# XIV: Chance! explained — The Giant Raft

> Chapter companion for The Giant Raft by Jules Verne.

## What happens

Public opinion shifts dramatically in favor of Joam Dacosta as the search for Torres's body and the discovery of an indecipherable document raise hopes of his innocence. Judge Jarriquez becomes obsessed with cracking the cryptogram, trying various number keys (dates, ages, booty value) without success. In desperation, he calls his servant Bobo to attempt a random selection, but logic fails him.

## Themes in this chapter

### Justice and Innocence

Public opinion swings from demanding death to believing in Dacosta's innocence; the judge's frantic efforts to decipher the document represent the struggle for true justice.

### Deception and Truth

The cryptogram is a puzzle of deception; its truth is hidden in a code that may exonerate Dacosta or be a ruse by Torres.

### Mortality and Fate

Dacosta's life hangs on the deciphering of the document; the judge's obsessive work reflects a battle against fate and time.

## Character check-ins

### Joam Dacosta

The prisoner whose innocence is now widely believed; his fate hinges on deciphering the document.

### Benito Garral

His struggle with Torres and the subsequent search for the body contributed to the change in public opinion.

### Torres

His corpse was found with the document; the document is not in his handwriting, raising questions about its origin.

### Judge Jarriquez

Obsessively works to decipher the cryptogram, trying multiple number keys; his frustration mounts as logic fails.

### Bobo

The judge's freed negro servant, called in desperation to attempt a random selection for the cipher key.

## Key lines

> A complete change took place in public opinion on the subject of Joam Dacosta. To anger succeeded pity.

The public's view of Joam Dacosta shifted entirely from fury to sympathy.

_Describes the reversal of popular sentiment._

> Never had a problem so taken possession of this oddity, and he had thoroughly made up his mind to get at the solution, even if his head exploded like an overheated boiler under the tension of its vapor.

Judge Jarriquez was so consumed by the puzzle that he was determined to solve it no matter the mental cost.

_Highlights the judge's obsessive and almost dangerous fixation._

> Now for chance! Heaven help me now, logic is powerless!

I'll rely on luck now; reason has failed me.

_The judge abandons logical methods and turns to randomness._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_giant_raft_se/chapters/xiv-chance
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_giant_raft_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_giant_raft_se/chapters