool under the action of an electrical machine. I feel electrified all over, like when you touch a static electricity generator. _Axel compares his sensation to a laboratory experiment with static electricity._ > The sail stretches tight like a bubble ready to burst. The sail is pulled so taut it looks like it might pop. _Axel uses a simile to convey the extreme tension on the sail._ > The heaving waves resemble fiery volcanic hills, each belching forth its own interior flames, and every crest is plumed with dancing fire. The waves look like burning mountains, with flames leaping from their peaks. _Axel describes the phosphorescent or electrically charged waves during the storm._ > The fireball, half of it white, half azure blue, and the size of a ten-inch shell, moved slowly about the raft, but revolving on its own axis with astonishing velocity. A ball of fire, white and blue, as big as a cannonball, spun rapidly as it drifted across the raft. _Axel describes the mysterious ball lightning that boards the raft._ ## Links - HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/journey_to_the_center_of_the_earth_se/chapters/xxxv-an-electric-storm - Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/journey_to_the_center_of_the_earth_se - All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/journey_to_the_center_of_the_earth_se/chapters